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Natural corrosion inhibitors for steel reinforcement in concrete - A review

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DOI: 10.1142/S0218625X15500407

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 Surface Review and Letters, Vol. 22, No. 3 (2015) 1550040 (8 pages)
°c World Scienti¯c Publishing Company
DOI: 10.1142/S0218625X15500407

NATURAL CORROSION INHIBITORS FOR STEEL

REINFORCEMENT IN CONCRETE — A REVIEW

PANDIAN BOTHI RAJA, SEYEDMOJTABA GHOREISHIAMIRI

and MOHAMMAD ISMAIL*
Faculty of Civil Engineering
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.

81310 UTM, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia

*mohammad@utm.my
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

Received 5 January 2015

Revised 23 February 2015
Accepted 25 February 2015
Published 10 April 2015

Reinforced concrete is one of the widely used construction materials for bridges, buildings, platforms
and tunnels. Though reinforced concrete is capable of withstanding a large range of severe envir-
onments including marine, industrial and alpine conditions, there are still a large number of failures
in concrete structures for many reasons. Either carbonation or chloride attack is the main culprit
which is due to depassivation of reinforced steel and subsequently leads to rapid steel corrosion.
Among many corrosion prevention measures, application of corrosion inhibitors play a vital role
in metal protection. Numerous range of corrosion inhibitors were reported for concrete protection
that were also used commercially in industries. This review summarizes the application of natural
products as corrosion inhibitors for concrete protection and also scrutinizes various factors
in°uencing its applicability.

Keywords: Corrosion; corrosion inhibitor; natural products; reinforcement steel; concrete; review.

1. Introduction In general, concrete provides reinforcing steel with

Concrete is a composite material made of cement,
water and aggregates which has been used as the
largest quantity for construction material in many
decades. Cement is a major component of concrete,
when mixed with water forms a paste that sets and
hardens due to hydration reactions. Usually, concrete
is comparatively weak in tension, arrangements have
to be made for the tensile stresses in the structure to be
transferred to another material that is strong in ten-
sion. Hence, concrete structures are often strengthened
by embedding steel ribs which is known as reinforce-
ment in concrete. Prime setback of reinforcement in
concrete is corrosion.
*Corresponding author.
excellent corrosion protection. The high alkaline en-
vironment in concrete results in the formation of a
tightly adhering ¯lm, which passivates the steel and
protects it from corrosion.1,2 Passivation means the
metals do not lose electrons (anodic reaction), which
render metals to be inactive/inert for corrosive envi-
ronment. Though, presence of porosity in concrete
allows the oxygen to di®use through it which becomes
dissolved in pore solution and at the end reaches
the surface of the steel.3 Further, there are two
more aggressive agents namely chlorides and carbon
dioxide (CO2) which can cause corrosion to the steel
bar. These aggressive agents can penetrate through

1550040-1
 P. B. Raja, S. Ghoreishiamiri & M. Ismail
concrete cover without causing signi¯cant damage
and then promote the corrosion of steel by removing
the protective passive oxide layer on the steel.
Carbonation begins with chemical reaction be-
tween carbon dioxide (CO2) gas from the atmosphere
and the alkaline hydroxides from the concrete. CO2
readily dissolves in water to form the carbonic acid
which does not attack the cement paste, while neu-
tralizing the alkalis in the pore water and producing
calcium carbonate that lines the pores. Presence of
Calcium hydroxide in the concrete increases the al-
kalinity and maintains the pH level of 12–13. Further,
the carbonates attack inside the concrete results in
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.
formation of Calcium carbonate which reduces the pH
(< 8) level and causes the corrosion of reinforcement.
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
CO2 þ H2 O ! H2 CO3
H2 CO3 þ CaðOHÞ2 ! CaCO3 þ 2H2 O
Chloride attack involves no drop in the overall pH
while it acts as catalysts to corrosion when there is
su±cient concentration at the rebar surface to break
down the passive layer. Chloride ions not consumed in
the process while they help to destroy the passive
layer over steel surface, allow the corrosion process to
proceed quickly. When chloride ions appeared in so-
lution around iron, it reacts with Fe 2þ of passive ¯lm
over steel surface and forms an iron–chloride complex.
Subsequent hydrolyzes of iron–chloride complex result
in ferrous hydroxide and also liberate the chloride ions
for further attack over iron surface.
Fe 2 þ Cl
! ½FeCl complex þ
½FeCl complex þ þ 2OH
! FeðOHÞ2 þ Cl

