Polymers as corrosion inhibitors for sweet environment

Abstract

The sweet corrosion of alloy steels presents a major challenge in the oil and gas industry. To counter this issue, a number of different inhibitors are proposed in literature. Polymers are vouched for inhibition purposes on account of their large molecular size that can efficiently cover the surface of metallic substrate. Furthermore, the presence of any π-bonds, cyclic structures, phenyl rings, polar functional groups, heteroatoms, etc., aids in metal-inhibitor interaction. Several research articles have described the application of polymers as corrosion inhibitors for steels in CO2-saturated saline environments simulating sweet conditions. This chapter presents a brief outline of the significance of polymeric materials in corrosion inhibition. Structures and literary examples of various polymers as corrosion inhibitors are presented. Some of the critical issues in the application of polymeric inhibitors are discussed. Some of the chemically functionalized or modified polymers as corrosion inhibitors are also described. © 2023 WILEY-VCH GmbH.