Corrosion of metals in zinc nitrate hexahydrate and calcium chloride hexahydrate

Materials used for heat accumulation are substances with the phase change at temperatures below 80 °C. In such substances, a high amount of energy can be stored due the phase change. Because of possible corrosion of the heat container components, it is necessary to know their resistance in the given medium. In this work, the corrosion of aluminum, copper and carbon steel was studied in two liquid media: zinc nitrate hexahydrate and calcium chloride hexahydrate. Corrosion tests have shown that steel is the least resistant to corrosion in both media. Aluminum has been proved as the most durable material in zinc nitrate hexahydrate media. On the other hand, pitting corrosion on aluminum occurred in the calcium chloride hexahydrate making it unsuitable for the use in this media. From the comparison of two studied PCMs follows that zinc nitrate hexahydrate is a more aggressive medium in comparison with calcium chloride hexahydrate. From the point of view of corrosion, zinc nitrate hexahydrate is not suitable for heat accumulation when using the studied metals. When using the calcium chloride hexahydrate as PCM, copper is suitable as a construction material; aluminum and carbon steel show pitting corrosion.