Influence of ZrO2 Particulates on Corrosion Resistance of Magnesium Alloy Coated by Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation

In current automobile and electronic industries, the use of magnesium alloys where both energy and weight saving are attainable is increasing. Despite their light weight, there has been an inherent drawback arising from the surface vulnerable to be oxidized with ease, specifically under corrosive environments. To protect magnesium alloy from corrosion, the present work deals with the electrochemical response of the oxide layer on magnesium alloy specimen prepared by plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) method in an electrolyte with zirconia powder. Surface observation using scanning electron microscopy evidences that a number of zirconia particles are effectively incorporated into oxide layer. From the results of potentio-dynamic tests in 3.5 wt% NaCl solution, the PEO-treated sample containing zirconia particles shows better corrosion properties than that without zirconia, which is the result of zirconia incorporation into the coating layer. Corrosion resistance is also measured by utilizing salt spray tests for 120 hrs.