A new approach for the evaluation of liquid waste generated from plant extraction process for the corrosion mitigation of carbon steel in acidic medium: Case of Chrysanthemum Coronarium stems

In this study, the efficacy of liquid waste derived from the hydrodistillation of Chrysanthemum Coronarium stems as a corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel in 1 M HCl was investigated. Phytochemical screening and analysis of total phenolic and flavonoid contents were conducted to determine the chemical abundance of the extract (CCSE). An electrochemical evaluation was performed using polarization potentiodynamic and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy at 293 K. The results revealed that the extract effectively suppressed the corrosion of carbon steel with an inhibition efficiency of 80% through a mixed inhibition mechanism. The effect of temperature on corrosion inhibition was evaluated, and the synergistic effect of KI in combination with the CCSE inhibitor was also studied. Surface morphology examination of carbon steel was conducted through SEM-EDX analysis to further examine the electrochemical findings and to understand the surface changes caused by the inhibitor. Additionally, computational analysis utilizing Density Functional Theory (DFT) and Molecular Dynamics Simulation (MD) was conducted to gain further insight into the electronic adsorption mechanism at the active sites of the phytochemical compounds.