International Journal of Electrochemical Science 18 (2023) 100274

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International Journal of Electrochemical Science

journal homepage: www.journals.elsevier.com/ijoes

Effect of ultrasonic treatment on the morphology and corrosion resistance of

zinc-manganese phosphate coatings on 16Mn steel in 3.5 % sodium chloride ]]
]]]]]]
]]

Yueyue Zhanga, , Xiaohong Chena, Haiyan Tanb

⁎

a
Zhengzhou Railway Vocational & Technical College, Zhengzhou 451460, China
b
College of Materials and Chemistry, China Jiliang University, Hangzhou 310018, China

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings are prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel which are commonly
Zinc-manganese phosphate coating used as construction structure materials. Ultrasonic treatment has been introduced in the process of phosphating
16Mn steel to enhance the corrosion resistance of different zinc-manganese coatings. The experimental results indicate that
Construction structure materials ultrasonic has a certain impact on the surface morphology, thickness, and corrosion resistance of zinc-manganese
Corrosion resistance
phosphate coating, but it has no significant effect on the composition of zinc-manganese phosphate coating. The
Ultrasonic
proper ultrasonic power applied promotes the formation of a zinc-manganese phosphate coating with a compact
surface and large thickness which can effectively block the penetration of corrosive media and enhance the
corrosion resistance. The zinc-manganese phosphate coating prepared using an ultrasonic power of 135 W de­
monstrates the best surface density with a thickness of 12.2 µm, and its anti-dripping time, charge transfer
resistance and low-frequency impedance modulus reach 236 s, 5696 Ω cm2 and 4625 Ω cm2, respectively. In
comparison to the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic, the zinc-manganese phos­
phate coating prepared with ultrasonic exhibits excellent corrosion resistance and can provide ideal surface
protection for 16Mn steel as construction structure materials.

1. Introduction
Phosphating is a widely used surface treatment process for steel. It is
known that phosphate coating is a functional coating that is non-con­
ductive and insoluble in water [1,2]. The bonding strength between the
steel and the phosphate coating is very good. Phosphate coatings can be
divided into iron phosphate coating, zinc phosphate coating, zinc-man­
ganese phosphate coating, zinc-calcium phosphate coating, and manga­
nese phosphate coating [3,4]. Regardless of the type of phosphate
coating, the corrosion resistance is crucial. Therefore, it is of great sig­
nificant to improve the corrosion resistance of phosphate coating.
It is reported that the corrosion resistance of phosphate coatings can
be improved by changing the composition of phosphate solution and
optimizing phosphating parameters [5,6]. Research has also shown that
introducing ultrasonic during the phosphating process can also achieve
good results to significantly improve the corrosion resistance of phos­
phate coatings. However, the current research on ultrasonic-assisted
phosphating of steel is still in the exploratory stage. Some works have
been done and reported in the lab about the work of ultrasonic-assisted
phosphating. For example, Sun et al. study the effect of ultrasonic on
the corrosion resistance of phosphate coatings on carbon steel. It is
found that the ultrasonic phosphate coating can provide an effective
barrier to improve corrosion resistance [7]. Ultrasonic irradiation and
its application for improving the corrosion resistance of phosphate
coatings is reported by the Sheng et al. [8]. Moreover, effect of ultra­
sonic waves on the performance of calcium phosphate composite
coating is investigated by Fathyunes and Khalili [9]. In order to provide
technical support for the application of phosphate coatings, it is ne­
cessary to investigate the impact of important process parameters such
as ultrasonic power or ultrasonic frequency on the corrosion resistance
of phosphate coatings. In the paper, the 16Mn steel is used as the re­
search object, and different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings are
prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel by phosphating process. Ultra­
sonic with different powers are introduced during the phosphating
process to further improve the corrosion resistance of zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings.

