Effect of heat treatment on the corrosion behaviour of Al-Zn alloys in seawater

A study has been carried out to investigate the effect of heat treatment on the corrosion behaviour of Al-Zn alloys in seawater environment. The microstructure, potential and current capacity of the samples were studied. Open circuit potential (OCP) of 96 hours was measured against saturated calomel electrode (SCE) and estimating current capacity of the alloys were calculated by using protective current generated from the capacity test. For the microstructure study, optical microscope is used to examine the surface morphology before and after test. The results show that the heat treated samples of 2 hours at 550 degree Celsius and variation in alloys composition affected the values of alloys OCP, current capacity and microstructure. (author)