Influence of functional group position in aminophenols on corrosion inhibition efficiency under carbonation exposure
摘要
This study investigates the corrosion inhibition efficiency of aminophenol-based compounds—specifically 2-aminophenol (2AP), 3-aminophenol (3AP), and 4-aminophenol (4AP)—in carbonated concrete environments, focusing on the influence of hydroxyl group positioning relative to a fixed amine group. The research was conducted in two phases. In Phase 1, the inhibitors were evaluated in simulated concrete pore solutions at varying concentrations (0.01, 0.05, and 0.1 M) to assess their efficiency and inhibition mechanisms on reinforcing steel. Results showed that 2AP exhibited high inhibition efficiency at lower concentration (97.83% at 0.01 M), but declined significantly at higher levels (88.3% at 0.1 M). In contrast, 4AP showed a consistent increase in performance with rising concentration from 86% at 0.01 M to 96.9% at 0.1 M indicating a concentration-dependent mechanism. 3AP maintained high and stable efficiency across all concentrations (ranging from 97.8 to 98%). In Phase 2, performance in hardened concrete under accelerated carbonation revealed that 4AP reduced carbonation depth by 22%, outperforming 3AP (10%) and 2AP (4%). Half-cell potential and corrosion current density (icorr) measurements further confirmed the superior performance of 4AP, attributed to both pore-blocking and surface adsorption mechanisms. These findings demonstrate that molecular structure—specifically hydroxyl group position—significantly influences corrosion inhibition behavior in carbonated concrete environments.