Mechanistic Investigation in Controlling Metal Corrosion by Synegistic Effect of Ultrasonic and Polymer Corrosion Inhibitors

doi:10.11902/1005.4537.2025.241

Journal of Chinese Society for Corrosion and protection

2026, Vol. 46

Issue (3): 883-892 DOI: 10.11902/1005.4537.2025.241

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Mechanistic Investigation in Controlling Metal Corrosion by Synegistic Effect of Ultrasonic and Polymer Corrosion Inhibitors

GAO Jinbiao¹^,²^,³, LIU Yi¹, ZHAO Haibo¹^,³, GAO Qinghe⁴, WU Yushen², YU Xin⁴(

)

^1.Earth Science College, Northeast Petroleum University, Daqing 163318, China
^2.State Key Laboratory of Acoustics and Marine Information, Institute of Acoustics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
^3.Exploration and Development Research Institute of PetroChina, Daqing Oil Field Co. Ltd., Daqing 163712, China
^4.Heilongjiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Oilfield Applied Chemistry and Technology, Daqing Normal University, Daqing 163712, China

Cite this article:

GAO Jinbiao, LIU Yi, ZHAO Haibo, GAO Qinghe, WU Yushen, YU Xin. Mechanistic Investigation in Controlling Metal Corrosion by Synegistic Effect of Ultrasonic and Polymer Corrosion Inhibitors. Journal of Chinese Society for Corrosion and protection, 2026, 46(3): 883-892.

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Abstract

This study investigated how ultrasound and polymer corrosion inhibitors affect the rusting of 20# carbon steel in a polyacrylamide solution, focusing on the safety issues related to metal pipeline rust during oil and gas development in a polymer flooding environment. Contemporary research primarily focuses on examining individual factors in polymer flooding or ultrasound. In contrast, the mechanism by which ultrasound and polymer synergistically regulate the corrosion behavior of metals remains ambiguous. The experiment examined the mechanism by which a polymer corrosion inhibitor affects the corrosion behavior of 20# carbon steel in a polyacrylamide medium under ultrasonic modulation. Characterization techniques, including kinetic potential polarization tests, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), were employed to analyze the impact of varying ultrasonic power (0%-100%) on the rheological properties of the polyacrylamide solution and the electrochemical corrosion behavior of the metals. The experimental findings indicate that the corrosion inhibition effect is optimal at an ultrasonic power of 25%, resulting in a substantial reduction in corrosion current density. The cavitation effect of ultrasonic diminishes solution viscosity, suppresses the cathodic oxygen reduction reactions, regulates the anodic dissolution of metals, and facilitates the formation of non-conductive corrosion products. This paper proposes innovative technical concepts for the corrosion protection of oil and gas transmission pipelines, which are of great engineering significance for extending their service life.

Key words: metallic corrosion ultrasound electrochemistry polyacrylamide acoustic cavitation

Received: 28 July 2025 32134.14.1005.4537.2025.241

ZTFLH:

TG174

Fund: Open Project of the National Key Laboratory of Acoustics and Marine Information, Institute of Acoustics, Chinese Academy of Sciences(SKLA202412);National Fund Cultivation Fund of Northeast Petroleum University(2024GPL-01);Scientific Research Startup Fund for Talent Introduction of Northeast Petroleum University(2023KQ03)

Corresponding Authors: YU Xin, E-mail: yu2604797339@163.com

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	GAO Jinbiao
	LIU Yi
	ZHAO Haibo
	GAO Qinghe
	WU Yushen
	YU Xin

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https://www.jcscp.org/EN/10.11902/1005.4537.2025.241 OR https://www.jcscp.org/EN/Y2026/V46/I3/883

Table 1 Polarization curves fitting parameters with ultrasound treatment for 1 min

Fig.1 Potentiodynamic polarization curves of metals after 5 d of immersion in a system with different ultrasonic powers

Fig.2 Nyquist plots (a1-e1) and Bode plots (a2-e2) after 120 h of corrosion comparing the control group (a) with environments subjected to ultrasonic power levels of 25%P (b), 50%P (c), 75%P (d) and 100%P (e)

Fig.3 EIS equivalent circuit diagram

Fig.4 Polarization resistance at different time nodes under different polarization resistance at different time nodes under different ultrasonic power

Fig.5 XRD patterns of samples from different systems after 5 d of immersion

Fig.?6 Microcorrosion morphology of the control group (a) and the electrolyte environments at ultrasonic powers of 25 %P (b), 50 %P (c), 75 %P (d) and 100 %P (e) after 120  h of corrosion (a1-e1) and the same samples after cleaning (a2-e2)

Fig.7 Schematic diagram of the multi-scale mechanism of ultrasonic-assisted polymer corrosion inhibition

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