Hexagonal Boron Nitride for Sulfur Corrosion Inhibition

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Corrosion Engineering
• Biotechnology

Background:

• Sulfur compounds pose significant corrosion challenges in engineering.
• Developing effective coatings against diverse sulfur corrosion (abiotic and biotic) is difficult.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate atomically thin hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) as a protective coating for copper against sulfur corrosion.
• To evaluate the impact of hBN layer thickness on corrosion resistance in various environments.

Main Methods:

• Coating copper surfaces with few atomic layers of hexagonal boron nitride (hBN).
• Exposing coated and bare copper to abiotic (sulfuric acid, sodium sulfide) and biotic (sulfate-reducing bacteria medium) corrosive environments.
• Quantifying corrosion rates and analyzing bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation.

Main Results:

• Atomically thin hBN (∼4 layers) reduced copper corrosion by 6-7 fold in abiotic and biotic sulfur environments.
• Corrosion resistance was attributed to hBN's barrier properties against corrosive species.
• Multilayers of hBN promoted bacterial adhesion and biofilm growth, reducing protection against biogenic sulfide.

Conclusions:

• Few-layer hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) is the thinnest coating demonstrated to resist diverse forms of sulfur corrosion.
• Optimal hBN thickness is crucial for effective corrosion protection, as multilayers can be detrimental in biocorrosion scenarios.