Inhibition properties and mechanism of DNA primer inhibitor for Q355 mild steel corrosion in simulated seawater

The deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) primer inhibitor is synthesized based on biological sequences using gene synthesis techniques. This paper investigates the inhibition properties and mechanism of DNA primer inhibitor for the Q355 mild steel in simulated seawater. Results of the mass loss and electrochemical testing demonstrate that DNA primer inhibitor can significantly inhibit the corrosion process and raise the self-corrosion potential of the Q355 mild steel, and the 4 % concentration is optimal for corrosion inhibition. And the highest inhibition efficiency is up to 97.8 %. The surface appearance analysis shows that the Q355 mild steel with DNA primer inhibitor exhibits the lowest level of roughness and the least amount of corrosion products. And the average roughness of the steel surface decreased from 196 nm to 47.1 nm with addition of the 4 % DNA primer inhibitor. The element composition analysis demonstrate that the inhibition properties of the DNA primer inhibitor may be related to the participate in the forming of a protective film on the mild steel surface. Furthermore, the inhibition mechanism of the DNA primer inhibitor is examined by molecular dynamics.