STUDY OF CORROSION OF SUPER MARTENSITIC STAINLESS STEEL UNDER ALTERNATING CURRENT IN ARTIFICIAL SEAWATER WITH ELECTROCHEMICAL IMPEDANCE SPECTROSCOPY

The assessment of corrosion requires the use of tools able to quantify the corrosion but often times also qualify it. Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) is a laboratory tool that can provide both qualification and quantification of corrosion. EIS was successfully used to compare the thickness of the corrosion products formed during the application of different alternating current (AC) densities as well as to characterize pitting. When EIS is applied at the open circuit potential, the technique is nondestructive and predicts the corrosion behavior of the electrode. It can also be used at cathodic potentials while still being nondestructive, providing information about the electrode reaction kinetics, diffusion and electrical double layer.