In the context of corrosion, passivation is the spontaneous formation of a hard non-reactive surface film that inhibits further corrosion. This layer is usually an oxide or nitride that is a few atoms thick.
Mechanisms of passivation
Under normal conditions of pH and oxygen concentration, passivation is seen in such materials as aluminium, iron, zinc, magnesium, copper, stainless steel, titanium, and silicon. Ordinary steel can form a passivating layer in alkali environments, as rebar does in concrete. The conditions necessary for passivation are recorded in Pourbaix diagrams.Some corrosion inhibitors help the formation of a passivation layer on the surface of the metals to which they are applied.
Electrochemical passivation processes
Some compounds, dissolving in solutions (chromates, molybdates) form non-reactive and low solubility films on metal surfaces.Passivation of specific materials
Aluminium may be protected from oxidation by anodizing and/or allodizing (sometimes called Alodining), or any of an assortment of similar processes. (See terminology, below.) In addition, stacked passivation techniques are often used for protecting aluminium. For example, chromating is often used as a sealant to a previously-anodized surface, to increase resistance to salt-water exposure of aluminium parts by nearly a factor of 2 versus simply relying on anodizing.Iron based (ferrous) materials, including steel, may be somewhat protected by promoting oxidation ("rust") and then converting the oxidation to a metalophosphate by using phosphoric acid and further protected by surface coating. As the uncoated surface is water-soluble a preferred method is to form manganese or zinc compounds by a process commonly known as Parkerizing. Older, less-effective but chemically-similar electrochemical conversion coatings included bluing, also known as black oxide.
Nickel can be used for handling elemental fluorine, thanks to a passivation layer of nickel fluoride.
Terminology for assorted passivation processes
Bluing, also known as black oxide, and sometimes called browning when used in reference to historical processes dating from the 18th Century, is a passivation coating for the surfaces of iron and steel objects. It is one of the oldest passivation processes.Newer, proprietary (and/or trademarked) processes for conversion coatings include Parkerized for passivating steel, dating to roughly 1912, and Alodine for passivating aluminium; both are trademarked processes and are now owned by Henkel Surface Technologies. 
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Chem film is any generic chromate conversion coating used to passivate aluminium. One such example is . In general, however, chromate can also mean any of several chromate conversion coatings that can be applied to a much wider range of metals and alloys than just to aluminium. In recent years, chromate coatings have become less popular due to concerns over environmental pollution from using such processes.
Iridite is another trademarked name of a whole family of proprietary conversion coatings owned by MacDermid. A competing conversion coating used on aluminium, that somewhat ameliorates the environmental pollution concerns caused by chromate coatings, it often appears as a slightly yellowish coating, of roughly the same color as a yellow highlighting pen used to mark text on paper.
Rationale for passivating aluminium
Pure aluminum naturally forms an oxide almost immediately that protects it from further oxidation in most environments. Alloys, however, offer little protection against corrosion. Many alloys are "alclad" or coated with a thin layer of pure aluminum, however bare metal must be treated to prevent corrosion. Alodine, Iridite, and chem film coatings can provide varying amounts of protection for aluminum alloy surfaces.Further reading
ASTM A967 provides advice for the passivation of stainless steel parts.Chromate Conversion Coat (Chemical Film) Per MIL-C-5541 For Aluminum and Aluminum Alloy Parts
References
A standard overview on black oxide coatings is provided in MIL-HDBK-205, Phosphate & Black Oxide Coating of Ferrous Metals. Many of the specifics of Black Oxide coatings may be found in MIL-DTL-13924 (formerly MIL-C-13924). This Mil-Spec document additionally identifies various classes of Black Oxide coatings, for use in a variety of purposes for protecting ferrous metals against rust.
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Last updated on Sunday September 14, 2008 at 21:53:35 PDT (GMT -0700)
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