Corrosion behaviour of 6063 aluminium alloy in acidic and in alkaline media

The corrosion behaviour of 6063 aluminium alloy was investigated in different concentrations of phosphoric acid medium and sodium hydroxide medium at different temperatures. The study was done by electrochemical method, using Tafel polarization technique and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique. The surface morphology was investigated using scanning electron microscope (SEM) with Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The results showed that the 6063 aluminium alloy undergoes severe corrosion in sodium hydroxide medium than in phosphoric acid medium. The corrosion rate of 6063 aluminium alloy increased with an increase in the concentration of acid as well as with alkali. The corrosion rate was increased with an increase in temperature. The kinetic parameters and thermodynamic parameters were calculated using Arrhenius theory and transition state theory. Suitable mechanism was proposed for the corrosion of 6063 aluminium alloy in phosphoric acid medium and sodium hydroxide medium. The results obtained by Tafel polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) techniques were in good agreement with each other.