Ceria Particles as Efficient Dopant in the Electrodeposition of Zn-Co-CeO₂ Composite Coatings with Enhanced Corrosion Resistance: The Effect of Current Density and Particle Concentration

Novel Zn-Co-CeO₂ protective composite coatings were deposited successfully from chloride plating solutions. Two different types of ceria sources were used and compared: commercial ceria powder and home-made ceria sol. Electrodeposition was performed by a direct current in the range of 1-8 A dm^-2. Two different agitation modes were used and compared, magnetic stirring and ultrasound-assisted stirring (US). The influence of magnetic stirring on the stability of the related plating baths was evaluated via a dynamic scattering method. The results pointed to better stability of the prepared ceria sol. The morphology of the composite coatings was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and particle content was determined by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The results showed that the increase in the deposition current density was not beneficial to the coating morphology and particle content. The corrosion behavior of the Zn-Co-CeO₂ composite coatings was analyzed and compared by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and polarization resistance. The ultrasound-assisted electrodeposition at small current densities was favorable for obtaining composite coatings with enhanced corrosion stability. The protection was more effective when US was applied and, additionally, upon utilization of ceria sol as a particle source, which was revealed by higher polarization resistance and greater low-frequency impedance modulus values for sol-derived composite coatings deposited under ultrasound.