The effect of the concentration of four types of inhibiting heterocyclic molecules on the corrosion susceptibility of steel pipeline samples grade API 5L X52 in 1M H₂SO₄ was studied by electrochemical testing and SEM analysis. The compounds used were: 2-mercaptobenzoimidazole (MBI), 5-mercapto-1-tetrazoleacetic sodium salt (MTAc), 1-hydroxybenzotriazole (HBT) and benzimidazole (BIA). The results showed that there was an optimum inhibitor concentration at which the maximum inhibiting efficiency, IE, was reached. Further, the MBI displayed the best inhibiting characteristics for this system, with a maximum IE of approximately 99% having added only 25ppm. It is shown that this compound can affect both the anodic and cathodic processes, thus it can be classified as a mixed-type inhibitor for API 5L X52 steel corrosion in sulphuric acid. Moreover, this compound follows an adsorption mechanism, which can be adequately described by the Langmuir isotherm with an adsorption standard free energy difference (ΔG°) of −28.5kJmol⁻¹.