Performance of Pfaffia paniculata extract towards corrosion mitigation of low-carbon steel in an acidic environment

Abstract

Low-carbon steel (LCS) in 0.5 M sulphuric acid is used to check the corrosion resistance performance of Pfaffia paniculata (P. paniculata) root extract. Notably, P. paniculata showed 91% corrosion resistance efficiency at 600 mg/L concentration. The adsorption of this inhibitor follows the Langmuir adsorption isotherm suggesting its monolayer formation on the LCS surface. The potentiodynamic polarization experiments indicated its nature as mixed adsorption behaviour. P. paniculata shows 88.34%, 90.16%, and 91.59% inhibition efficiency by weight loss, polarization, and EIS technique respectively. The scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy techniques were used for the verification of protective layer on the LCS surface. The protective film formation study was checked using the UV–Vis. spectroscopy. Computational investigations were consolidated as a valuable report. All acquired outcomes confirmed that P. paniculata root extract can develop an efficient protective layer and resist the corrosion procedure.