WHAT IS RUST ?
Oxygen has a distinctive effect on exposed iron over time, corroding the metal
WORDSSCOTT DUTFIELD
Rust is the mortal enemy of iron and the destroyer of nuts, bolts and bicycle handles around the world. Just a touch of water and any metal that contains iron is slowly corroded, transformed into a brittle orange ghost of its former self. On the surface, rust is simply the formation of iron oxide. It’s created in an oxidation reaction, where iron and oxygen bond together. However, the reaction needs a little help from water to get things going.
When water and atmospheric carbon dioxide combine, they create a very weak carbonic acid. When carbonic acid sits on iron metal, it begins to dissolve it, and the iron atoms are then free to bond with oxygen atoms in the acid to form rust.