Corrosion-wear behaviour of PVD Cr/CrN multilayer coatings for gear applications

At present, one of the most important problems in automobile engines and transmission components is due to tribological processes (friction and wear) that in many cases come accompanied by corrosion processes due to the environmental conditions to which these materials are exposed during their lifetime. Both mechanisms can be minimized by means of the development and the application of adequate coatings that combine low friction with a high corrosion and wear resistance.The new tendencies in industrial PVD coatings to improve their properties are focused in the development of new multilayer and nanostructured coatings. These structures allow in a relatively simple way enhancing their tribological properties and the corrosion resistance that can not be reached by means of the traditional monolayer coatings. The background of this type of coatings consists of the stacking up of several layers with good individual tribological and mechanical properties, but every individual layer has a thickness that can be from hundreds of nanometres down to only 5-10 nm. The properties of these nanostructured coatings depend strongly on the thickness modulation of every individual layer.Concerning PVD coatings, the chrome nitride coatings have demonstrated to possess excellent wear resistance properties. In this work, multilayer Cr/CrN coatings with different individual layer thickness have been deposited on substrates of steel F1272 and silicon. The deposition has been carried out by means of the cathodic arc method alternating an atmosphere of pure Ar with a reactive mixture of N₂/Ar. The multilayers obtained have been analyzed by means of Glow Discharge Optical Emission Spectroscopy (GD-OES) and in some cases by means of FE-SEM obtaining bilayer (Cr/CrN) periods of the order of 220 and 45 nm. The coating characterization has been complemented with hardness and composition measurements as well as by the performance of several wear and corrosion-wear tests.     

Architecture of Multilayer Cr/CrN Coatings for Wear Protection in Seawater: Cr/CrN Ratio and Total Thickness

Cr/CrN multilayer coatings with various Cr/CrN thickness ratios and total thicknesses were deposited on 316L stainless steel by multi-arc ion plating. The coatings were systematically characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and nanoindentation. Tribological behaviors were investigated using a ball-on-disk tribometer in artificial seawater. The results showed that the multilayer coating phases changed from Cr₂N + CrN to Cr + Cr₂N + CrN phases with an increase in Cr/CrN thickness ratio. The adhesion showed a slight difference for the coatings with different thickness ratios but significantly increased with total thickness. The hardness was also slightly improved by thickening the coatings. The friction coefficient and wear rate were lowest at a thickness ratio of about 0.3. However, there was no large difference in the friction coefficient between coatings with different thicknesses. The wear rate was lower for the thicker coatings under various loads. The load-bearing capacity was also improved by thickening the coatings.     

Comparative tribological behaviors of TiN, CrN and MoNCu nanocomposite coatings

The purpose of this study is to investigate comparative tribological behaviors of Cu-doped TiN, CrN, and MoN coatings under a wide range of dry sliding conditions. TiN and CrN coatings have been developed and used by industry in numerous tribological applications including, machining, manufacturing and transportation. In contrast, MoN has attracted very little attention as a tribological coating in the past, despite being much harder than both TiN and CrN. In this paper, we will mainly concentrate on the Cu-doped versions of these coatings whose tribological properties have not yet been fully explored. The results of this study have confirmed that the addition of Cu into TiN, CrN and MoN coatings has indeed modified the grain size and morphology, but had a beneficial effect only on the friction and wear behavior of MoN. The tribological behavior of CrN did not change much with the addition of Cu but that of TiN became worse after Cu additions. Raman spectroscopy technique was used to elucidate the structural and chemical natures of the oxide films forming on sliding surfaces of Cu-doped TiN, CrN and MoN films. The differences in the friction and wear behavior of Cu-doped TiN, CrN, and MoN is fully considered and a mechanistic explanation has been provided using the principles of a crystal chemical model that can relate the lubricity of complex oxides to their ionic potentials.     

