Rapid Fabrication of a Crystalline Myristic Acid-Based Superhydrophobic Film with Corrosion Resistance on Magnesium Alloys by the Facile One-Step Immersion Process

A simple, easy, and rapid process of fabricating superhydrophobic surfaces on magnesium alloy AZ31 by a one-step immersion at room temperature was developed. The myristic acid-modified micro-/nanostructured surfaces showed static water contact angles over 150 degrees and water contact angle hysteresis below 10 degrees, thus illustrating superhydrophobic property. The shortest treatment time for obtaining the superhydrophobic surfaces was 30 s. In addition, we demonstrated for the first time that crystalline solid myristic acid could be formed on a Mg alloy using a suitable molar ratio of Ce ions and myristic acid. The contact angle hysteresis was lowered with an increase in the immersion time. Potentiodynamic polarization curve measurements revealed that the corrosion resistance of AZ31 treated by the immersion process improved considerably by the formation of superhydrophobic surfaces. The chemical durability of the superhydrophobic surfaces fabricated on AZ31 was also examined. The static water contact angle values for the superhydrophobic surfaces after immersion in aqueous solutions at pHs 4, 7, and 10 for 12 h were estimated to be 90 +/- 2 degrees, 119 +/- 2 degrees, and 138 +/- 2 degrees, respectively, demonstrating that their chemical durability in a basic solution was high.