Cinnamaldehyde-modified chitosan as a bio-derived corrosion inhibitor for acid pickling of copper: Microwave synthesis, experimental and computational study

Chitosan (CS) was cross-linked using cinnamaldehyde (Cinn) in a single step procedure following microwave irradiation to produce cinnamaldehyde-modified chitosan (Cinn-CS). The synthesized Cinn-CS was used as a novel corrosion inhibitor for copper in 1 M hydrochloric acid. A comprehensive electrochemical investigation using the impedance measurements, and potentiodynamic polarization was undertaken, supported with surface analysis and computational studies. The inhibitor Cinn-CS functioned by adsorption on the copper surface and showed an inhibition efficiency of >89% at a dose of 1000 mgL⁻¹. The charge transfer resistance showed a rise with increase in inhibitor dosage to the corrosive medium, and the corrosion currents showed a significant decrease with the addition of the inhibitor. The Cinn-CS displayed a mixed type of inhibition performance with cathodic nature. The study of the copper surface using scanning electron microscopy depicted a considerably smooth morphology in the presence of the adsorbed Cinn-CS. The computational studies indicated that the Cinn-CS Schiff base shows better adsorption behavior compared to the parent molecules of chitosan and cinnamaldehyde and can show an inhibition performance in the neutral, and the protonated form.