Advances and problems with TEM characterization of Cr/CrN multilayer coatings

Multilayer Cr/CrN/Cr/Cr(N,C) and Cr/CrN with 8 and 32 layer coatings were deposited on austenite substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. The microstructure observations were performed using Philips CM20?, TECNAI G² F20 – TWIN? and JEOL EX4000? transmission microscopes. The performed experiments indicated that lowering the argon flow from 60 to 30 cm³/s during chromium ablation changes buffer layers microstructure from nearly amorphous to nano‐crystalline. The nitride or carbo‐nitride layers turned out to be less sensitive to changes in nitrogen flow during deposition. The columnar microstructure of Cr layers is coarser than those in CrN ones under the same deposition condition. This observation proved also that relying on PLD technique as thin as 30 nm layers might be formed within multilayer Cr/CrN coatings.     

Cr2N/CrN multilayer coatings for wood machining tools

The present paper describes results from a recent research project aimed at forming a wear resistant coating based on chromium on tools to wood machining. Cr₂N/CrN multilayer coatings deposited on HS6-5-2 steel substrates using cathodic arc evaporation were tested. These coatings were formed from 7 bilayers being ca. 340 nm thick and equally thick Cr₂N and CrN layers. For comparison, Cr₂N and CrN monolayer coatings were also prepared. Hardness measurements, indentation and scratch tests, friction and wear were performed to characterize the mechanical properties. The wear tracks and Rockwell indentations enable to assess wear mechanisms of the coatings. The results of the Cr₂N/CrN coatings investigated show high hardness: ca. about 22 GPa and a critical force being higher than 95 N and a low wear rate.The industrial tests of planer knives with Cr₂N/CrN multilayer coatings were carried out on a down-spindle milling machine to determine the durability of tools with wear resistant coatings for woodworking. These tools show increase of “life time” two times. Another positive feature of the use of such tools is the increase of the quality of wood surface machined when compared with uncoated tools.     

CrCN/CrN+ta-C multilayer coating for applications in wood processing

The paper presents mechanical and tribological properties of CrCN/CrN and CrCN/CrN+ta-C multilayer coatings. Tetrahedral carbon (ta-C) layer formed using the pulse cathodic arc evaporation method are characterised by high hardness –45 GPa, very low friction coefficient—below 0.1 and a low wear rate −1.3×10⁻¹⁷ m³N⁻¹ m⁻¹ providing promising application perspectives.Three sets of tools—planer knives for cutterheads were tested: uncoated (as reference), tools with a CrCN/CrN coating and tools with CrCN/CrN coating with additional friction-reducing tetrahedral carbon (ta-C) layer. The results of investigations indicate that the “tool life” depends on the type of coating and machining conditions. The blades covered with CrCN/CrN multilayer coating after machining of dry, seasoned pine timber showed a twofold increase of durability, and knives covered with CrCN/CrN+ta-C multilayer coating were characterised further by about 15% higher durability. Durability of knives tested in the course of rounding of wet pine timber, despite relatively high depth of machining was improved and for cutters with a CrCN/CrN coating increased more than twice, while the use of the additional ta-C layer on the multilayer coating improved durability by almost 5 times.     

Micro/Nanotexture Design for Improving Tribological Properties of Cr/GLC Films in Seawater

Microdimples with different diameters and Cr/graphite-like carbon (GLC) films were fabricated on silicon by laser surface texturing and magnetron sputtering technology, respectively. The texturing effects on the microstructures and tribological performance in seawater were comparatively investigated. The results showed that both the friction coefficients and wear rates in seawater decreased with an increase in dimple diameter in the lower range and then increased with a further increase in diameter. The Cr/GLC film with an appropriate diameter of dimples (1.5 µm) is effective in enhancing the tribological properties due to entrapment of wear particles and seawater in the dimples. In addition, the roughness and graphitization contact area have obvious effects on the wear resistance. If the surface roughness is too high, the graphitization contact area will decrease, and the ratio of minimum aqueous film thickness to the surface roughness is so small that the load is almost totally borne by the boundary film.     

Friction and wear properties of duplex MAO/CrN coatings sliding against Si3N4 ceramic balls in air, water and oil

It is evident that the micro-arc oxidation (MAO) ceramic coatings often exhibit relatively high friction coefficients as sliding against many mating materials. To reduce the friction coefficient for the MAO coatings, the duplex MAO/CrN coatings were deposited on 2024Al alloy using combined micro-arc oxidation and reactive radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The microstructure and phase of the duplex coatings were observed and determined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively. The friction and wear behaviors of the duplex coatings sliding against Si₃N₄ balls in air, water and oil were investigated using a ball-on-disk tribometer. The wear rate of the duplex coating was determined by non-contact optical profilometer and the wear tracks on the duplex coatings were observed by SEM. The results showed the CrN coatings mainly consisted of Cr, CrN and Cr₂N phases. The duplex coatings/Si₃N₄ tribopair exhibited the highest friction coefficient in air, while displayed the lowest friction coefficient in oil. When the normal load and the sliding speed increased, the friction coefficient in air increased from 0.65 to 0.72, whereas decreased from 0.58 to 0.36 in water and 0.20 to 0.08 in oil. The specific wear rates for the duplex coatings in air were higher than those in oil. In comparison to the MAO coatings, the duplex MAO/CrN coatings displayed excellent tribological properties under the same conditions.     

Tribological behaviour and wear mechanism of MoS2–Cr coatings sliding against various counterbody

MoS₂–Cr coatings with different Cr contents have been deposited on high speed steel substrates by closed field unbalanced magnetron (CFUBM) sputtering. The tribological properties of the coatings have been tested against different counterbodies under dry conditions using an oscillating friction and wear tester. The coating microstructures, mechanical properties and wear resistance vary according to the Cr metal-content. MoS₂ tribological properties are improved with a Cr metal dopant in the MoS₂ matrix. The optimum Cr content varies with different counterbodies. Showing especially good tribological properties were MoS₂–Cr8% coating sliding against either AISI 1045 steel or AA 6061 aluminum alloy, and MoS₂–Cr5% coating sliding against bronze. Enhanced tribological behavior included low wear depth on coating, low wear width on counterbody, low friction coefficients and long durability.     

Cr/C对含4%Ni高铬耐磨耐蚀铸铁性能的影响

采用对比试验的方法探讨了不同Cr/C的比值对含4%Ni高铬耐磨耐蚀铸铁硬度、耐磨性及冲击韧性的影响规律。结果表明:无论固定C还是固定Cr,改变Cr/C的比值对4%Ni高铬耐磨耐蚀铸铁性能都有显著的影响,尤其当含C量较低时,Cr的变化对材料性能的影响更明显。通过调整不同的Cr/C,可以获得不同的硬度、耐磨性和冲击韧性组合的材料。     

Multilayer thin film CrN coating on aerospace AL7075-T6 alloy for surface integrity enhancement

Chromium nitride (CrN) coating has emerged as a new alternative in machining applications. CrN has good thermal stability, low deposition temperature, and excellent wear and corrosion resistance. However, no precise information exists yet regarding the ideal coating parameter conditions that lead to higher surface integrity. For this reason, an optimization study is desired—a study on the parameters of CrN coating on aerospace Al7075-T6 alloy using physical vapor deposition magnetron sputtering. The present research work investigates the effects of temperature as well as nitrogen flow rate and DC power on coated samples’ surface hardness, adhesion, surface roughness, and microstructure. To carry out the investigation, the Taguchi optimization method with L₁₆ (3⁴) orthogonal array was applied. However, to obtain optimum parameters for superior surface integrity, signal/noise (S/N) response analysis method was employed. Finally, confirmation tests with the best parameter combinations attained in the optimization process were carried out to demonstrate the progress made. Ultimately, surface hardness of coated Al7075-T6 was enhanced by 15.33 %, adhesion by 24.3 %, and surface roughness by 7.22 %.     

Interlayer thickness influence on the tribological response of bi-layer coatings

The present work deals with the influence of coating thickness on the tribological response of bi-layer model coatings consisting of CrN with Cr interlayer with varying Cr/CrN thickness ratios on high-speed steel. Ball-on-disc experiments were carried out in ambient air at room temperature and alumina balls as counterbodies. The mechanical stresses in both layers generated during the tests were calculated with the software package Elastica. Wear tracks on the samples were characterised using both scanning electron microscopy and optical profilometry. The results show that the interlayer thickness plays a determinant role in the tribological response of the coatings provided that the CrN layer thickness exceeds a critical value to withstand mechanical wear.     

