Anticorrosive magnesium phosphate coating on AZ31 magnesium alloy

A novel anticorrosive film with a thickness of approximately 50 mu m was successfully coated on an AZ31 magnesium alloy by chemical and low-heat treatments (50 degrees C). The film was a single-phase system of newberyite (MgHPO4 center dot 3H(2)O) having an orthorhombic crystal structure. The corrosion current density of the newberyite film coated on the AZ31 magnesium alloy decreased by more than two orders of magnitude as compared to that of the AZ31 magnesium alloy. The static water contact angle of the newberyite film was less than 10 degrees. The average value of the scratch critical load for the newberyite coating was estimated to be approximately 15 mN. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.