Electrochemical Investigation of Corrosion on AISI 316 Stainless Steel and AISI 1010 Carbon Steel: Study of the Behaviour of Imidazole and Benzimidazole as Corrosion Inhibitors

An electrochemical investigation of the corrosion on AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel and AISI 1010 carbon steel in sodium chloride solution (3.0 wt.%) was performed in the absence and presence of imidazole and benzimidazole corrosion inhibitors. The results showed that at any inhibitor concentration (25 ppm to 1000 ppm), there was an increase in the polarisation resistance of both steels. The highest efficiency of corrosion inhibition was obtained using imidazole at a concentration of 50 ppm for both steels, with values of 96% for the AISI 316 stainless steel and 73% for the AISI 1010 carbon steel.