Characteristics of Oxide Layers Formed on Al2021 Alloys by Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation in Aluminate Fluorosilicate Electrolyte

Oxide layers were prepared on Al2021 alloys substrate under a hybrid voltage of AC 200 V (60 Hz) combined with DC 260 V value at room temperature within $5{\sim}60\;min$ by plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO). An optimized aluminate-fluorosilicate solution was used as the electrolytes. The surface morphology, thickness and composition of layers on Al2021 alloys at different reaction times were studied. The results showed that it is possible to generate oxide layers of good properties on Al2021 alloys in aluminate-fluorosilicate electrolytes. Analysis show that the double-layer structure oxide layers consist of different states such as ${\alpha}-{Al_2}{O_3}$ and ${\gamma}-{Al_2}{O_3}$. For short treatment times, the formation process of oxide layers follows a linear kinetics, while for longer times the formation process slows down and becomes a steady stage. During the PEO processes, the average size of the discharge channels increased gradually as the PEO treatment time increased.