Compounded Surface Modification of ZK60 Mg Alloy by High Current Pulsed Electron Beam+Micro-plasma Oxidation

In this study, compounded surface modification technology-high current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) + micro-plasma oxidation (MPO) was applied to treat ZK60 Mg alloys. The characteristics of the microstructure of ZK60 Mg alloy after single MPO and HCPEB+MPO compounded treatment were investigated by SEM. The results showed that the density of the ceramic layer of HCPEB+MPO-treated ZK60 Mg alloy was improved and defects were reduced compared to that under MPO treatment alone. Surface modified layer of ZK60 Mg alloys treated by HCPEB+MPO was divided into three zones, namely the top loose ceramic zone, middle compact zone and inside HCPEB-induced melted zone. Corrosion resistance of ZK60 Mg alloy before and after the compounded surface modification was measured in a solution of 3.5% NaCl by potentiodynamic polarization curves. It was found that the corrosion current density of ZK60 Mg alloys could be reduced by about three orders of magnitude, from 311 μA/cm2 of the original sample to 0.2 μA/cm2 of the HCPEB+MPO-treated sample. This indicates the great application potential of the HCPEB+MPO compounded surface modification technology in improving the corrosion resistance of ZK60 Mg alloys in the future.