The rate of corrosion of steels in seawater may be controlled by the rate of the cathodic reaction. In the absence of dissolved oxygen, hydrogen evolution is the most probable cathodic reaction. While there have been studies of the hydrogen evolution reaction on iron in well-defined, simple solutions,1 no such studies exist for commercial steels in seawater.
One means of protecting steel against corrosion is to coat it with a metal that has a higher hydrogen overpotential, such as tin. The hydrogen evolution reaction on tin has been studied by Quintin and Hagymas2 and by Noninski, et al.,3 in H2SO4. However, similar studies in seawater have not yet been reported.
The kinetics and mechanism of the hydrogen evolution reaction have been investigated on patented steel wire and on tin in synthetic seawater, and the results of the work are reported here.
Patented steel...
