Corrosion of femtosecond laser surface textured aluminium alloy

Abstract

With superhydrophobic properties being extended to a variety of metallic substrates through the process of ablation due to femtosecond laser surface processing (FLSP), it is important to understand corrosion behaviour of such a processed material. The material was tested through the use of an accelerated corrosion fog chamber using both treated and untreated aluminium alloy samples. During the accelerated corrosion testing, the FLSP-treated sample suffered from pitting corrosion at a rate faster than the untreated sample, effectively removing the surface treatment. While there are significant hydrodynamic benefits to this material, the elevated corrosion rates raise concerns about the resiliency of this surface treatment.