Electrochemical and quantum chemical studies of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones as corrosion inhibitors for mild steel in hydrochloric acid solution

The inhibition effect of 3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-ones (DHPMs) on the corrosion of mild steel in hydrochloric acid medium has been investigated using weight loss measurements, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, potentiodynamic polarization and quantum chemical study. Among the compounds studied, DHPM-3 exhibited the best inhibition efficiency η (%) 99% at 10 mg L−1 at 308 K. Polarization measurements indicate that all the examined compounds are of mixed-type inhibitor. The adsorption of studied compounds obeyed the Langmuir’s adsorption isotherm. The electronic properties obtained using quantum chemical approach, were correlated with the experimental inhibition efficiencies.