Corrosion of reinforcement has huge economic
implications as well as social issues including endan-
gering the safety of people who are working in in-
dustries. Federal highway administration of USA has
estimated the annual cost of corrosion damage of
highway bridges as $13.6 billion per year.4 Corrosion
accidents over concrete structure may cause loss of
human lives which has to be given priority than
money. Steel bar corrosion in concrete can be reduced
by the following well-known methods5; selection of
corrosion-resistant steel, use of coatings, addition of
concrete sealers, use of membranes, use of thicker
concrete cover, addition of corrosion inhibitors and
cathodic protection. Corrosion inhibitors for rein-
forced concrete can be de¯ned as the chemical
1550040-2
substances/admixtures that when added in adequate
amounts to concrete, can reduce the corrosion of
reinforcing steel without signi¯cantly changing the
concrete properties.6
In general, traditional concrete corrosion inhibi-
tors can be classi¯ed as7; inorganic corrosion inhibi-
tors (mainly nitrites) and organic corrosion inhibitors
(alkanolamine and their inorganic, organic acid salt
mixtures). The corrosion inhibitors can be classi¯ed
based on their mechanisms of protection as; anodic,
cathodic, mixed and adsorption inhibitor.7 Corrosion
inhibitors can be introduced into reinforced concrete
either as preventive measures to new structure or as
surface applied inhibitors for preventive and restor-
ative purposes.8 Thus based on mode of applications
inhibitors can be classi¯ed as; migrating inhibitors
(can penetrate into the hardened concrete) and
admixed inhibitors (added to fresh concrete for new
structures).
Calcium nitrate (CN) was found as commercial-
ized concrete corrosion inhibitor during 1960–1970's.
Recently, several ranges of corrosion inhibitors in-
cluding nitrites, sodium mono °uoro phosphate,
quarternary ammonium salts, alkanoamines, amines,
amino acids, unsaturated fatty acid ester of an ali-
phatic carboxylic acid and saturated fatty acid are
commercialized for concrete protection. Literature
concerns with all the concrete corrosion inhibitors
were well reviewed by many authors.8–16 Among
many concrete corrosion inhibitors most widely used
in the construction ¯eld are CN, amine-alkanolamine
(AMA)-based inhibitors and mono°uorophosphate
(MFP)17,18 which was well reviewed by S€oylev et al.8
Though all these corrosion inhibitors provide suf-
¯cient concrete protection, they have negative
impacts as well in the form of toxicity and hazards to
the human beings and environment. Toxic e®ects of
these corrosion inhibitors may be incurred either
during the synthesis of the compound or during its
applications which may cause reversible (temporary)
or irreversible (permanent) damage to organ system
namely, kidneys or liver, or to disturb a biochemical
process/an enzyme system at some site in the body.19
All these factors enforce many countries to frame
environmental regulations for using synthetic corro-
sion inhibitors. Nitrites were found to have excellent
corrosion inhibition potential while its carcinogenici-
ty and biological toxicity forced their ban in Germany
and Switzerland.20 Corrosion inhibitors containing

