Electrochemical response of aluminum in contact with beer

Abstract

The aluminum, a very oxidable material from the thermodynamically viewpoint, has an excellent corrosion resistance, due to the thin and adherent oxide layer formed onto its surface.By using electrochemical methods - potentiometry and EIS - the electrochemical parameters of the corrosion process of aluminum in beer have been determined: the corrosion potential (Ecorr), the corrosion intensity (Icorr), the polarization resistance (Rp), the pitting potential (Egp) and the repassivation potential (Erp). The equivalent circuit used is typically for pitting corrosion. Optical microscopy has been used for completing the analysis of attacked surfaces. The experiments showed the localized corrosion susceptibility of aluminum in contact with beer.