Electrochemical behavior of magnesium alloys AZ91D, AZCe2, and AZLa1 in chloride and sulfate solutions

Abstract

The influence of Cl− and SO 4 2− on the electrochemical behavior of AZ91D, AZCe2, and AZLa1 was studied. For all alloys, there was a current plateau in the anodic polarization curves in Na2SO4 solutions. In 0.5% NaCl solution, there was a small current plateau, whereas there was none in the 3.5% and 5% NaCl solutions. This indicated that SO 4 2− is less aggressive than Cl−. The range of the current plateau decreased with increasing SO 4 2− concentration. For all alloys, the high frequency capacitive loop in the Nyquist plots decreased with increasing concentration consistent with the decrease in corrosion resistance with increasing Cl− and SO 4 2− concentration.