vanadium, antimony, copper and thiocyanate com-
pounds were classi¯ed as toxic pollutants by the U.S.
Environmental protection agency (EPA). Neverthe-
less, despite all these concerns, corrosion inhibitors
still play a vital role in metal protection.
Researchers then focus more towards developing
\natural solution" for corrosion problems. Their
prime target is to ¯nd cheap, hazardless, eco-friendly
and environmental biocompatible corrosion inhibi-
tors. This review summarizes the \natural" corrosion
inhibitors developed for reinforced steel in concrete
and also discusses various factors in°uencing its
applications.
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
2. Natural Corrosion Inhibitors
for Reinforcing Steel in Concrete
In general, corrosion inhibitors for concrete are added
only once in the system and the following are the
criteria for an e®ective inhibitor for reinforced con-
crete; e±cient even at lower concentrations, long
term stability inside the concrete, homogeneous dis-
tribution and not readily leachable from concrete and
should not a®ect the properties of concrete. Substi-
tution of natural inhibitors in place of synthetic
compounds may lead to the development of less toxic,
environmental benign, cheap and cost e®ective cor-
rosion inhibitors. Plant sources ful¯ll all these
requirements since their products namely alkaloids,
°avonoids, terpenes and polyphenolics are very rich
in electron donating hetero group (S, N, O and con-
jugated
-electrons). Thus, plant sources can be uti-
lized to synthesize natural corrosion inhibitors while
their recent development has been reviewed by many
authors.19,21–23 Literature of natural corrosion inhi-
bitors for reinforced steel concrete are listed here.
Tannin — sugar fractions of vegetable extracts
was tested positively as natural inhibitors for rein-
forced steel in concrete.24 Tantawi and Selim25 have
studied magrabe banana's stem juice in concrete
admixtures to improve physiochemical and mechan-
ical properties of reinforced steel concrete in satu-
rated Ca(OH)2 mixed with di®erent concentrations of
NaCl medium (1–5 %). This paper includes discussion
on admixture preparation of banana juice, compo-
nents of reinforcing steel concrete and measurement
parameters. Corrosion behavior of reinforced steel
electrode was reported by using galvanostatic anodic
1550040-3
Natural Corrosion Inhibitors for Steel Reinforcement
polarization technique. Further, admixture e®ect on
physiochemical and mechanical properties of concrete
(yield stress, ultimate stress and percentage of elon-
gation) were also reported. Results and discussion
section comprised of ¯gures namely the relation be-
tween compressive strength of cement pastes and ad-
mixture concentration, compressive strength of cement
pastes with di®erent additive concentrations as func-
tion of curing time, e®ect of admixture content on the
bulk density of cement pastes, in°uence of admixture
concentration on the free CaO contents of hydrated
cement for di®erent curing time, relation between
chemically combined water and admixture concentra-
tion for di®erent curing periods, anodic polarization
curves in absence and presence of natural inhibitor.
White juice of banana stem was reported to show
increase in compressive strength with admixture
concentration 0.1%; but, it was found to decrease
with further addition of admixture concentration
0.1%–0.35%. Decrease in compressive strength was
attributed to the adsorption of admixture on the
surface of anhydrous cement grains which protected
it from further water attack. Corrosion inhibition
potential of banana stem juice admixture with dif-
ferent concentrations (0.05, 0.10, 0.20 and 0.30%-
mL/100 gm cement) was screened in corrosive media
(sat. Ca (OH)2 þ 1–5% NaCl). The results concluded
that steel manifests high degree of passivation when
admixed at concentration of 0.1 and 0.2%.
Acosta26 had proven the corrosion inhibition po-
tential of dehydrated Opuntia ¯cus indica (Nopal) for
steel corrosion in alkaline media. He used half-cell
potential and linear polarization resistance method
for corrosion analysis while microscopy analysis over
steel bar was also carried out at the end of the mea-
surement. Schematic diagram of electrochemical cell
con¯guration was included in this manuscript where
the results were narrated from the graphs of potential
vs time, polarization resistance vs time, inhibition
e±ciency vs chloride concentration and cumulative
fractions vs number of pits. Half-cell potential results
showed small di®erence between rebar with control
(saturated calcium hydroxide solution – SCH) and
Nopal (inhibitor) added SCH. The rebar half-cell
potentials for Nopal-added solutions were a few mil-
liVolts more positive than those from the Nopal-free
solution (control rebars).
Linear polarization results supported that Nopal
inhibits rebar corrosion when chloride contamination
 P. B. Raja, S. Ghoreishiamiri & M. Ismail
jeopardized the corrosion resistance of the metal in an
alkaline environment. Further, IE percentage for
