Growth of porous type anodic oxide films at micro-areas on aluminum exposed by laser irradiation

Abstract

Aluminum covered with pore-sealed anodic oxide films was irradiated with a pulsed Nd–YAG laser to remove the oxide film at micro-areas. The specimen was re-anodized for long periods to examine the growth of porous anodic oxide films at the area where substrate had been exposed by measuring current variations and morphological changes in the oxide during the re-anodizing. The chemical dissolution resistance of the pore-sealed anodic oxide films in an oxalic acid solution was also examined by measuring time-variations in rest potentials during immersion. The resistance to chemical dissolution of the oxide film became higher with increasing pore-sealing time and showed higher values at lower solution temperatures. During potentiostatic re-anodizing at five 35-μm wide and 4-mm long lines for 72 h after the film was removed the measured current was found to increase linearly with time. Semicircular columnar-shaped porous type anodic oxide was found to form during the re-anodizing at the laser-irradiated area, and was found to grow radially, thus resulting in an increase in the diameter. After long re-anodizing, the central and top parts of the oxide protruded along the longitudinal direction of the laser-irradiated area. The volume expansion during re-anodizing resulted in the formation of cracks, parallel to the lines, in the oxide film formed during the first anodizing.