Alkyl carboxylates as efficient and green inhibitors of magnesium alloy ZE41 corrosion in aqueous salt solution

Long chain alkyl carboxylates like stearate, palmitate and myristate were investigated for their efficiency in inhibiting the corrosion of magnesium alloy ZE41 in an aqueous salt medium containing 0.2 M Na2SO4 and 0.1 M NaCl. The techniques like potentiodynamic polarization and EIS, along with SEM and EDX analyses were employed. The inhibition was proposed to be the result of adsorption of alkyl carboxylates, which was found to obey the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The inhibition was assumed to be the outcome of the formation of a compact modified surface film due to the precipitation of adsorbed alkyl carboxylates of magnesium.