Corrosion behavior of ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloy in stagnant and flowing seawater with entrained sediment

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this investigation was to study the erosion-corrosion behavior of ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloy in seawater (flow velocity from 0 to 0.8 m/s, sediment content from 0 to 0.15 percent), to analyze the effects of the flow velocity and sediment content on the erosion-corrosion process.

Design/methodology/approach

A simulated erosion-corrosion test system was set up. Weight loss determinations and electrochemical measurements (such as potentiostat square wave (PSW), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization tests) were used to study the erosion-corrosion behavior of ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloy in stagnant and flowing seawater with different sediment contents.

Findings

Under the test conditions, ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloys had good corrosion resistance to stagnant clear seawater, while increasing the flow velocity and sediment content reduced the corrosion resistance of the material. The difference in the erosion-corrosion mechanism between flow velocity and sediment content was that the former affected both the cathode process and the anode process of electrochemical corrosion, while the latter essentially affected only the anode process.

Originality/value

This paper explains the effects of flow velocity and sediment content on the erosion-corrosion behavior of ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloy in flowing seawater.

Citation

Luo, Y., Li, Q. and Song, S. (2014), "Corrosion behavior of ZHMn55-3-1 copper alloy in stagnant and flowing seawater with entrained sediment", Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Vol. 61 No. 2, pp. 96-103. https://doi.org/10.1108/ACMM-04-2013-1255