⁎
Corresponding author.
E-mail address: shangdizhuli45@126.com (Y. Zhang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijoes.2023.100274
Received 3 May 2023; Received in revised form 28 June 2023; Accepted 2 July 2023
Available online 3 July 2023
1452-3981/© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of ESG. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creative­
commons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Y. Zhang, X. Chen and H. Tan
Table 1
Chemical composition of 16Mn steel.
Element Mn C Si
Mass fraction/% 1.2–1.6 0.13–0.19 0.2–0.6
2. Experimental materials and methods
2.1. Materials
The substrate is 16Mn steel, and its chemical composition is shown
in Table 1. The surface and edges of the sample is polished in sequence
with different grades of sandpaper (500#, 1000#, 2000#, 3000#) to
get smooth. After that, the sample is immersed in acetone for chemical
oil removal, and then immersed in 15 % volume fraction hydrochloric
acid for corrosion activation. Finally, the pretreated sample is washed
with deionized water and dried.
2.2. Preparation of zinc-manganese phosphate coating
Zinc-manganese phosphate coating is prepared on the surface of
16Mn steel samples by phosphating process. The main composition of
the phosphate solution includes zinc nitrate 32 g/L, zinc oxide 15 g/L,
manganese dihydrogen phosphate 60 g/L, phosphoric acid 75 g/L, ci­
tric acid 2 g/L, and nickel nitrate 1 g/L. The beaker containing the
phosphate solution is placed in the water bath of the ultrasonic cleaning
machine, and maintain the temperature of phosphate solution at
60–63 ℃ through water bath heating. During the experiment, the ul­
trasonic frequency is constant at 40 kHz. Different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings are prepared respectively by changing the ultra­
sonic power (45 W, 90 W, 135 W and 180 W). The time for phosphating
is 25 min. In addition, a zinc-manganese phosphate coating is prepared
without ultrasonic as a comparison.
2.3. Performance testing of zinc-manganese phosphate coating
2.3.1. Surface morphology and composition
The surface morphology of 16Mn steel and different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings are observed using EVO MA15 scanning electron
microscopy, and the compositions of different zinc-manganese phos­
phate coatings are analyzed using an INCA energy spectrometer to
obtain the mass fraction of each element.
2.3.2. Thickness measurement
The thickness of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings on
the surface of 16Mn steel is measured using a TT260 thickness gauge.
The substrate 16Mn steel is a magnetic material and the phosphate
coating is a non-magnetic material. When the measuring head of the
thickness gauge is in contact with the phosphate coating on the surface
of the steel substrate, the measuring head and the steel substrate form a
closed magnetic circuit. Because the surface phosphate coating will
change the magnetoresistance of the magnetic circuit, the thickness of
the phosphate coating can be calculated. The resolution of the thickness
gauge is 0.1 µm. Five areas on each sample are measured and averaged
to reduce error.
2.3.3. Corrosion resistance testing
A copper sulfate solution is prepared for dripping testing. The main
composition is copper sulfate 41 g/L, sodium chloride 35 g/L, and
0.1 mol/L hydrochloric acid 13 mL/L. A syringe is used to take solution
droplets onto the surface of each sample, and record the time it takes
for the droplets to completely change color with a stopwatch, which is
defined as the anti-dripping time of zinc-manganese phosphate coating.
The electrochemical impedance spectra of 16Mn steel and different
zinc-manganese phosphate coatings in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution
International Journal of Electrochemical Science 18 (2023) 100274
Cr Cu Ni P S Fe
0.3 0.25 0.3 0.03 0.03 Residual
are tested by Parstat 2273 electrochemical workstation. The saturated
calomel electrode is used as the reference electrode, and the platinum
electrode is used as the auxiliary electrode. The phosphate coating with
size of 1 cm × 1 cm is as the working electrode. The three electrode
system is immersed in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution for 1 h to reach
steady state, and the electrochemical impedance spectra are tested. The
amplitude of the excitation signal is 10 mV, the starting frequency is
105 Hz, and the ending frequency is 10−2 Hz. The test data is imported
into ZsimpWin software to obtain the charge transfer resistance (Rct)
and low-frequency impedance modulus (|Z|0.01 Hz, impedance modulus
at a frequency of 10−2 Hz) to evaluate the corrosion resistance of 16Mn
steel and different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings. In addition,
16Mn steel and different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings are im­
mersed in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution for 120 h. After that, the
samples are cleaned and dried to be observed the surface morphology.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Surface morphology and composition of different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings
Fig. 1 shows the surface morphology of different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel. Some re­
searchers also report the similar surface morphology of phosphate
coatings [10,11]. It is found that different zinc-manganese phosphate
coatings completely cover the surface of 16Mn steel, and the applica­
tion of ultrasonic has a certain impact on the surface morphology of
zinc-manganese phosphate coatings. As shown in Fig. 1(b), the surface
of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic
are irregular with cracks. These cracks will become channels for cor­
rosive medium to corrode zinc-manganese phosphate coating and in­
crease its corrosion tendency.
The surface density of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating ob­
tained with ultrasonic is improved compared to the zinc-manganese
phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic. This is due to the ca­
vitation effect caused by the transmission of ultrasonic in the phosphate
solution, which generates micro jets to enhance the surface activity of
the substrate and promote the dispersion of phosphate solution, re­
sulting in the increasing of active crystal nuclei number and nucleation
density which attributes to the good compactness. The cavitation effect
of ultrasonic has been investigated by some researchers. For example,
Wang et al. point out that the cavitation effect of ultrasonic can ac­
celerate the nucleation sites and assist the removal of hydrogen bubbles
to improve the compactness of coating [12]. Zhang et al. also verify that
the micro jet produced by the collapse of cavitation bubble and cavi­
tation oscillation could promote the dispersion of solution to improve
compactness [13]. Moreover, it is found that the ultrasonic cavitation
effect can be used to synthesize uniform and compact materials [14].
As shown in Fig. 1(d), the surface density of the zinc-manganese
coating obtained with ultrasonic power of 135 W is the best.
However, when the ultrasonic power is higher, the overall cracks on
the surface of zinc-manganese phosphate coating increase. This will
lead to faster invasion of the corrosive medium into the interior of zinc-
manganese phosphate coating, thereby enhancing the corrosion ten­
dency. Due to the extremely strong micro jet generated by high ultra­
sonic power, it hinders the combination of phosphate ions and metal
ions to precipitate and crystallize on the surface of 16Mn steel, resulting
in rough surface with many crystal defects. In addition, when the ul­
trasonic power is higher, extremely strong shock waves are generated,
2
Y. Zhang, X. Chen and H. Tan International Journal of Electrochemical Science 18 (2023) 100274

