Effect of Sb-Rich Intermetallic Phase on the CorrosionResistance of Zn Alloy in Near-Neutral and Acidic Solutions
Xiuling SHANG1,Bo ZHANG2(),Wei KE2
1 GD Midea Air-Conditioning Equipment Co., LTD., Foshan 528311, China 2 Key Laboratory of Nuclear Materials and Safety Assessment, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016, China
Cite this article:
Xiuling SHANG,Bo ZHANG,Wei KE. Effect of Sb-Rich Intermetallic Phase on the CorrosionResistance of Zn Alloy in Near-Neutral and Acidic Solutions. Acta Metall Sin, 2017, 53(3): 351-357.
In the process of hot-dip galvanizing, some beneficial alloying elements are deliberately added to the molten Zn bath, in order to improve the coating properties, such as formability and corrosion resistance. Sb is one of the interesting alloying additions to the Zn bath, as it can decrease the viscosity and the surface tension of the molten Zn, contributing to producing a uniform Zn coating. Due to the low solid solubility of Sb in molten Zn at galvanising temperature, Sb-rich intermetallic particles were always found in the galvanized layers. The presence of Sb-rich phases may affect the structural properties and corrosion performance of galvanized coating. In the literature, it was reported that small addition of Sb has no significant effect on the structure and growth of galvanized layers, but a higher amount (>1%, mass fraction) of Sb can promote the dendritic solidification of Zn. In order to understand the mechanism of Sb addition on the structure and growth of galvanized coating, it is essential to identify the crystal structure of Sb-rich phases. It was reported that the Sb-rich phases found in the η layer of a galvanized coating corresponds to the electron diffraction patterns of Sb2Zn3. However, some researchers hold that the Sb2Zn3 compound does not exist at room temperature, since it can transform to Sb3Zn4 and Zn at some elevated temperature. Consequently, in this work, the structure of Sb-rich intermetallic phase in the Zn-1.2Sb (1.2%Sb) alloy has been investigated by SEM and TEM. SEM/EDS showed that Sb is present in the form of Sb-rich intermatallic phase and there is no detectable Sb in the Zn solid solution. Transmission electron diffractions analysis and EDS results indicated that the composition of Sb-rich intermatallic phases is close to that of Sb2Zn3, whereas the structure is totally different from the latter. The corrosion resistance of Zn-1.2Sb alloy has been analysed by electrochemcial polarization measurements in the different solutions. The analysed results showed that the Sb-rich phase has no obvious effect on the oxygen reduction reaction, in the aerated 0.1 mol/L NaCl (pH=6.5) solution. However, the Sb-rich phase can promote the hydrogen evolution reaction, in the deaerated acidic solution (0.1 mol/L NaCl, pH=3). Corrosion pits were found in the Zn matrix around the Sb-rich phases by SEM observations, which indicate that Zn has higher activity than Zn-Sb phase.
Table 1 Chemical compositions of pure Zn and Zn alloy (mass fraction / %)
Fig.1 SEM images of Zn (a) and Zn-1.2Sb alloy (b), EDS analyses of Sb-rich phases (c) and Zn matrix (d) in Zn-1.2Sb alloy
Fig.2 TEM image (a) and EDS analysis (b) of Sb-rich intermetallic phase in Zn-1.2Sb alloy
Fig.3 TEM images (a, b) and corresponding electron diffraction patterns (c~e) of Sb-rich intermetallic phases in Zn-1.2Sb alloy
Fig.4 Typical potentiodynamic anodic (a) and cathodic (b) polarization curves of Zn and Zn-1.2Sb in 0.1 mol/L NaCl solution (pH=6.5)
Fig.5 Surface SEM images of pure Zn (a) and Zn-1.2Sb alloy (b) after anodic polarization in 0.1 mol/L NaCl solution (pH=6.5)
Fig.6 Typical potentiodynamic anodic (a) and cathodic (b) polarization curves of Zn and Zn-1.2Sb in 0.1 mol/L NaCl solution (pH=3)
Fig.7 Low (a, b) and high (c, d) magnified SEM images of pure Zn (a, c) and Zn-1.2Sb alloy (b, d) after anodic polarization in 0.1 mol/L NaCl solution (pH=3)
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