Pure Zinc and Zinc/Ceramic Composite Coatings by Electrodeposition

Abstract

<p> Pure zinc and zinc/yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) composite coatings for combined wear and corrosion protection of ferrous substrates were prepared by electrodeposition using acidic zinc sulphate solutions containing YSZ and gelatin. The morphology of the electrodeposit was studied by Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). X-ray diffraction was employed to determine the texture of the zinc deposits. In the electrodeposition of pure zinc coatings, the influence of electrodeposition parameters, including current density, deposition time and solution pH was studied. It was found that the deposition rate was controlled by the current density and that an increase in deposition time resulted in the formation of deposit microstructures with coarse, columnar grains. The deposits prepared from solutions with lower pH were composed of uniform, fine grains and exhibited a basal plane preferred orientation.</p> <p> The effects of gelatin on zinc electrodeposition were investigated. It was found that the addition of gelatin profoundly modified the microstructure and crystallographic orientation of the zinc deposit. As the gelatin concentration increased, the mean grain size of zinc deposit was reduced and the basal plane preferred orientation was inhibited. The modification of the microstructure and orientation by gelatin increased microhardness of the zinc coating. However, the corrosion protection property which was assessed by potentiodynamic polarization test was not significantly changed.</p> <p> In the study on composite coatings, the incorporation of ceramic particles in the zinc deposit was characterized as a function of the deposition solution composition. The effect of ceramic particles on the hardness of the composite coatings was assessed by microhardness. The corrosion potential of the composite coating was determined by potentiodynamic polarization tests. The results showed that decrease in solution pH and addition of gelatin promoted the co-deposition of ceramic particles with zinc. The mechanical and corrosion properties of conventional zinc coatings were improved by the incorporation of ceramic particles.</p>