Improving the cavitation corrosion resistance of 6061 aluminum alloy by anodizing

Anodic oxidation is a common surface strengthening method to improve the comprehensive properties of aluminium alloys (AAs), such as wear and corrosion resistance, but its application on cavitation erosion is rarely touched. In this paper, the effect of sealing treatment on the properties of anodized AA6061 was investigated by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), friction and wear experiment, cavitation experiment, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization. The experiment results showed that the oxide film under hydrothermal sealing had a superior cavitation and corrosion resistance, due to the high hardness and less defects in the film. Compared to distilled water conditions, corrosion mitigated the cavitation erosion of anodized AA6061 in simulated seawater, and the weight loss under simulated seawater after sealing was reduced up to a maximum of 30%.