Water: corrosiveness with metals

Used by Austrians, September 1917 as a mixture with benzene, bromacetone and benzene Campiellite. Crystalline, mp 52°C, vapour pressure at 25°C 119.5 mmHg, volatility at 16°C 155 000 mg/m3. Soluble in organic solvents, sparingly soluble in water. Corrosive to metals. Irritant to eyes and airways at 6 mg/m3. Effects as per cyanide. 

HCl gas reacts with metal oxides to form chlorides, oxychlorides, and water. Therefore, all the steel equipment should be pickled to remove the oxide scales before it is put in service. Because oxidi2ing agents in the HCl gas such as oxygen or chlorine significantly affect the corrosion rate, it is essential that the operating temperature of the steel equipment be kept below the temperature (316°C) at which ferric chloride is vapori2ed from the metal surface. 

The corrosion behavior of plutonium metal has been summarized (60,61). a-Plutonium oxidizes very slowly in dry air, typically <10 mm/yr. The rate is accelerated by water vapor. Thus, a bright metal surface tarnishes rapidly in normal environments and a powdery surface soon forms. Eventually green PUO2 [12059-95-9] covers the surface. Plutonium is similar to uranium with respect to corrosion characteristics. The stabilization of 5-Pu confers substantial corrosion resistance to Pu in the same way that stabilization of y-U yields a more corrosion-resistant metal. The reaction of Pu metal with Hquid water produces both oxides and oxide-hydrides (62). The reaction with water vapor above 100°C also produces oxides and hydride (63). 

Cla.riGers. Pool water may occasionally contain metallic impurities such as copper, iron, or manganese which enter the pool with the makeup water or by corrosion of metallic parts in the circulation system. These dissolved metals can discolor the water and cause stains. Chlorine oxidizes soluble Fe and to the highly insoluble Fe(OH)3 and MnO which can be removed by filtration. Water-soluble, high molecular weight polymers can be... 

Treatment with sulfuric acid and fractional distillation are the main methods used to purify bromine. It is especially important to reduce the water content to less than 30 ppm to prevent corrosion of metal transportation and storage containers. 

In the presence of oxygen and water the oxides of most metals are more thermodynamically stable than the elemental form of the metal. Therefore, with the exception of gold, the only metal which is thermodynamically stable in the presence of oxygen, there is always a thermodynamic driving force for corrosion of metals. Most metals, however, exhibit some tendency to passivate, ie, to form a protective oxide film on the surface which retards further corrosion. 

Acid producers. Corrosion usually is moderate and localized. Almost all significant attack is associated with anaerobic bacteria (facultative and obhgate), as aerobic acid-producing varieties usually reside near the top of deposits and corrosion products contacting oxygenated waters. Thus, the direct effect on corrosion at metal surfaces is limited. Additionally, although acidic products may be expected to increase corrosion rates, acidity cannot be pronounced in deposits to put it simply, the deposits and corrosion products would dissolve at sufficiently acidic pH. 

White, friable corrosion products composed of Bayerite AI2O3 3H2O, caustic, and NaA102 cover corroded areas (Fig. 8.3). The white corrosion product and deposit usually test as distinctly alkaline when mixed with distilled water. Corrosion products usually cling tenaciously to the underl3dng metal and do not form voluminous lumps. Instead, corrosion products line and coat generally wasted surfaces below. 

Alter the chemistry of the common fluid to render it less conductive and/or less corrosive. Generally, water corrosivity increases with an increase in temperature and oxygen content and a decrease in pH. Inhibitors may he effective. Note that in mixed-metal systems, higher dosages of inhibitors may be required than would be necessary in single-metal systems in the same environment. 

Turbulence and high fluid velocities resulting from normal pump operation accelerated metal loss by abrading the soft, graphitically corroded surface (erosion-corrosion). The relatively rapid failure of this impeller is due to the erosive effects of the high-velocity, turbulent water coupled with the aggressiveness of the water. Erosion was aided in this case by solids suspended in the water. 

Chemical Reactivity - Reactivity with Water No reaction Reactivity with Common Materials Corrosive, particularly when diluted. Attacks most common metals, including most stainless steels. Excellent solvent for many synthetic resins or rubber Stability During Transport Stable Neutralizing Agents for Acids and Caustics Dilute with water, rinse with sodium bicarbonate solution Polymerization Not pertinent Inhibitor of Polymerization Not pertinent. 