Nopal was found to be more than 70% in all studied
concentrations. Nopal was also found to show more
reliable performance at IE of 85% and remained con-
stant for chloride concentrations higher than 1.5%.
This manuscript concluded that addition of Nopal
increases the polarization resistance values four times
than similar steel in alkaline medium (control rebar
 40 k
cm2 with Nopal  150 k
cm2). Further, mi-
croscopy analysis revealed that chemical reaction of
Nopal with iron results in formation of denser oxide/
hydroxide ¯lm over the reinforcing steel surface which
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.
apparently provides the metal protection.
Arghel extract was tested as corrosion inhibitor for
reinforced steel concrete in 0.5 M NaCl by Abdel–
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Gaber et al.27 He evaluated corrosion IE through
electrochemical techniques namely DC method
(potentiodynamic polarization) and AC method
(electrochemical impedance (EIS)) as well as by visual
inspection (after 18 months of sample immersion).
Reinforced steel with known chemical composition
and Arghel's methanol extract of 250 ppm concen-
tration were employed in all experiments. Polariza-
tion results showed that Arghel extract shifted the
corrosion potential to more negative value while
showing slight e®ect on the cathodic part of the po-
larization curves. This observation was well supported
by open circuit potential (OCP) measurement which
showed OCP shift in less negative (anodic) direction.
Thus, Arghel extract was reported as anodic type in-
hibitor for steel in simulated seawater solutions.
EIS results depicted an equivalent circuit consist-
ing of Rs (Ohmic internal resistance of the cell), Qdl
(double layer constant phase element), Rct (charge
transfer resistance) and a Warburg element (Wo ).
EIS data showed regular increase in the charge
transfer resistance with time which was attributed to
the e®ect of precipitation of solid calcium hydroxide
layer at the steel/concrete interface in addition to the
passivity of steel in alkaline cement that works as a
di®usion barrier. On the other hand, Warburg resis-
tance value was decreased with time which was re-
lated to the decrease of the concrete matrix resistance
to the di®usion process of chloride ion and oxygen.
Visual inspection images were also included in the
manuscript which supported well the electrochemical
results. This manuscript concluded that Arghel ex-
tract has high corrosion inhibition potential; it acts
1550040-4
by retarding the di®usion process rather than charge
transfer or concrete resistance.
Abdulrahman et al.,28–30 had extensively studied
and reported the corrosion inhibition potential of
Bambusa arundinacea (BA) extract for reinforcement
steel corrosion in concrete. Fresh leaves of BA were
water washed, shade dried, grounded into powder
and used for whole studies. BA extract was studied to
improve the strength of concrete contaminated by
chloride and sulphate.28 Analytical grade Magnesium
sulphate and Magnesium chloride were used for this
purpose while results were compared with CN and
ethanolamine inhibitors. E®ect on addition of MgCl2
and MgSO4 over concrete strength had been mea-
sured and interpreted. Main conclusions of this study
include addition of inhibitor which has no harmful
e®ect on concrete strength while it tremendously
increases it; BA did not contain heavy metals which
eliminate the fear of possible formation of dioxin with
chloride contamination water.
BA extract was investigated for its ability to repas-
sivate the chloride induced corrosion of steel.29 Linear
polarization, EIS and ¯eld emission scanning electron
microscopy (FE SEM)–Energy dispersive X-ray spec-
troscopy (EDX) techniques were employed for this
purpose. Results showed that addition of BA extract
reduces the corrosion rate which was found to follow
mixed mode of corrosion inhibition mechanism. SEM
images supported well the formation of passive layer over
steel surface. Electrochemical assessment of ternary salts
(CN and ethanolamine) and BA extract for corrosion
protection of reinforced steel were studied and repor-
ted.29 Results included data/graphs of corrosion poten-
tial vs time and corrosion current vs time which support
well the corrosion inhibition e±cacy of BA extract.
Water permeability resistance and microstructure
of reinforced concrete when treated with BA as nat-
ural corrosion inhibitor was reported.30 For this,
concrete mix was designed for a compressive strength
of 30 MPa with W/C (water-to-cement ratio) 0.45
which was chloride contaminated. BA inhibitor was
added 2% (by weight of cement). The specimens were
subjected to various tests, namely compressive
strength test, durability (permeability using initial
surface absorption test (ISAT) and FESEM) for 360
days exposure. Results showed that addition of inhi-
bitors Ca(NO2)2 and C2H7NO increases the concrete
permeability while BA extract was found to increase
the strength of chloride contaminated specimen.

