Fabrication of Chromium (III) Oxide (Cr ₂ O ₃ ) Coating by Electrophoretic Deposition

Abstract

Chromium ( III ) oxide has been widely used as a coating material for corrosion resistance. In this study, electrophoretic deposition ( EPD ) of nano chromium ( III ) oxide ( Cr 2 O 3 ) particle (60 nm) was investigated to develop coatings with potential applications of anticorrosive material. The stable suspension of Nano‐ Cr 2 O 3 particles were obtained in the mixture of acetylacetone and ethanol containing 0.00025 M nitric acid. The coating growth rate was studied with using different deposition times in the range of 1–30 min at voltages of 50–150 V with various concentrations of suspension. The electrophoretic Cr 2 O 3 coating was sintered at 1000°C and 1200°C for 2 h. The micro‐morphology of coating was qualitatively characterized by focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy ( FIB / SEM ). The SEM micrographs obviously showed that the electrophoretic Cr 2 O 3 coating has formed a uniform and dense ultrathin layer after sintering at 1200°C. We demonstrated that nano‐ Cr 2 O 3 coating could be easily obtained by EPD for the surface modification of metallic materials for potential interest in hard wear‐resistant and/or low‐friction coatings.