The influence of artificial ageing on the corrosion behaviour of a 2050 aluminium--copper--lithium alloy

The influence of artificial ageing on the corrosion behaviour of the recently developed 2050 Al–Cu–Li aluminium alloy in chloride-containing solutions was studied. Corrosion tests showed that artificial ageing changed the corrosion morphology of the alloy from intergranular to intragranular and decreased the corrosion potential of the alloy. Transmission electron microscopy observations combined with small-angle X-ray scattering measurements were used to establish a link between the distribution of T1 precipitates and the corrosion behaviour