Corrosion behavior of AA5083 produced by high-energy ball milling

The corrosion, microstructure, and hardness of nanocrystalline AA5083 were compared to that of conventional AA5083-H116 and consolidated gas atomized powder. The nanocrystalline AA5083 was produced by consolidating high-energy ball milled gas atomized powder with two methods: cold compaction and spark plasma sintering. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, cyclic potentiodynamic polarization, Mott-Schottky analysis, and immersion tests followed by surface analysis were used to evaluate the corrosion behavior in 0.6 M NaCl solution. Pitting corrosion resistance of the nanocrystalline AA5083 was superior to that of commercial AA5083-H116. The improved corrosion resistance was primarily attributed to the homogenous microstructure and significant grain refinement below 100 nm. •Ball milling AA5083 caused nanocrystalline structure and homogenous microstructure.•Spark plasms sintering was effective in consolidation.•Simultaneous improvement in corrosion resistance and hardness by ball milling.•Improved passive film characteristics and corrosion resistance by ball milling.