Study of atmospheric corrosion of zinc in a tropical marine environment rich in H2S, resulting from the decomposition of Sargassum algae

The Martinique island, located in the Caribbean Sea, is subject to the stranding of Sargassum algae, which decompose and release toxic gases, such as hydrogen sulfide or ammonia. This study aims to investigate the atmospheric corrosion of zinc in these conditions. For this purpose, three sites in Martinique more or less impacted by Sargassum algae stranding were selected. Mass loss results after 1-year exposure range from 1.9 µm for the site least impacted to 45.3 µm for the site most affected by Sargassum algae. This high value proves that the presence of Sargassum algae caused significant zinc degradation. The morphological structures and properties of the corrosion products obtained at the impacted and non-impacted sites differ significantly. In the absence of Sargassum algae, “classical” corrosion products based on hydrozincite, simonkoleite, gordaite, and zinc hydroxylsulfate are observed. In the area close to the Sargassum seaweed stranding, the presence of elemental sulfur products, zinc hydroxylsulfate, and sphalerite is reported.