Characterization of phosphate films on aluminum surfaces

A thin layer of phosphate conversion coating was formed on pure aluminum in a commercial zinc-manganese phosphating bath. A number of surface analytical techniques were used to characterize the phosphate thin films formed after immersion times ranging from 30 s to 10 min. The coating contained mainly a crystalline structure with dispersed micrometer-scale cavities. The major constituents of the phosphate film were zinc, phosphorus, and oxygen; a small amount of manganese was also detected. Based on these results, a three-stage mechanism was proposed for the formation and the growth of phosphate conversion coatings on aluminum. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was used to evaluate the corrosion performance of phosphated and uncoated aluminum samples in 0.50 M Na2SO4 and 0.10 M H2SO4 solutions. Both types of samples exhibited a passive state in the neutral solution and general corrosion behavior in the acid solution.