An Investigation of Electrochemical and Surface Characteristics of Aluminium Alloy-1050 Surface Prepared by Different Methods

In this study, the surface of aluminium alloy 1050 was prepared by different methods of including (1) degreasing, (2) alkaline etching, (3) alkaline etching followed by acid washing and (4) mechanical polishing before alkaline etching followed by acid washing. The electrochemical properties of the samples and their surface morphology and composition were studied by DC polarization technique, open circuit potential (OCP) measurements in 3.5% (w/w) NaCl solution and scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Results revealed that method (3) could be the most effective way of oxide layer removal and cathodic sites reduction from the surface of aluminum. Also the results obtained from pull off adhesion test showed adhesion improvement for the surface prepared sample through method (3) in comparison with methods (1) and (2).