In 2 - 3 scentences, please write how electrochemistry is involved in preventing corrosion.
Thank you
We shall be happy to review your work if you wish. Here is a site to get you started.
http://www.egr.uri.edu/che/course/CHE534w/chapter9CorrosionPreventionByElectrochemcialMethods.htm
My answer is longer than 2 - 3 scentences but that is fine. Please judge my answer, which is supposed to answer the following quesiton:
Describe an object that commonly undergoes (or could undergo) oxidation. Discuss how electrochemistry is involved in preventing corrosion.
My answer:
A freshly-cut apple which turns brown is an object that usually undergoes oxidation. The iron-containing chemicals within apple cells react by means of oxygen in the air.
Corrosion can be prevented through application of electrochemistry principles. This essentially falls into two distinct areas, sacrificial anodes and cathodic protection as a result of impressed currents.
Using the preventative method of sacrificial anodes, corrosion is allowed to occur on a piece of metal which proves to be extraneous to the structure. Simple examples of the application of this protection practice include galvanized bolts, automobile steel and mail boxes, zincs placed outboard engines and steel boat hulls, aluminum blocks on oil rigs, et cetera.
The objective of cathodic protection by impressed current is to ensure the component requiring protection is upheld (maintained) in its cathodic region as a result of the application of a voltage or cathodic current. An anode is involved. In several cases the anode can be a consumable anode and manufactured from a cheap material, for instance scrap metal. In further cases, the anode should not be consumed if possible. Such a case exists for cathodic protection of steel in reinforced concrete.