This present work contributes to the development of a new generation of active corrosion inhibitors composed of CeO2 nanoparticles covered with polyaniline that are able to release entrapped nanoparticles in acidic medium. Nanocomposites of aniline and CeO2 nanoparticles have been chemically synthesized by in-situ polymerization. The structural evolutions and morphological characteristics of PANI/CeO2 nanocomposite (PCN) have performed using various techniques such as XRD, IR, XPS, SEM and TEM analysis. It was illustrated from SEM and TEM observation that the PCN has globular particle with core-shell structure. The inhibition properties of synthesized PCN on mild steel (MS) corrosion in 0.5 M HCI were estimated using weight loss and electrochemical techniques. Potentiodynamic polarization results revealed PCN to be a mixed-type inhibitor, while impedance results indicate the adsorption of the PCN film on the MS surface. The inhibition efficiency of PCN was found to increase almost linearly with concentration. Moreover, an increase in the water contact-angle with PCN indicated its adsorption at the MS surface, and ATR-IR, SEM/EDAX and AFM visualization confirmed the formation of a protective film adsorbed on a MS surface. Finally, it was concluded that the PCN is a potential inhibitor for mild steel in HCl medium. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.