Expired pharmaceutical compounds as potential inhibitors for cast iron corrosion in acidic medium

The inhibition potential of some expired waste pharmaceutical drugs, namely cefpodoxime (CF), levofloxacin (LV), ofloxacin (OX) and linezolid (LZ) on cast iron corrosion in 1 M HCl has been tested for the first time by chemical (weight loss) and electrochemical (Tafel polarization and impedance spectroscopy) methods. At a constant acid concentration (1 M HCl), the inhibition efficiency (IE%) increased with the increase of the inhibitors’ concentration. At optimum inhibitor concentration, the CF exhibited the highest inhibition efficiency (95.2%). Inhibitors were adsorbed on the cast iron surface through the Langmuir adsorption isotherm at all concentrations and temperatures studied. Antagonism and synergism arising between the halide ions and the inhibitors were also explained. Thermodynamic parameters have been calculated and are discussed. Tafel polarization curves pointed to all inhibitors acting as mixed-type. Corrosion inhibition properties of the inhibitors have been inferred from FT-IR spectra, UV–Vis spectra, surface morphological analysis and wide-angle X-ray diffraction studies.