Evaluation of adsorption behaviour of benzylidene chitosan derivatives at mild steel/ 0.5 M H2SO4 solution interface

Four green benzylidene chitosan derivatives (BCs) were synthesized and evaluated as anti-corrosive substances for the first time against mild steel corrosion in 0.5 M H2SO4 solution. The synthesized BCs were laid to infrared spectroscopy and proton resonance spectroscopy for structural confirmation. Gravimetric and electrochemical experiments were accustomed to appraise the effectiveness of inhibitors, however, Scanning Electron Microscopy-Electron Dispersive Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) were exploited to evaluate the protective mechanism offered by benzylidene chitosan derivatives. Experimental results demarcate the synthesized inhibitors; Anisaldehyde modified Chitosan (CMB), 2-Hydroxy-4-methoxybenzaldehyde modified Chitosan (CHMB), 2,4-Dimethoxybenzaldehyde modified Chitosan (CDMB) and 2-Bromo-4-methoxybenzaldehyde modified Chitosan (CBMB) exhibiting praising inhibitory properties for mild steel corrosion and CDMB was seen possessed preferable inhibition potential at the finest concentration of 500 mgL-1 owing to the proximity of two electron-donating OCH3 groups. Furthermore, the inhibitors have been recorded to behave mixed type with pronounced impact on hydrogen evolution kinetics. The order of inhibition efficacy obtained was CDMB (98.8 %) > CHMB (95.4 %) > CMB (92.8 %) > CBMB (89.2 %) which was further validated by quantum chemical calculations which later opened up about the mechanistic approach involved in electron transfer from inhibitors to metallic vacant orbitals. Additionally, the effect of molecular structure possessed by synthesized inhibitors has been correlated with observed variation in their corrosion inhibition efficiency.