ABSTRACT

Aluminum (Al) has only recently completed its Žrst century of commercial production [1]. The key to its extensive use today is its corrosion resistance, strength:density ratio, toughness, and its versatility that makes it suitable for a wide range of applications (from household foil and beverage cans to essential construction material for aircraft and space vehicles). Transportation, largely aerospace applications, has provided the greatest stimulus for alloy development and corrosion research that continues today [2]. Al and its alloys offer a diverse range of desirable properties that can be matched precisely to the demands of each application by the appropriate choice of composition, temper, fabrication, and processing mode [3]. It is increasingly the metal chosen for reducing the weight and hence emissions from the world’s vast and rapidly expanding šeet of vehicles, making it the commodity “light metal.”