Electrochemical corrosion behavior of arc sprayed Zn and Zn15Al coatings in simulated salina soil and neutral meadow soil solutions

Arc sprayed Zn and Zn15Al coatings were chosen to protect the metal ends of prestressed high-strength concrete (PHC) pipe piles against corrosion of salina soil in northern china and neutral meadow soil in northeast China. The corrosion behavior of the coated Q235 steel samples in two simulated soil solutions were investigated by potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) methods. The experimental results show that the corrosion of the matrix Q235 steel in both simulated solutions is remarkably inhibited by Zn and Zn15Al coatings. The corrosion products on Zn and Zn15Al are thick, compact, firm and protective. The corrosion current density i _corr of both Zn and Zn15Al-coated samples is decreased evidently with corrosion time, and the charge transfer resistance R _ct is increased greatly. The corrosion resistance indexes of Zn and Zn15Al in simulated neutral meadow soil solution are more outstanding than those in salina soil. The corrosion resistance of Zn15Al in salina soil is slightly superior to that of Zn. When the sprayed coatings are sealed with epoxy resin, the corrosion resistance of the coatings is further enhanced markedly.