Research Article Numerical Simulation of Galvanic Corrosion between Carbon Steel and Low Alloy Steel in a Bolted Joint Rachid Radouani, Younes Echcharqy, and Mohamed Essahli Laboratory of Applied Chemistry and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of Hassan 1, Settat, Morocco Correspondence should be addressed to Rachid Radouani; r.radouani@gmail.com Received 10 August 2017; Revised 20 November 2017; Accepted 28 November 2017; Published 27 December 2017 Academic Editor: Jerzy A. Szpunar Copyright © 2017 Rachid Radouani et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Te galvanic corrosion of a bolt joint combining carbon steel end plate and low alloy steel bolt was investigated electrochemically in a 1 M HCl solution. Te corrosion parameters of the joint components were used for numerical simulation using Comsol Multiphysics sofware to analyze the galvanic corrosion behavior at the contact zone between the head bolt and the end plate. In this research work we evaluate the variation of the corrosion rate in the steel end plate considered as the anode, in order to determine the lifetime of the bolted assembly used in steel structures. Tree materials (20MnCr5, 42CrMo4, and 32CrMoV13) and three bolts (M12, M16, and M20) were tested in two thicknesses of electrolyte 1 M HCl ( = 1 mm,  = 20 mm). It is found that the corrosion rate of the anode part (end plate) is higher for 32CrMoV13 materials and it increases if both diameter of the bolt and thickness of the electrolyte increase (Cr(M20) > Cr(M16) > Cr(M12) and Cr( = 20 mm) > Cr( = 1 mm)). Tis corrosion rate is higher in the contact area between the bolt head and the end plate, and it decreases if we move away from this contact area. 1. Introduction Galvanic corrosion can simply be defned as the corrosion that occurs as a result of one metal being in contact with another in a conducting, corrosive environment. Te cor- rosion is stimulated by the potential diference that exists between the two metals: the more noble material acting as a cathode where some oxidizing species is reduced and the more active metal, which corrodes, acting as the anode. Te anodic reaction is, by defnition, some form of metal disso- lution; the cathodic reaction is, in the majority of practical situations, either oxygen reduction or hydrogen evolution, or a combination of both. Many factors afecting galvanic corrosion are already discussed to determining whether or not galvanic corrosion will occur in a particular instance and if so at what rate; it is important when considering the theory of galvanic corrosion to be aware of these factors including electrode potential, reaction kinetics, alloy composition, protection flm characteristics, bulk solution environment, total geometry, and type of joint [1]. Tere is a high incidence of past scientists taking an interest in corrosion to understand what causes it and what limits or accelerates the process. Numerous studies have been conducted; some take a more global outlook [2], whereas some take a more focused approach [3]. Te study conducted in [2] looked at many diferent galvanic couples commonly used in seawater applications. Te study focused on developing reasonable models for systems experiencing varying periods of exposure to the corrosive environment. Simulation of galvanic corrosion between magnesium and aluminum has been performed by Lacroix et al. [4], Deshpande [5–7], Jia et al. [8], and Trinh et al. [9] who have studied the corrosion of magnesium alloys in contact to mild steel under static conditions. Te publications of Murer et al. [10–12] and Shi and Kelly [13] in this context also gave an extended insight into the topic, especially in the very important choice of boundary conditions. New studies of Sun et al. [14], who applied the mathematical approach of Yan et al. [15] to the modeling of deposit formation under seawater conditions, clearly introduce a possible way of a useful model built up for the mentioned purpose. Te following studies and results are based on the progress achieved by them. Basic galvanic current density computations were modifed by layer growth aspects leading to time dependent variations in the electrochemical response of the electrodes. Hindawi International Journal of Corrosion Volume 2017, Article ID 6174904, 10 pages https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/6174904