Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
Organically-modified silicate (Ormosil) films have been found to provide good corrosion resistance for metal substrates and are potential replacement systems for hexavalent chromiumbased conversion coatings. Significant enhancement in corrosion resistance properties were observed upon addition of sub-micron to micron-sized particles (TiO2, Al2O3, SiN, TiN) to the Ormosil coating as determined using accelerated salt spray and electrochemical analysis. Rcorr values derived from potentiodynamic polarization curves were found to increase from 1520 to (3800 - 4680) kΩcm2 upon addition of various concentrations of TiO2, Al2O3, SiN or TiN particles to the Ormosil thin film. Similarly, Epit values were found to range from +0.2 V for the non-doped Ormosil to (0.6 – 1.9) V for particle-doped Ormosil thin films.