A Laboratory Study of the Effect of Ozone, Nitrogen Dioxide, and Sulfur Dioxide on the Atmospheric Corrosion of Zinc

Abstract

We report on a laboratory study of the role of , , and in the sub‐parts per‐million range on the atmospheric corrosion of zinc. Each sample was exposed individually to synthetic atmospheres with careful control of pollutant concentrations, relative humidity, and flow conditions. In addition, we studied the interaction of the pollutants with zinc using time‐resolved trace‐gas analysis. and accelerate the corrosion of zinc in humid air containing . oxidizes loosely bound four‐valent sulfur on the zinc surface to sulfate while catalyzes the oxidation of on zinc. The increased formation of sulfate and hydrogen ions on the surface leads to the dissolution of solid corrosion products and to an increased rate of metal dissolution. The acceleration of oxidation and deposition on zinc by becomes increasingly important as the concentration of and decreases. The results suggest that and may be important factors in the atmospheric corrosion of zinc.