DEVELOPMENT OF CORROSION-RESISTANT MAGNESIUM ALLOYS .1. CHARACTERIZATION OF SPLAT QUENCHED MG-10AL AND MG-16AL ALLOYS

The surfaces and bulk of splat quenched Mg-10Al and Mg-16Al (wt-%) alloys were investigated. The surfaces were studied using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray excited Auger electron spectroscopy (X-AES), Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) and the bulk using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), respectively. The solid solubility of Al in Mg was extended to at least 16 wt-%. The quantity of Al ions present on the surfaces of the alloys increased with Al content. Contrary to the suggested layered MgO/Mg-Al-oxide/alloy structure, the surfaces of the alloys consisted of an admixture of magnesium spinel (MgAl2O4) in periclase (MgO) and brucite (Mg (OH)2) of non-uniform thickness varying between 10 and 50 nm, determined via RBS, X-AES, and depth profiling using XPS. (C) 1993 The Institute of Materials.