As a cathodic corrosion inhibitor and surfactant additive, the effects of calcium lignosulfonate (CLS) on the electrochemical behaviors of ZnO electrode were examined by polarization measurements, EIS (electrochemical impedance spectrum) and CV (cyclic voltammogram) electrochemical technique methods. Both of the corrosion current density and anodic Tafel slope for the ZnO with CLS additive (CZO) anode are smaller than those for the ordinary ZnO (OZO) anode, which indicates that the CLS has a good anticorrosion effect. Compared the CZO anode with the OZO anode, negative shift of the corrosion potential means CZO anode has a higher overpotential of hydrogen evolution. In order to explore the electrochemical corrosion performances of the zinc anodic process, further more studies such as morphological analysis, galvanostatic charge-discharge tests are also applied. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.