Effect of the Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) Phase on the Corrosion Behavior of Biodegradable Mg-4.0Zn-0.2Mn-xCa Alloys in Hank’s Solution

The effect of the Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) phase on the corrosion behavior of biodegradable Mg-4.0Zn-0.2Mn-xCa (ZM-xCa, x = 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 and 1.0 wt.%) alloys in Hank’s solution was investigated with respect to phase spacing, morphology, distribution and volume fraction. With the increase in Ca addition, the volume fraction of the Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) phase increased from 2.5% to 7.6%, while its spacing declined monotonically from 43 μm to 30 μm. The Volta potentials of secondary phases relative to the Mg matrix were measured by using scanning kelvin probe force microscopy (SKPFM). The results show that the Volta potential of the intragranular spherical Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) phase (+109 mV) was higher than that of the dendritic Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) phase (+80 mV). It is suggested that the Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) acted as a cathode to accelerate the corrosion process due to the micro-galvanic effect. The corrosion preferred to occur around the spherical Ca(2)Mg(6)Zn(3) phase at the early stage and developed into the intragranular region. The corrosion rate increased slightly with increasing Ca content from 0.1 wt.% to 0.5 wt.% because of the enhanced micro-galvanic corrosion effect. The decrease in the phase spacing and sharp increase in the secondary phase content resulted in a dramatic increase in the corrosion rate of the ZM-1.0Ca alloy.