Addition of BA extract with concrete admixtures
showed least change when compared with other
commercial inhibitors (MgCl2, Ca(NO2)2 which was
attributed to the reduced chloride ion di®usivity that
reduces internal transition zone percolation. FESEM–
EDX images of chloride induced changes in reinforced
concrete and chloride induced changes in hydration
products of bulk concrete were also included and
discussed. This manuscript concluded that BA may
be considered as a better substitute for nitrite and
amine-based corrosion inhibiting admixtures for du-
rable concrete structures due to its hydrophobic
e®ects, adsorption property, viability, versatility and
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eco-friendliness. Further, BA was reported to have
e±cient pore blocking ability which can retard the
formation of di®erential aeration of cell that promote
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
corrosion on the steel surface.
Okeniyi et al.,31 have tested Rhizophora mangle L
extract as corrosion inhibitor admixture for reinfor-
cing steel in 0.5 M H2SO4. Authors analyzed the
electrochemical results through statistical distribu-
tion ¯tting models (Kolmogorov–Smirnov goodness-
of-¯t statistics) and percentage of inhibition e±ciencies
was also calculated. Results of statistical distribution
¯tting models were depicted by Normal probability
distribution model and Weibull distribution model;
corrosion parameters namely corrosion potential,
corrosion current and corrosion rate were plotted
against di®erent concentrations of Rhizophora man-
gle L extract. IE results by experimental method and
theoretical prediction were plotted against di®erent
concentrations of Rhizophora mangle L extract;
agreement and con°ict between experimental values
and theoretical predicted values were analyzed as
well. This manuscript concluded that Weibull prob-
ability distribution described the distribution of cor-
rosion test data better than the Normal probability
distribution. Further, Rhizophora mangle L extract
with admixture concentration of 0.1667% was found
to show optimum e®ectiveness of 78 13:8% for ex-
perimental and 70:73  23:44% for theoretical pre-
dicted models.
Vernonia amygdalina extract was investigated as
corrosion inhibitor for mild steel rebar concrete in
3.5 M NaCl medium by Loto et al.32 The authors have
tested corrosion inhibition of Vernonia amygdalina
by weight loss measurement, potential and pH mea-
surements and concrete parameter (compressive
strength) was also reported. Schematic representation
1550040-5
Natural Corrosion Inhibitors for Steel Reinforcement
for potential measurement was included in the man-
uscript and the results were depicted as potential vs
exposure time graphs separately for each concentra-
tion (25, 50, 75 and 100%) of inhibitor studied. Po-
tential measurement indicated that addition of
Vernonia amygdalina extract e®ectively reduced cor-
rosion in all studied concentrations and showed
maximum corrosion protection at concentration level
25%. Weight loss results were found along with the
potential measurement results which show maximum
IE of 90% at 25% concentration while compressive
strength showed positive e®ect with inhibitors con-
centration. This manuscript concluded that addition
of Vernonia amygdalina extract altered potential, pH
and compressive strength; the inhibitor was found to
protect metal e®ectively at lower concentration level
of 25%.
Eyu et al.,33 have studied the corrosion inhibition
property of Vernonia amygdalina extract for carbon
steel in concrete exposed to 3.5 M NaCl medium.
They made corrosion analysis through weight loss
measurement, corrosion potential measurement,
half-cell measurement, concrete resistivity measure-
ment and visual inspection. The results obtained
were compared with commercial inhibitors namely
sodium nitrite and calcium nitrites as well. Phyto-
chemical composition of Vernonia amygdalina ex-
tract was reported to have alkaloids, saponins and
tannins. Corrosion results were discussed using the
graph between weight loss, IE and corrosion rate.
Results obtained were clearly evident that Vernonia
amygdalina extract exhibited comparable corrosion
protection with commercial inhibitors (Sodium ni-
trate and CN). The IE for Vernonia amygdalina
extract was reported as 75% at concentration level
6% (v/v).
3. Critical Analysis
Table 1 summarizes the corrosion parameters/
concrete properties reported for natural inhibitors
application for reinforced steel corrosion in concrete.
Most authors stimulate sea water environment (3.5%
NaCl) as corrosive media and measured compressive
strength for mechanical properties of concrete.
Electrochemical method namely polarization mea-
surement which includes anodic polarization and
potentiodynamic polarization has been used by many
 P. B. Raja, S. Ghoreishiamiri & M. Ismail

