Influence of the microstructure and laser shock processing (LSP) on the corrosion behaviour of the AA2050-T8 aluminium alloy

► Influence of microstructure on the corrosion behaviour of the AA2050-T8 aluminium alloy. ► Influence of laser shock processing on the residual stress field. ► Influence of laser shock processing on the corrosion behaviour of the AA2050-T8 aluminium alloy. The corrosion behaviour of AA2050-T8 was studied after polishing and after laser shock processing (LSP) treatment using the electrochemical microcell technique and the SVET. After polishing, pitting at constituent particles and intergranular corrosion were observed. By contrast, no intergranular corrosion developed after LSP. Microcell measurements revealed that LSP increases the pitting potential. SVET measurements revealed that local anodic currents are systematically lower on LSP-treated surfaces than on polished ones. The current density on the LSP-treated surface remains constant around 50 μA cm −2 up to 123 min after immersion, while on the polished surface it reaches 200 μA cm −2.