Sustainable and Environmentally Friendly Corrosion Inhibitors for Renewable Energy Applications

该博士将与Roemex合作，研究和优化用于地热能基础设施腐蚀保护的可持续化学抑制剂。一个多电极流动电池，集成了电化学传感，将被设计和利用来验证现有的缓蚀剂的性能，以期了解如何开发新的环境友好的缓蚀剂从工业废物产品，如氨基酸合成。然后，该电池将与新合成的化学品结合使用，以优化化学混合物，用于全球特定地热系统中碳钢的腐蚀保护。地热能环境基础设施中使用的材料暴露在苛刻的条件下，如高温和低pH值。这会带来重大的腐蚀挑战，通常通过应用吸附在金属表面并形成保护膜的腐蚀抑制剂来缓解。然而，许多化学抑制剂具有毒性和不可持续的特性，因此不适合地热能应用，目标是逐步淘汰这些化学物质。通过采用循环经济方法和从工业废料中合成化学抑制剂，可以实现更可持续的地热能腐蚀缓解方法。

This PhD will investigate and optimise sustainable chemical inhibitors for the corrosion protection of geothermal energy infrastructure, in collaboration with Roemex. A multi-electrode flow cell, integrated with electrochemical sensing, will be designed and utilised to characterise existing inhibitor performance with a view to understand how to develop novel environmentally friendly corrosion inhibitors synthesised from industrial waste products, such as amino acids. The cell will then be used in conjunction with newly synthesised chemistries to optimise chemical blends for corrosion protection of carbon steel in specific geothermal systems worldwide. The materials utilised in the infrastructure of geothermal energy environments are exposed to demanding conditions, such as high temperature and low pH. This creates significant corrosion challenges, which are often mitigated by the application of corrosion inhibitors that adsorb onto the metal surface and establish a protective film. However, many chemical inhibitors possess toxic and unsustainable characteristics so are unsuitable for geothermal energy application, with the goal being to phase-out these chemistries. By adopting a circular economy approach and synthesising chemical inhibitors from industrial waste products, a more sustainable approach to geothermal energy corrosion mitigation can be achieved.