Potential sustainable electrochemical corrosion inhibition study of Citrus limetta on mild steel surface in aggressive acidic media

Green corrosion inhibitors are of recent interest because of their cost-effectiveness, biodegradability, and eco-friendly characteristics. Plant extracts have been recognized as valuable resources for the corrosion inhibition of metallic alloys. Out of those, one of the most important properties is to exhibit excellent corrosion inhibition on metal surfaces. In the present paper, the corrosion inhibition efficiency of Citrus limetta, commonly known as Mosambi peel extract on mild steel surfaces in an acidic environment has been reported through investigation by some electrochemical methods such as weight loss, potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance. The investigated green inhibitor was found to exhibit corrosion inhibition efficiency of 93% on the mild steel surfaces in hydrochloric acid media. The adsorption mechanism of the peel extract on a mild steel surface was interpreted and it confirms there is a combination of both physisorption and chemisorption associated with the interaction between the Citrus limetta peel extract and mild steel surface. The extract was characterized using fourier infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy.