Commercial pure titanium (CP-Ti) samples were subjected to thermal oxidation (TO) at 650 degrees C for 14 h and 850 degrees C for 6 h under different cooling conditions viz, furnace, air, and water cooling. XRD reveals the formation of the rutile phase and alpha-Ti on the CF-Ti TO at 650 degrees C and the rutile phase on the CP-Ti TO at 850 degrees C. On the 650 degrees C CP-Ti, faster cooling leads to the formation of oxide scales on the surface without spallation whereas on the 850 degrees C sample, faster cooling conditions lead to the formation of oxide scales with spallation. Electrochemical studies reveal that the faster cooling rate has no deleterious effect on the corrosion resistance of TO CP-Ti at 650 degrees C for 14 h whereas the faster cooling rate has deleterious effect on the corrosion resistance of TO CP-Ti at 850 degrees C for 6 h in the 0.9% NaCl solution. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.