a b c

10 μm 10 μm 10 μm

(a) 16Mn steel (b) phosphate coating (without ultrasonic) (c) phosphate coating (45 W)

d e f

10 μm 10 μm 10 μm

(d) phosphate coating (90W) (e) phosphate coating (135W) (f) phosphate coating (180 W)
Fig. 1. Surface morphology of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel (The acceleration voltage is 10 kV with 1200 times
magnification and 8 mm working distance).

2Mn2 + + Zn2 + + 2PO34 Mn2Zn(PO4 ) 2 4H2 O (4)

Table 2
Mass fraction of various elements in different zinc-manganese phosphate Fe + 2H+ + Fe 2 + + H2 (5)
coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel (The accelerating voltage is
20 kV with surface scanning mode). Fe2 + + 2Zn2 + + 2PO34 Zn2 Fe(PO4) 2 4H2 O (6)
Ultrasonic power/W Mass fraction/%

Zn Mn P O Fe 3.2. Thickness of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings

0 36.38 9.2 12.39 39.24 2.79 Fig. 2 shows the thickness of different zinc-manganese phosphate
45 37.17 8.26 12.85 38.54 3.18
coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel. As shown in Fig. 2, the
90 37.8 8.79 13.24 37.86 2.31
135 38.12 9.03 13.57 38.22 1.06
thickness of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained without
180 35.79 8.42 12.16 39.01 4.62 ultrasonic is about 10 µm. The thickness of the zinc-manganese phos­
phate coatings obtained with ultrasonic treatment ranges from 9.4 µm
to 12.3 µm. This indicates that ultrasonic has a certain impact on the
resulting in an increase in cracks in the grain growth process. The thickness of zinc-manganese phosphate coatings. The cavitation effect
disordered distribution causes an increase in the surface roughness of caused by ultrasonic transmission in the phosphate solution can pro­
zinc-manganese phosphate coating and a decrease in its density. mote the dispersion of phosphate solution and increase nucleation sites.
Table 2 shows the mass fraction of various elements in different As a result, the formation rate of zinc-manganese phosphate coating is
zinc-manganese phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn accelerated, resulting in larger thickness.
steel. From Table 2, it can be seen that the composition of different zinc- The thickness of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained
manganese phosphate coatings are all Zn, Mn, P, O, and Fe elements with ultrasonic power of 135 W reaches 12.2 µm. Compared to the zinc-
which are also reported by some researchers [15,16]. The dissociation manganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic treatment,
of zinc nitrate in the phosphate solution generates Zn2+ (see reaction the thickness increases by about 2 µm. However, when the ultrasonic
Eq. (1)), and the multi-level dissociation of manganese dihydrogen
phosphate generates Mn2+and PO43- (see reaction Eq. (2)). The Zn2+ 12.5
combines with PO43- to form Zn3(PO4)2·4H2O precipitation and crys­
12.0
tallize on the surface of 16Mn steel. Moreover, Mn2+, Zn2+, and PO43-
combine to form Mn2Zn(PO4)2·4H2O precipitation, which also crystal­ 11.5
lizes on the surface of 16Mn steel, as shown in reaction Eqs. (3) and (4). 11.0
Thickness/ µm

