Improved corrosion resistance

materialsworld:

Week in Brief (2–6 April)

Credit: Christine

Daniloff/MIT

Researchers at MIT, USA, have discovered that, when applied

in thin layers, a solid oxide protective coating for metals can deform like a

liquid to fill gaps in the material. This could prove useful to prevent leakage

of very small molecules. 

Lead author of the paper Liquid-Like,

Self-Healing Aluminum Oxide during Deformation at Room Temperature and MIT

professor, Ju Li was attempting to understand why aluminium oxide and silicon

dioxide provide corrosion resistance when the discovery was made. 

The MIT team used a modified transmission electron

microscope (TEM) called an environmental TEM (E-TEM) to study these oxides and

see what occurs when they are placed under stress, and stress corrosion

cracking occurs. The E-TEM allows this assessment in the presence of gases and

liquids.  

They found that, when applied in layers 2–3 nanometres

thick, aluminium oxide behaves like a liquid at room temperature, becoming

almost as deformable as a comparably thin layer of aluminium metal. This forms

a protective coating, allowing the aluminium oxide to be stretched without

cracking. 

To find out more visit, bit.ly/2GWhVW1

To read Liquid-Like,

Self-Healing Aluminum Oxide during Deformation at Room Temperature, visit bit.ly/2IvNymg

In other news:

– While the amount of plastic litter in UK seas is rising, the amount of plastic bags contributing to this has fallen 

– A study has claimed projections used by the IEA is undermining the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy 

– Cuadrilla completes drilling of Britain’s first horizontal shale gas well at its exploration site at Preston New Road, Lancashire 

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