Plasma electrolytic oxidation of AZ91D magnesium alloy with different additives and its corrosion behavior

Plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) of Mg‐based AZ91D alloys was investigated using 50 Hz AC anodizing technique in an alkaline borate solution, which contained a new kind of organic additive and without F, P, and Cr. The anodizing technological parameters have been optimized and a kind of ivory‐white smooth anodic film with high corrosion resistance was obtained. It was found that the formation of the anodic films was always coupled with sparking and oxygen evolution, whose intensity changed with the additive and anodizing voltage. All EIS plots have two capacitive loops and one low frequency inductive component. Two capacitive arcs present the barrier and porous layer of the PEO film and the inductive component in the low frequency domain is a complex behavior due to the porous structure connected to the electrolyte. EIS plots and fitting results show that a self‐sealing process of the PEO firm with different additives takes place in the beginning of immersion time, then corrosion attack becomes a preponderant process to promote the degradation of the film. Tafel results show that PEO treatment decreases the corrosion current density by four, even five orders of magnitude, while additives content does not affect strongly the electrochemical corrosion behavior. Salt spray test shows that the PEO film formed with NaAlO₂ and Na₂SiO₃ presents good corrosion resistance, over 600 h without any sealing treatment. The difference of corrosion resistance arose by additives examined by electrochemical techniques and salt spray test does not show strict corresponding relationship.