Table 1. Corrosion parameters/concrete properties of natural inhibitors for reinforced steel corrosion in concrete.

Concrete properties
Natural corrosion Corrosion (Physiochemical &
inhibitors Authors Corrosive media measurement Maximum IE Mechanical)

Tannin — sugar Wieckzorec NaCl — — —

fractions24 et al., 1995
Magrabe banana Tantawi et al., Ca(OH)2 þ NaCl Anodic polarization — Compressive strength, yield
stem25 1996 stress, ultimate stress,
percentage of elongation
Opuntia ¯cus Acosta, 2007 Chloride Half cell potential, 85% —
indica26 contaminated linear polarization,
alkaline media microscopy
analysis
Arghel extract27 Abdel–Gaber 0.5 M NaCl Potentiodynamic — —
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.

et al., 2010 polarization, OCP,

EIS, Visual
Inspection
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com

BA28–30 Abdulrahman Chloride & Linear polarization, — —

et al., 2011 Sulphate media EIS, SEM/EDX
Abdulrahman NaCl Linear polarization, — Compressive strength
et al., 2012 EIS
Asipita et al., Chloride media FESEM/EDX — Compressive strength,
2014 concrete strength, water
permeability
Rhizophora Okeniyi et al., 0.5 M H2 SO4 Statistical 78% —
mangle L31 2014 distribution ¯tting
models
Vernonia Loto et al., 3.5% NaCl Potential, weight loss 75% Compressive strength
amygdalina32 2014
Eyu et al., 2013 3.5% NaCl Weight loss, half-cell 96% Concrete resistivity
potential, visual
inspection

authors for corrosion evaluation. The above literature
clearly showed the advantages of using natural cor-
rosion inhibitors for reinforced steel in concrete.
Further, these natural inhibitors showed comparable
results with commercial corrosion inhibitors while the
IE values evidenced its e®ective corrosion protection.
Though only few reports were found as natural inhi-
bitors for corrosion protection of metals in reinforced
concrete, the natural corrosion inhibitors for metals
have enormous reports.19,21–23 The reasons are that
the corrosion analysis on metals in reinforced concrete
needs relatively high volume of plant extract, longer
time duration for corrosion assessment, di±culty in
understanding corrosion inhibition mechanism, so-
phisticated instruments and expertise, to measure
physiochemical, mechanical parameters and durabil-
ity properties of concrete and to test corrosion inhi-
bitors blends with uncertain concrete composition.
Commercialization of natural corrosion inhibitors
for reinforced steel has not made the breakthroughs
into mass use and the reasons may be possible risk of
microbiological corrosion, lower IE as compared with
synthetic inhibitors, life time of natural inhibitors is
uncertain inside the concrete, need for huge volume of
raw materials (plant sources) for manufacturing,
immense use of herbs and rare species may ruin down
the plant kingdom.
Nevertheless, all these drawbacks can be overcome
by adopting suitable methodology. Few recommen-
dations are; agricultural wastes (coconut shell, palm
oil fruit bunch, paddy husk, sugarcane waste etc.,)
can be developed as corrosion inhibitors, application
of biocide materials to increase the stability of inhi-
bitors inside the concrete (biocides are substances
added with building materials to prevent micro-
organisms which includes fungi, algae and bacteria;

1550040-6

most popular biocides are Irgarol 1051, Sea Nine
211)34,35 and corrosion analysis in prototype setup
before use in industry/¯eld. Green extraction of
phytoconstituents from plant sources and ideal solid
waste disposal of raw materials has to be taken into
account. Further, standardization of natural corro-
sion inhibitors (stability of inhibitor inside concrete
at di®erent electrolyte, temperature and pressure),
standardization of concrete properties (compressive
strength, concrete strength, yield stress, ultimate
stress, percentage of elongation, setting time and
durability) and standardization of corrosion moni-
toring techniques (weight loss, potentiodynamic
by UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA on 05/11/15. For personal use only.
polarization, EIS and surface morphology) should
also be considered for natural corrosion inhibitors
development.
Surf. Rev. Lett. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
Research on corrosion inhibitors already opens the
gate for advanced technology viz., smart corrosion
inhibitors, nano coatings, nano corrosion sensors,
green sensors, green nano inhibitors and etc. Present
scenario of development of corrosion inhibitors for
reinforced steel concrete soon will be tuned towards
above advanced research.
4. Conclusions
Use of reinforced concrete is a common practice in
many construction industries, since it has superior
physical properties and is low cost. Corrosion of
steel inside the concrete is a main setback while
corrosion inhibitors play a vital role in metal pro-
tection. Synthetic corrosion inhibitors were found to
be toxic and hazardous to the environment which
encourage researchers to develop natural corrosion
inhibitors. Literature review clearly evidenced that
natural products can very well serve as corrosion
inhibitors for reinforced steel corrosion in concrete.
Application of natural corrosion inhibitors has few
drawbacks, which can be overcome by adopting
suitable methodology.
Acknowledgment
The authors gratefully acknowledged the ¯nancial
support provided by MOHE, FRGS Grant No. 4F528,
RMC, PDRU Grant No. 01E65, MOSTI, escience
Grant No. 4S090, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia.
1550040-7
Natural Corrosion Inhibitors for Steel Reinforcement
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