The slurry erosive wear of physically vapour deposited TiN and CrN coatings under controlled corrosion

The erosion-corrosion of mild steel (BS6323), in the presence and absence of physically vapour deposited (PVD) TiN and CrN coatings, was studied, in comparison with that of AISI 304 stainless steel, in an aqueous alkaline slurry solution containing alumina particles. The influence of applied potential and particle velocity on the total erosion-corrosion loss was examined, and the respective corrosion and erosion damage (both contributing to the overall weight loss) then assessed by means of microscopical investigation of the morphology of the damaged surface, and subsequently evaluated quantitatively. The superior erosion-corrosion resistance of both the coatings compared to that of the uncoated mild and stainless steels was shown to be due to their resistance to both wear and corrosion. According to the detailed corrosion mechanisms revealed and different responses to wear, schematic diagrams were proposed to outline the main features of the corrosion-erosion process and the individual roles of erosion and corrosion. Discrete differences, in terms of the respective erosion and corrosion processes, between the TiN and CrN coatings, and between the mild and stainless steels, were also investigated and discussed. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Investigation of antiwear coatings deposited by the pvd process

The tribological properties of various PVD‐deposited coatings (vacuum arc method) have been tested, both single‐layer coatings (TiN, CrN, Ti(C,N), and Cr(C,N)) and multilayer coatings (Cr(C,N)/CrN/Cr and CR(C,N)/(CrN+Cr₂N)/CrN/Cr). An unlubricated ball‐on‐disc tribosystem was used in which an Al₂O₃ ball is pressed against a coated steel disc rotating in the horizontal plane. A novelty of the method is the removal of wear debris from the contact zone using a draught of dry argon. This improves the repeatability of the test results and the stability of the tribological characteristics. It is shown that CrN coatings exhibit the best antiwear properties and Ti(C,N) the worst. Multilayer coatings have better antiwear properties than single‐layer ones. The friction coefficients for CrN and Cr(C,N) coatings are much smaller than for the commonly used TiN. A correlation has also been found between the physical properties of the coatings tested (adhesion of the coating to the substrate assessed in scratch tests, and coating hardness) and their antiwear properties. An improvement in coating‐substrate adhesion results in wear reduction, while greater hardness (causing a coating embrittlement increase and a change in the wear mechanism) brings about greater wear. There is no correlation between the physical properties and the friction coefficients of the coatings tested.     

Thermal stability and high-temperature wear of Ti–TiN and TiN–CrN nanomultilayer coatings under self-mated conditions

Ti–TiN and TiN–CrN nanomultilayers were thermally stable retaining uniform and sharp layer interfaces up to 24 h at 773 K, without any oxidation or phase transformation accompanying each individual layer. Decreasing the multilayer spacing resulted in an increase in the hardness in both cases. The coating hardness was found to be independent of the substrate type, when applied on HS718, Ti64 and HCHCr substrates. In scratch testing, the multilayers displayed a better resistance to the onset of failure, as compared to the monolayer TiN. The substrate plasticity played an important role in determining the coating failure mode. Self-mated wear tests revealed the CrN–TiN system to exhibit the best wear behaviour, both at room temperature and at 773 K. The Ti–TiN coatings are more accommodative with all three substrates, as compared to TiN–CrN and TiN.     

Lubrication of CrN Coating With Ethyl-Dimethyl-2-Methoxyethylammonium Tris(pentafluoroethyl)Trifluorophosphate Ionic Liquid as Additive to PAO 6

This paper studies ethyl-dimethyl-2-methoxyethylammonium tris(pentafluoroethyl)trifluorophosphate ionic liquid [(NEMM)MOE][FAP] as 1 wt% additive to a polyalphaolefin (PAO 6) in the lubrication of CrN PVD coating. The tribological behavior of this mixture has also been compared with a traditional oil additive, such as zinc dialkyldithiophosphate (ZDDP). Friction and wear tests were performed by means of a ball-on-plate reciprocating tribometer, and XPS was used to analyze wear surfaces. The experimental results showed that both additives substantially improve the anti-friction and anti-wear performance of the base oil. However, the tribological behavior of the ionic liquid as oil additive does not reach that of ZDDP. The interactions of each additive with the surface and tribofilm formation contributed to improve the tribological behavior of the lubricants.     

