Water treatment agents play a vital role in water conservation and environmental protection. Their development trend focuses on creating highly efficient, specialized products tailored to the specific characteristics of the water being treated. Regardless of the application, water treatment agents should ensure that the treated water meets environmental standards that guarantee human health or protect ecological balance. The safety of water treated with water treatment agents, whether discharged, recycled, or used as water supply, is paramount. China's per capita water resources are quite scarce, making the balance between water supply and demand a prominent issue. Therefore, water recycling and wastewater reuse require the use of appropriate water treatment agents and corresponding treatment technologies.
Corrosion inhibitors are chemicals that, when added to water at appropriate concentrations and in appropriate forms, can prevent or slow down the corrosion of metal materials or equipment. They are characterized by high effectiveness, low dosage, and ease of use. There are many types and varieties of corrosion inhibitors. Based on the type of compound, they can be divided into inorganic and organic corrosion inhibitors. Based on whether they inhibit anodic, cathodic, or both reactions, they can be classified as anodic, cathodic, or mixed corrosion inhibitors. Corrosion inhibitors can also be classified according to the mechanism of forming a protective film on the metal surface, such as passivation film type, precipitation film type, and adsorption film type. Commonly used passivation film type corrosion inhibitors in water treatment include chromates, nitrites, and molybdates; commonly used precipitation film type corrosion inhibitors include polyphosphates and zinc salts; and commonly used adsorption film type corrosion inhibitors include organic amines.
