Influence of composition on corrosion behavior of as-cast Cu–Zr alloys in HCl solution

The corrosion behavior of the as-cast Cu–Zr alloys, with 15%, 30%, and 66% Zr (in at.%) were investigated in 0.1 mol/l HCl solution. Results revealed that the Cu–15 Zr alloy has the lowest corrosion rate in the potential region of selective dissolution of Zr as the result of the low Zr content. The corrosion rate was remarkably increased when Zr increased from 15% to 30%. The corrosion rate of the Cu–66Zr alloy is close to that of the Cu–30Zr alloy. This illustrates that the Zr content has little effect on the selective dissolution rate of Zr when Zr arrives at a certain degree in Cu–Zr alloys. In the potential region of simultaneous dissolution of Cu and Zr, the corrosion rate at the higher anodic potential depends on the content of both Cu and Zr, and the Cu–30Zr alloy has the worst corrosion resistance.