Curtis Hauck, Trent Ruiz, Piolo Miguel Sanchez, Dr. Cynthia Flores, Dr. Brian Rasnow, & Dr. Caryl Ann Becerra
Abstract
To study corrosion degradation at the material point level, the electrochemical process of corrosion must be considered. Further improvement of this model will account for microbiologically induced corrosion (MIC). This research utilizes the scanning vibrating electrode technique (SVET) to validate the electrochemical model of corrosion, which led to the development of a novel experimental technique to measure corrosion named: scanning simulated vibrating electrode technique (sSVET). Additionally, this research implements the experimental procedures to gain deeper understanding of the effects of microorganism presence on corrosion, allowing for improved understanding of MIC and its introduction into the electrochemical model.
Both the SVET and sSVET measure change in the electric potential to determine the ionic current density driven by an electrochemical cell’s anodic and cathodic regions. Ionic current density maps of the sample are created for comparison with computational maps from the simulated model. The vibrating probe produces a higher signal-to-noise ratio than similar techniques because the AC signal produced from the vibration allows the utilization of lock-in amplifier principles. The novel drive circuits eliminate costly piezo-electrics in favor of MOSFET switches to control potential oscillation and solenoid vibration. The solenoid is vibrated well above the resonant frequency to achieve stable and calculable vibration. Control circuits are utilized to oscillate the equipotential lines thus simulating a vibrating electrode. This simulation of vibration on the electrode is the basis to the novel sSVET technique. Discrepancies between current density models with and without MICs will lead to the development of a microbiologically induced coefficient (MICo) to be included within the electrochemical model.
The developed SVET and sSVET techniques have shown success in measuring change in equipotentials within the electrochemical cell.
Details
Session 2
1:30pm – 2:45pm
Del Norte Hall
Room D: 1530
HSI-SMART
Leave a Reply