模具钢表面多弧离子镀CrAlN涂层的制备及其摩擦性能研究

为了改善模具钢表面质量,采用多弧离子镀技术在H13模具钢表面沉积CrAlN薄膜,探讨H13钢基体表面渗氮处理后对薄膜表面形貌、硬度、结合力、抗氧化性和摩擦磨损性能的影响。结果表明：基体表面渗氮处理前后制备的CrAlN涂层表面均匀致密,都有少量的大颗粒,涂层表面均呈CrN（200）面择优取向,而渗氮后制备的涂层CrN（200）面择优取向更强;基体H13钢经过表面渗氮后,硬度显著提高,对制备的涂层具有支撑作用,降低了裂纹产生倾向,提高了涂层产生裂纹的临界载荷,提高了涂层的膜基结合力;相较于基体表面未渗氮处理制备的CrAlN涂层,基体表面渗氮后制备的CrAlN涂层具有更高的硬度和结合力,更为优异的摩擦磨损性能,且抗高温氧化性能显著增强。     

Structure and water-lubricated tribological properties of Cr/a-C coatings with different Cr contents

The Cr containing amorphous carbon coatings (Cr/a-C) with varying Cr content were deposited using unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The results revealed that the chromium carbide nano-clusters were formed when the Cr content exceeded 4.9 at%. The critical load increased while the hardness decreased after the Cr element incorporation. Although the low Cr containing Cr/a-C coatings (≤4.9 at%) exhibited similar friction coefficient with a-C coatings, but the initial friction coefficient, running-in distance and wear rate of SUS440C balls all decreased. However, the Cr/a-C coatings with high Cr content (11.98–14.09 at%) would worsen the tribological properties because chromium carbides acted as abrasive wear particles during tribotests.     

Dry Sliding Wear Model of Nanometer Scale Multilayered TiN/CrN PVD Hard Coatings

Dry sliding wear resistance of nanomultilayered TiN/CrN coatings has been evaluated using a ball-on-disk tribometer and compared with TiN and CrN monolayered references. The significant extend of lifetime of the nanostratified coatings is explained by a particular stress field generated in the whole thickness and a degradation model is proposed.     

Low Friction CrNMPP/TiNDCMS Multilayer Coatings

Transition metal nitrides like CrN and TiN are widely used in automotive applications due to their high hardness and wear resistance. Recently, we showed that a multilayer architecture of CrN and TiN, deposited using the hybrid—high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) and direct current magnetron sputtering (DCMS)—HIPIMS/DCMS deposition technique, results in coatings which indicate not only increased mechanical and tribological properties but also friction coefficients in the range of diamond-like-carbon coatings when tested at RT and ambient air conditions. The modulated pulsed power (MPP) deposition technique was used to replace the HIPIMS powered cathode within this study to allow for a higher deposition rate, which is based on the complex MPP pulse configuration. Our results on MPP/DCMS deposited CrN/TiN multilayer coatings indicate excellent mechanical and tribological properties, comparable to those obtained for HIPIMS/DCMS. Hardness values are around 25 GPa with wear rates in the range of 2 × 10⁻¹⁶ Nm/m³ and a coefficient of friction around 0.05 when preparing a superlattice structure. The low friction values can directly be correlated to the relative humidity in the ambient air during dry sliding testing. A minimum relative humidity of 13% is necessary to guarantee such low friction values, as confirmed by repeated tests, which are even obtained after vacuum annealing to 700 °C. Our results demonstrate that the co-sputtering of high metal ion sputtering techniques and conventional DC sputtering opens a new field of applications for CrN/TiN coatings as high wear resistance and low friction coatings.