Effects of electrolyte thickness, chloride ion concentration, and an external direct current electric field on corrosion behaviour of silver under a thin electrolyte layer

Effects of electrolyte thickness, chloride ion concentration, and an external direct current electric field (DCEF) on the corrosion behaviour of silver under a thin electrolyte layer (TEL) were investigated using electrochemical and surface techniques. The results indicate the corrosion rate of silver increases with the decrease of TEL thickness and the increase of chloride ion concentration. Moreover, an interesting conclusion was drawn that the corrosion rate of silver near the positive plate of DCEF first increases and then decreases with the increase of electric field intensity. In a DCEF, different polarisation behaviours of silver at different positions were attributed to the differences of the local corrosion environment.