Chromium partitioning induced evolution of texture, grain boundary constitution, and corrosion behavior of Cu Cr coatings electrodeposited at different temperatures

The corrosion behavior of CuCr coating electrodeposited at three different temperatures (15 °C, 30 °C, 45 °C) was examined. Cr is partitioned in the grain boundaries and as a solute in the Cu matrix. The formation of Cr-oxide at the grain boundaries enhanced the corrosion resistance of the coatings, whereas the presence of Cr as solute significantly altered the matrix micro-texture. The 15 °C deposited coating exhibited the lowest corrosion rate due to higher Cr solute, smaller grain size, (111) surface texture, and a higher fraction of coincidence site lattices. The 45 °C deposited coating exhibited the highest corrosion rate due to lower Cr solute, higher energy (110) surface texture, and higher fraction of high energy grain boundaries.