Electroless nickel plating on AZ91D substrate with a new and eco-friendly pretreatment process based on tuning an electrochemical homogeneous surface was investigated. The morphology, deposition process, chemical composition and microstructure of Ni-P coating were studied. It is indicated that β phases are selectively removed, producing a microstructural homogeneous surface and the subsequent uniform and compact Zn immersion layer. A defect-free and well adhesive Ni-P coating can be successfully obtained due to its uniform nucleation and growth based on such pretreatment. Potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS） tests reveal that Ni-P coating could significantly improve the corrosion resistance of AZ91D substrate.
To improve the corrosion resistance, electrodeposition of Cu coating on Mg-3.0Nd-0.2Zn-0.4Zr （mass fraction, %NZ30K） magnesium alloy via an appropriate pretreatment was investigated. The surface morphologies, compositions and microstructures of the pretreated films and Cu coating were characterized in detail. The results show that the activation film consists of fluoride and phosphates and Zn immersion film forms preferentially on the eutectic compound Mg12Nd phase region. A smooth, uniform and dense Cu coating is successfully obtained. Potentiodynamic polarization tests reveal that Cu coating can greatly improve the corrosion resistance of NZ30K magnesium alloy. Open circuit potential （OCP） and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy （EIS） tests during long-term immersion further demonstrate that Cu coating can provide an effective protection for NZ30K magnesium alloy from corrosion up to ~60 h, due to its dense structure and a stable passive film formed. In addition, Cu coating exhibits good adhesion to substrate as confirmed by thermal shock test.
