ChemInform Abstract: Photoelectrochemical Characterization of Thin Anodic Oxide Films on Zirconium Metal.

Abstract The effect of metal surface preparation on the properties of thin oxide films grown on zirconium in different electrolytes was investigated by photocurrent spectroscopy. Both passive layers grown by free corrosion of the samples in a solution and thin oxides grown anodically at a constant rate were investigated. The photoelectrochemical results give a complex picture of the interface, being influenced by the metal surface preparation, the solution pH and the electrode potential. A duplex structure of the films has been suggested on the basis of the photocurrent spectra, with an external hydrous layer (amorphous or strongly defective) having an optical gap ( E g 2 ~ 3 eV) lower resp…