Electrodeposition of Magnetite on Carbon Steel in Fe(III)-Triethanolamine Solution and Its Corrosion Behavior

Abstract

A dense and adhesive magnetite layer was successfully electrodeposited on a carbon steel in the Fe(III)-TEA solution. Electrochemical tests for the carbon steel and magnetite were conducted in an alkaline solution. These tests using the adherent magnetite specimens produced by electrodeposition is a new method to investigate the corrosion behavior of magnetite. The corrosion resistance of magnetite is superior to that of the carbon steel. When the magnetite and carbon steel are electrically contacted, the magnetite and carbon steel play the role of cathode and anode because the corrosion potential of the magnetite was higher than that of the carbon steel. If the magnetite and carbon steel are galvanically contacted to the equivalent area ratio (1 : 1), the corrosion rate of galvanic coupled carbon steel will increase by about 3.5 times than that of non-coupled carbon steel.