Adsorption studies of water on copper,nickel, and iron using the quartz-crystal microbalance technique: Assessment of BET and FHH models of adsorption

In the atmospheric corrosion of copper, nickel, and iron, the adsorption of water affects the corrosion rates. Knowledge of water adsorption and metal oxyhydroxide formation is important in understanding the atmospheric corrosion process. The purposes of the present research were (1) to measure the adsorption of water on metal surfaces as a function of temperature and relative humidity (RH) and (2) to assess Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) model and Frenkel-Halsey-Hill (FHH) model for water adsorption. In the present research, the quartz-crystal microbalance (QCM) technique was used to measure the mass changes of copper, nickel, and iron at 0 to 100% RH and 7–90°C under nitrogen environments. Less water was adsorbed on copper, nickel, and iron which formed oxides than on gold. BET and FHH models could not fit the data points with single functional relationships. ΔH values were calculated using modified BET method and they decreased with temperature.