The effect of ionic liquids on the corrosion inhibition of copper in acidic chloride solutions

Abstract

The influence of the concentration of the 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (BMIMCl) and 1-Butyl-3-methylimidazolium bromide (BMIMBr) as ionic liquids (ILs) on the corrosion inhibition of copper in 1.0 M Cl- solutions of pH 1.0 was studied. The investigation involved electrochemical polarization methods as well as electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM) technique and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The inhibition efficiency increases with an increase in the concentration of BMIMCl and BMIMBr. Adherent layers of inhibitors were postulated to account for the protective effect. Both of the compounds act as a mixed-type inhibitor. The values of standard free energy of adsorption suggest the chemical adsorption BMIMCl and BMIMBr on the copper surface. © 2011 M. Scendo and J. Uznanska.