Synthesis of aluminium oxide nanoparticles from waste aluminium foils for corrosion inhibition of mild steel pipe

Abstract

The driving force of Oman’s economy is oil and gas industries with a fairly diversified treasure among Gulf cooperation council countries. The corrosion problems in oil pipelines would be successfully resolved by means of novel control techniques. The current study aimed to synthesize aluminium oxide (Al2O3) nanoparticles from waste aluminium foil and to assess its potential application in corrosion inhibition of mild steel pipe. Al2O3 nanoparticles have been synthesized by facile co-precipitation technique at room temperature. The synthesized Al2O3 nanoparticles have been used to fabricate nanocomposite thin films using a biopolymer, chitosan by dip coating technique and to carry out corrosion inhibition studies of mild steel pipe. The characterisation techniques employed are scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, atomic force microscopy. Atmosphere test and Wet/Dry tests are carried out to investigate the corrosion behaviour of coated specimen. From the experimental studies, it is observed that the chitosan – Al2O3 nano thin film could inhibit the corrosion and also to enhance the lifespan of the mild steel pipe. This novel research project is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG- 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and Oman vision 2040. The study demonstrates that the chitosan – Al2O3 composite thin films fabricated using dip coating technique with minimum film thickness can be a feasible solution in controlling the corrosion in oil pipelines with good film stability, high durability, with a cost effective and environmentally friendly approach.