A Kinetic Model for the Anodic Dissolution of Ti in HF in the Active and Passive Regions

Abstract

We investigated the anodic dissolution of polycrystalline titanium rotating disc electrode in 0.1 M hydrofluoric acid in active and passive regions using potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. In the active region, complex plane plots of the impedance spectra exhibited three capacitive loops indicting the presence of at least two adsorbed intermediates. In the passive region, they exhibited a negative resistance and a low frequency inductive loop. The high frequency loops exhibit constant phase element behavior indicating that a heterogeneous 2D film with partial surface coverage is present in the active and passive regions. The impedance data was fit to a reaction model and a four step mechanism with two adsorbed intermediate species is proposed to explain the observed trends in the active and passive regions. The change in the surface coverage of the adsorbed intermediate species, with the overpotential is estimated. This model describes the dissolution of Ti via two parallel paths, viz. a chemical step and an electrochemical step. The onset of passivation ensues when the rate of TiO2 film formation is more than that of its dissolution. Transpassive dissolution becomes dominant when the electrochemical dissolution from the bare surface becomes negligible.