Study on corrosion resistance and roughness of micro-plasma oxidation ceramic coatings on Ti alloy by EIS technique

Micro-plasma oxidation (MPO) technique has been developed quickly in recent years. The produced ceramic coatings are reported to possess fine properties and promising application prospects in many fields. The aim of this work is to study the corrosion resistance and the roughness of the micro-plasma oxidation ceramic coatings on Ti alloy by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique. Compound ceramic coatings were prepared on Ti–6Al–4V alloy by pulsed bi-polar micro-plasma oxidation in NaAlO2 solution. The phase composition and element distribution in the coating were investigated by X-ray diffractometry and electron probe micro-analyzer. EIS of the coatings was measured through CHI604 electrochemical analyzer in 3.5% NaCl solution. The ceramic coating is composed of a large amount of Al2TiO5 and a little α-Al2O3 and rutile TiO2. The coating is of double-layer structure with the loose outer layer and the dense inner layer. The thickness of the coatings is reduced when the working frequency or the cathode pulse current density is increased, while the thickness is increased when the frequency or the anode current density is increased. The established “equivalent circuit” of the coatings is consistent with the double-layer structure. The electric charge transfer resistance (Rt) in the equivalent circuit can be used to assess the corrosion resistance of the coatings, which is consistent with the result of the polarizing curves test. And the empirical exponent (n1) of the constant phase element (Q1) in the equivalent circuit can be used to assess the surface roughness of the coatings, which is consistent with the surface SEM analysis of the coatings.