Therefore, the phosphate coating contains Zn, Mn and P elements. Fe

10.5
element is formed by the dissolution of the substrate to produce Fe2+
(see reaction Eq. 5), which combines with Zn2+ and PO43- in the 10.0
phosphate solution to form Zn2Fe(PO4)2·4H2O precipitation (see reac­ 9.5
tion Eq. (6)). However, compared with Zn, Mn, P, and O elements, the
mass fraction of Fe element is relatively low. 9.0
8.5
Zn(NO3)2 Zn2 + + 2NO3 (1) 0 45 90 135 180
Ultrasonic power/ W
3Mn(H2 PO4)2 3Mn2 + + 3PO34 + H2 PO4 + 2HPO24 + 8H+ (2)
Fig. 2. Thickness of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings prepared on
the surface of 16Mn steel (The resolution of the thickness gauge is 0.1 µm and
3Zn2+ + 2PO34 Zn3 (PO4)2 4H2 O (3) five areas on each sample are measured and averaged to reduce error).

3
Y. Zhang, X. Chen and H. Tan
240
230
220
Dripping resistance time/ s
210
200
190
180
170
160
150
0 45 90 135
Ultrasonic power/ W
Fig. 3. Anti-dripping time of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings
prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel (The components of the solution used in
the test are copper sulfate 41 g/L, sodium chloride 35 g/L, and 0.1 mol/L hy­
drochloric acid 13 mL/L).
power is higher, the thickness of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating
actually decreases, and the thickness of the zinc-manganese phosphate
coating obtained with an ultrasonic power of 180 W is only 9.4 µm.
Higher ultrasonic power can cause the surface of the phosphate coating to
become rougher with many defects, resulting in the decrease of phosphate
coating thickness. Higher ultrasonic power will affect the surface mor­
phology and deposition rate during chemical reaction to decrease coating
thickness. This phenomenon has also been reported by some people. Tan
et al. study the effect of ultrasonic power on performance of composite
coating. They find that higher ultrasonic power is possible to form coat­
ings with cracks and defects to affect the thickness of coating [17]. Some
researchers prove that the power of ultrasonic can affect the roughness of
prepared coating resulting in different thickness [18].
3.3. Corrosion resistance of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings
3.3.1. Anti-dripping time analysis
Fig. 3 shows the anti-dripping time of different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel. It is gen­
erally believed that the longer the anti-dripping time, the better the
corrosion resistance of the phosphate coating. As shown in Fig. 3, it
indicates that ultrasonic has a certain impact on the corrosion re­
sistance of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating. Based on the above
analysis, appropriate ultrasonic power is beneficial to form the zinc-
manganese phosphate coating with a compact surface and low crystal
defects, and therefore having a long anti-dripping time.
The anti-dripping time of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating
obtained with ultrasonic power of 135 W reaches 236 s, which is
Fig. 4. Electrochemical impedance spectra of different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel (The corrosive medium is 3.5 %
sodium chloride solution, the amplitude of the signal is 10 mV and the frequency is ranged from 105 Hz to 10−2 Hz).
International Journal of Electrochemical Science 18 (2023) 100274
Table 3
Corrosion electrochemical parameters obtained according to electrochemical
impedance spectroscopy.
Samples Rct/(Ω cm2) |Z|0.01 Hz/(Ω cm2)
16Mn steel 1880 1610
Phosphate coating (without 4022 3032
ultrasonic)
Phosphate coating (45 W) 4521 3605
Phosphate coating (90 W) 5413 4026
Phosphate coating (135 W) 5696 4625
Phosphate coating (180 W) 3591 2760
180
extended by 52 s compared to the zinc-manganese coating obtained
without ultrasonic treatment, demonstrating excellent corrosion re­
sistance. When the ultrasonic power is higher, the anti-dripping time of
zinc-manganese phosphate coating decreases. For example, the anti-
dripping time of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with
ultrasonic power of 180 W is only 170 s, indicating its corrosion re­
sistance performance is poor. The surface of the zinc-manganese
phosphate coating obtained under high ultrasonic power is rougher
with many cracks, which enhances the local corrosion tendency, re­
sulting in a short anti-dripping time. The effect of ultrasonic power on