Chemical Reactivity - Reactivity with Water Slow reaction with water to produce hydrochloric acid fumes. The reaction is more rapid with steam Reactivity with Common Materials Slow corrosion of metals but no immediate danger Stability During Transport Not pertinent Neutralizing Agents for Acids and Caustics Soda ash and water, lime Polymerization Does not occur Inhibitor of Polymerization Not pertinent. 

In addition to the formation of scale or corrosion of metal within boilers, auxiliary equipment is also susceptible to similar damage. Attempts to prevent scale formation within a boiler can lead to makeup line deposits if the treatment chemicals are improperly ehosen. Thus, the addition of normal phosphates to an unsoftened feed water ean eause a dangerous eondition by elogging the makeup line with preeipitated calcium phosphate. Deposits in the form of calcium or magnesium stearate deposits, otherwise known as "bathtub ring" can be readily seen, and are caused by the eombination of ealcium or magnesium with negative ions of soap stearates. 

The reason for using feed heating to set the entry feed water temperature at a level T, above the condenser temperature is that Tb must exceed the dewpoint temperature Tjp of the exhaust gases. If is below Tjp then condensation may occur on the outside of the economiser tubes (the temperature of the metal on the outside of the tubes is virtually the same as the internal water temperature because of the high heat transfer on the water side). With Tb > Tjp possible corrosion will be avoided. 

Typical marine propellers are fixed pitch and small in diameter with veiy thin, but broad, blade sections. They are made from either cast metal, corrosion-resistant metal alloys such as copper, or composite materials. Marine propellers normally operate at 60 percent efficiency due to the proximity of the ship s hull, which limits the overall diameter of the propeller and disturbs the efficient flow of water through the blades. As a result, the blades have to be veiy wide to produce adequate thrust. Marine propeller designers use innovations such as overlapping blades and wheel vanes to offset those problems and improve efficiency. 

Reactions with aqueous solutions. Uniform dissolution or corrosion of metals in acid, alkaline or neutral solutions (e.g. dissolution of zinc in hydrochloric acid or in caustic soda solution general corrosion of zinc in water or during atmospheric exposure). Reactions with non-aqueous solution (e.g. dissolution of copper in a solution of ammonium acetate and bromine in alcohol). 

The hydrogen evolution reaction (h.e.r.) and the oxygen reduction reaction (equations 1.11 and 1.12) are the two most important cathodic processes in the corrosion of metals, and this is due to the fact that hydrogen ions and water molecules are invariably present in aqueous solution, and since most aqueous solutions are in contact with the atmosphere, dissolved oxygen molecules will normally be present. 

Hatch, G. B., Maximum Self-generated Anodic Current Density as an Inhibitor Pitting Index , III. State Water Surv., Circ. No. 91, 24 (1966) C.A., 66, 8l8l4f Herbsleb, G., Pitting Corrosion on Metals with Elearon-conductive Passive Layers , tVerksl. Korros., 17, 649 (1966) C.A., 66, 5337m ... 

Metals immersed or partly immersed in water tend to corrode because of their thermodynamic instability. Natural waters contain dissolved solids and gases and sometimes colloidal or suspended matter all these may affect the corrosive projjerties of the water in relation to the metals with which it is in contact. The effect may be either one of stimulation or one of suppression, and it may affect either the cathodic or the anodic reaction more rarely there may be a general blanketing effect. Some metals form a natural protective film in water and the corrosiveness of the water to these metals depends on whether or not the dissolved materials it contains assist in the maintenance of a self-healing film. 

Addition of about 0 04% arsenic will inhibit dezincification of a brasses in most circumstances and arsenical a brasses can be considered immune to dezincification for most practical purposes . There are conditions of exposure in which dezincification of these materials has been observed, e.g. when exposed outdoors well away from the sea , or when immersed in pure water at high temperature and pressure, but trouble of this type rarely arises in practice. In other conditions, e.g. in polluted sea-water, corrosion can occur with copper redeposition away from the site of initial attack, but this is not truly dezincification, which, by definition, requires the metallic copper to be produced in situ. The work of Lucey goes far in explaining the mechanism by which arsenic prevents dezincification in a brasses, but not in a-/3 brasses (see also Section 1.6). An interesting observation is that the presence of a small impurity content of magnesium will prevent arsenic in a brass from having its usual inhibiting effect . 

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