Evaluation of the properties of anodized aluminum 6061 subjected to thermal cycling treatment using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS)

The corrosion resistance of anodized Al 6061 produced by two different anodizing and sealing processes was evaluated for 30 days during exposure to 3.5 wt% NaCl using EIS. Thermal cycling treatments at 120, 160 and 200 °C have been applied for the two types of samples. The degradation of the properties of the anodized layers has been determined by thorough analysis of the EIS data for control samples and samples that had undergone thermal cycling. Scanning electron microscopy has been used to evaluate the damage to the anodized aluminum layers due to thermal cycling. It was found that the thermal treatment produced considerable damage of both the porous layer and the barrier layer. The EIS data suggest that some cracks extended into the bare metal. The damage of the oxide layers increased with increasing thermal cycling temperature for both types of samples. Self-sealing of the porous layer and the barrier layer occurred during immersion in NaCl.