Improving the Corrosion Resistance of Anodized Al 1050 Alloy by Sealing in Cerium-Containing and Mixed Sodium Phosphate Mono Basic and Calcium Nitrate Solutions

Abstract

This investigation presents results on the improvement of the corrosion-protective effect of consecutive sealing treatments of anodized Al 1050 (AlAnod). The treatments were performed in cerium-containing and mixed NaH2PO4 + Ca(NO3)2 solutions. The changes of the surface morphology, structure and chemical composition, chemical state of the elements, and basic corrosion parameters of the studied systems were investigated by SEM, EDXS, XRD, XPS, and a complex of electrochemical techniques (PDP, EOCP vs. timeplot, chronoamperometric transients, Rp and CR at EOCP, etc.). The results obtained show that the basic components of the obtained sealing conversion layers (before and after exposure to model Cl−-containing corrosion media) are characterized by Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2, AlO(OH), CePO4, and CeAlO3 (after the corrosion tests, they are converted to insoluble Me-PO3 and Me-P4O10). We conclude that the observed decrease in the corrosion rate of Al and the corresponding increase in the polarization resistance are accomplished by the two-step sealing treatment, which fills up the AlAnod pores with insoluble deposits.