Abstract—The present work reports the corrosion resistance of low-carbon steel in alkaline model solutions (saturated Ca(OH)₂) in the presence of empty vesicles of poly (butadiene-b-ethylene oxide) (PBd-PEO). The main objective was to define the electrochemical response of the steel electrodes in chloride free and chloride containing solutions. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS), Linear Polarization Resistance (LPR) and Cyclic voltammetry (CV) were performed at certain time intervals, whereas open circuit potential (OCP) was monitored continuously throughout the test. The motivation of this research was to evaluate the effect of PBd-PEO vesicles on the electrochemical response of steel in model solutions, prior to “loading” them with active substance and employing them as an additive to reinforced concrete. In other words, “empty” vesicles were subject to investigation in this work, where the obtained results serve as a control case for on-going work on self-healing in reinforced cement-based materials. The study reveals that, the addition of 0.025 wt.% empty PB_d-PEO vesicles has a positive effect on the protective properties of the passive film, formed on the treated steel surface in solutions with and without chloride. This enhancement in the surface film properties was assigned to the variation in the chemical composition and altered redox processes on the steel surface when PB_d-PEO vesicles were present.

 

Index Terms—corrosion, vesicles, model solution, PB_d-PEO, EIS

Cite: Hitham Mahmoud A. Hassan, and Dessi A. Koleva, "Corrosion Behavior of Low-Carbon Steel in Model Solutions, Containing Empty PB_d -PEO Vesicles," International Journal of Structural and Civil Engineering Research, Vol. 6, No. 2, pp. 101-106, May 2017. doi: 10.18178/ijscer.6.2.101-106