Wear-resistant coatings formed on Zircaloy-2 by plasma electrolytic oxidation in sodium aluminate electrolytes

- PEO of Zircaloy-2 is investigated in different concentrations of aluminate.
- “Soft” sparks enhance the growth of the inner coating layer in dilute aluminate.
- Coatings with superior wear resistance are formed in concentrated aluminate.
- Large amount of Al2O3 besides t-ZrO2 provides the superior wear resistance.