the roughness of coating is researched by some researchers. Li et al.
prove that the ultrasonic power during chemical reaction can affect the
surface roughness of coating, resulting in the change of corrosion re­
sistance [19]. In addition, Tudela et al. find that local marks and cracks
are easily formed on the surface of coating if the applied ultrasonic
power is higher [20].
3.3.2. Electrochemical impedance spectra analysis
Fig. 4 shows the electrochemical impedance spectra of different
zinc-manganese phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn
steel and Table 3 lists the corrosion electrochemical parameters ob­
tained according to electrochemical impedance spectra. From Fig. 4(a),
it can be seen that the Nyquist spectra of 16Mn steel and different zinc-
manganese coatings all present a single approximate semicircle. It is
generally believed that the larger the radius of the capacitive reactance
arc, the greater the resistance of the coating to corrosion reaction, in­
dicating better corrosion resistance [21,22]. The differences in the ca­
pacitive reactance arc radius of different zinc-manganese phosphate
coatings obtained with and without ultrasonic treatment indicate that
ultrasonic has a certain impact on the corrosion resistance of different
zinc-manganese phosphate coatings. As the ultrasonic power increases
from 45 W to 135 W, the capacitive reactance arc radius and charge
transfer resistance of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating increase
4
Y. Zhang, X. Chen and H. Tan
accordingly, indicating that the corrosion resistance of zinc-manganese
phosphate coating gradually improves.
Based on the above analysis, appropriately increasing the ultrasonic
power can promote the formation of zinc-manganese phosphate coating
with fewer crystal defects and better surface density to effectively block
the penetration of corrosive medium and increase the resistance to
corrosion reactions. The zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained
with ultrasonic power of 135 W has the largest capacitive reactance arc
radius and the highest charge transfer resistance of 5696 Ω cm2, which
is higher than that of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained
without ultrasonic treatment and 16Mn steel. However, as the ultra­
sonic power increases from 135 W to 180 W, the capacitive reactance
arc radius of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating actually decreases,
accompanied by a decrease in charge transfer resistance from
5696 Ω cm2 to 3591 Ω cm2, resulting in poor corrosion resistance. The
reason is that under the condition of higher ultrasonic power, the
number of cracks on the surface of the zinc-manganese phosphate
coating increases, resulting in a decrease in surface density and a de­
crease in the corrosion resistance.
From Fig. 4(b), it can be seen that the |Z|0.01 Hz of the zinc-man­
ganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic treatment is
higher than that of 16Mn steel, and there is a difference in |Z|0.01 Hz of
the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with and without
ultrasonic. As the ultrasonic power increases from 45 W to 135 W, the
|Z|0.01 Hz correspondingly increase from 3605 Ω cm2 to 4625 Ω cm2.
This is because appropriately increasing the ultrasonic power can
reduce crystal defects and improve surface density of the zinc-man­
ganese phosphate coating that contributes directly to the enhance­
ment of corrosion resistance. Compared to 16Mn steel and the zinc-
manganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic, the
|Z|0.01 Hz of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with
ultrasonic power of 135 W has increased by approximately
3015 Ω cm2 and 1590 Ω cm2 respectively.
However, as the ultrasonic power increases from 135 W to 180 W,
the |Z|0.01 Hz decreases from 4625 Ω cm2 to 2760 Ω cm2. This is due to
the poor surface density of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating
caused by higher ultrasonic power, and the corrosive medium is prone
to invade the interior of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating along
cracks, leading to an accelerated corrosion reaction.
a b
10 μm
(a) 16Mn steel (b) phosphate coating (without ultrasonic)
d e
10 μm
(d) phosphate coating (90W) (e) phosphate coating (135W)
Fig. 5. Corrosion morphology of different zinc manganese phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel after immersing in 3.5 % sodium chloride
