Development of Mg–V alloys by physical vapour deposition Part 2 – Characterisation of corrosion products formed in 3 vvt-%NaCI

Abstract

Alloys of the Mg–V system, produced via physical vapour deposition, were examined after immersion in 3 wt-%NaCl solution.The dramatic increase in the corrosion rate of the alloys is attributed to the precipitation of pure vanadium; The absence of compositional uniformity through the thickness of the deposits and the low thermodynamic stability of the corrosion products in the saline environment were the main reasons for the unsatisfactory corrosion performance of the alloys. Hydromagnesite at the outermost surface and Mg(OH)₂, MgO, and V₂O₄ in the bulk of the corrosion layer were the corrosion products. Also, MgH₂ and areas enriched in metallic vanadium within the bulk of the corrosion products were detected.