A New Method for Preventing Corrosion Failure: Thiourea and Hexamethylenetetramine as Inhibitor for Copper

To investigate the inhibition mechanism of combined thiourea and hexamethylenetetramine as a corrosion inhibitor on the surface of copper in 0.5 M HCl solution, the electrochemical properties were measured by potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. The generated film was examined by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Quantum chemical calculations and molecular dynamics simulations were performed to study the properties of thiourea and hexamethylenetetramine. The results suggest that the inhibitors can form strong bonds on the surface of copper. The combination of thiourea and hexamethylenetetramine resulted in stable films, which could inhibit the cathodic and anodic reactions and greatly reduce the diffusion of corrosive particles.