Molecular Origin of the CO₂-Enhanced Water Wetting During Corrosion of an Oil Layer-Attached Steel Surface in Water Flows Available to Purchase

To understand the role of CO₂ in multiphase flow corrosion, the durability of an oil layer attached to a steel surface against fluid flows was systematically evaluated. It confirms that CO₂ can destabilize the protective oil layer and initiate electrochemical corrosion through the oil layer, showing a solution chemistry governed flow dependency. The CO₂-induced oil layer rupture was attributed to the water droplet actions at the oil/water interface and the steel surface, where the generation of microdroplets was facilitated by the interactions between the dissolved CO₂ and the oil molecules. It gives new insights into the replacement of oil layer by water in CO₂-containing multiphase fluids, which benefits many application fields, such as corrosion and lubrication in oil-water mixed environments.