Electroactive polymer for corrosion inhibition of aluminum alloys

Corrosion is a significant problem for lightweight high-strength aluminum alloys that contain significant amount of copper. For example the AL2024-T3 alloy contains about 4.6% of copper in aluminum. The corrosion rate is high due to the inherent galvanic coupling between the copper-rich micro-domain in the alloy and the aluminum matrix. Although the current technology of chromate based primer and chromate surface conversion is effective for corrosion inhibition of aluminum alloys, the toxic hexavalent chromate species is a health hazard and an environmental problem.