Electrochemistry of active chromium, part III: Effects of temperature

Abstract

It was shown that the temperature in the range 20 ? 65 ?C has considerable effects on the electrochemical anodic dissolution of chromium in the active potential range as well as on the electrochemical hydrogen evolution reactions on bare and oxide covered chromium surfaces. Also, the chemical dissolution of chromium is strongly affected. The apparent energy of activation for anodic dissolution is 63.1 kJ mol-1, for hydrogen evolution on a bare Cr surface 19.5 kJ mol-1, for the same reaction on an oxide covered surface 44.0 kJ mol-1 and for the chemical ("anomalous") dissolution 66.9 kJ mol-1. The temperature dependences of the total corrosion rate, and the electrochemical corrosion rate alone, are presented in polynomial forms with the appropriate constants obtained by the best fit of the experimental data. For the hydrogen evolution reaction on both bare and oxide covered chromium, the Volmer-Heyrovsky reaction mechanism with the second step as rate determining was proposed.