Although the corrosion properties of Ti-6Al-4V have been widely studied, the differences in passive film evolution and corrosion mechanism between wrought and SLMed Ti-6Al-4V in acidic service environments are still unclear. In this work, the corrosion behaviors of wrought and selective laser melting (SLMed) Ti-6Al-4V alloys in 0.05 mol/L H2SO4 solution were systematically investigated using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, potentiodynamic polarization curves, Mott–Schottky analysis and XPS depth profiling. Wrought and SLM-fabricated Ti-6Al-4V were selected to reveal the effects of typical forming processes on corrosion resistance, considering their wide applications and distinct microstructures. Electrochemical results demonstrate that the wrought alloy exhibits a higher polarization resistance, a thicker passive film, and a lower corrosion current density, corresponding to superior corrosion resistance. Mott–Schottky analysis reveals that the passive films formed on both alloys show n-type semiconductor characteristics, while the wrought alloy possesses a lower carrier concentration, fewer defects, and a more compact film structure. XPS depth analysis indicates that the content of TiO2 in the passive films decreases with increasing etching depth, accompanied by an increase in TiOOH, TiO, and metallic Ti.
Zhou et al. (2026) studied this question.