solution for 120 h (The acceleration voltage is 10 kV with 1200 times magnification and 8 mm working distance).
5
International Journal of Electrochemical Science 18 (2023) 100274
3.3.3. Corrosion morphology analysis
Fig. 5 shows the corrosion morphology of different zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings prepared on the surface of 16Mn steel after im­
mersing in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution for 120 h. As shown in
Fig. 5(a), the corrosion of 16Mn steel is severe after immersing in 3.5 %
sodium chloride solution for 120 h. The surface is covered with a large
number of granular and flocculent corrosion products, which is rough
and loose. As shown in Fig. 5(b), the zinc-manganese phosphate coating
obtained without ultrasonic also suffer severe corrosion after immersing
in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution for 120 h. However, lower amount of
corrosion products are covered on the surface of the zinc-manganese
phosphate coatings obtained with ultrasonic. It is found that the cor­
rosion degree of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained by
appropriately increasing the ultrasonic power is reduced compared to
the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic.
The surface of zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with
ultrasonic power of 135 W is relatively compact and is covered with
only a small amount of corrosion products after immersing in 3.5 %
sodium chloride solution for 120 h. Based on the above analysis, ap­
propriately increasing the ultrasonic power is beneficial to form com­
pact coating with less crystal defects, which are conducive to reducing
the degree of corrosion. As shown in Fig. 5(f), the corrosion degree of
the zinc-manganese coating obtained with ultrasonic power of 180 W
after immersing in 3.5 % sodium chloride solution for 120 h is sig­
nificantly increased compared to the zinc-manganese phosphate
coating obtained with ultrasonic power of 135 W. This is due to rougher
surface and crystal defects of coating prepared under higher ultrasonic
power which decreases the corrosion resistance. Moreover, the corro­
sive medium is prone to penetrate into the interior of the zinc-manga­
nese phosphate coating with rougher surface and defects, thereby ac­
celerating the corrosion process. The relationship among ultrasonic
power, surface roughness and corrosion resistance of coating is reported
in some published paper as well. Lin et al. study the effect of ultrasonic
on roughness and corrosion resistance of zinc phosphate coating pre­
pared on 20# steel [23]. Yu et al. find that proper ultrasonic power is
beneficial to decrease surface roughness of coatings and improve the
corrosion resistance [24]. Guo and Yao point out that higher ultrasonic
power during coating preparation will form coatings with rougher
surface and poor mechanical performance [25].
c
10 μm 10 μm
(c) phosphate coating (45 W)
f
10 μm 10 μm
(f) phosphate coating (180 W)
Y. Zhang, X. Chen and H. Tan
4. Conclusions
(1) Different zinc-manganese phosphate coatings are prepared on the
surface of 16Mn steel as construction structure materials. The ap­
plication of ultrasonic has a certain impact on the surface mor­
phology, thickness, and corrosion resistance of the zinc-manganese
phosphate coating, but it has no significant effect on the composi­
tion. The composition of different zinc-manganese phosphate
coatings are all Zn, Mn, P, O, and Fe elements, which can provide
surface protection for 16Mn steel.
(2) Appropriately increasing the ultrasonic power is beneficial to form
compact phosphate coating, resulting in better corrosion resistance.
The zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with ultrasonic
power of 135 W has the best surface compactness and maximum
thickness (reaching 12.2 µm). Compared with the zinc-manganese
phosphate coating obtained without ultrasonic, the anti-dripping
time, charge transfer resistance and low-frequency impedance
modulus of the zinc-manganese phosphate coating obtained with
ultrasonic power of 135 W increase by about 52 s, 1673 Ω·cm2,
and 1590 Ω·cm2, respectively, demonstrating excellent corrosion
resistance.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influ­
ence the work reported in this paper.
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