Low electrical resistivity alumina grown by plasma electrolytic oxidation – CAMFRE

The proposal CAMFRE concerns the plasma electrolytic oxidation (PEO) also known as micro-arc oxidation (MAO) processing of aluminium alloys. It specifically deals with the incorporation of conductive micro- or nano-particles in the growing layer to achieve alumina layers with a significant electrical conductivity. This will therefore extend the applications of PEO processed aluminium to a wider range of applications for which electrical conductivity is needed together with tribological properties and corrosion protection. This is for instance of great importance in the connector domain. The strategy of the project will couple studies of the mechanisms that govern the PEO process depending on the nature of the added particles (metallic or carbonaceous ones), investigations of the mechanisms of particle incorporation inside the porosity network of the growing PEO layer, thermodynamic calculations and structural and functional (especially conductivity, corrosion and wear resistance) properties of the grown layers.