Sliding wear behaviors of electrodeposited nickel composite coatings containing micrometer and nanometer La2O3 particles

Micrometer and nanometer La₂O₃ particles were codeposited with nickel by electroplating from a nickel sulfamate bath. The wear behaviors of the composite coatings were evaluated sliding against AISI 1045 steel under non-lubricated conditions. It was found that the incorporation of the La₂O₃ particles enhances the microhardness and wear resistance of Ni coatings. The wear resistance of the Ni composite coating containing nano-sized La₂O₃ particles is higher than that of the Ni composite coating containing micro-sized La₂O₃ particles. The codeposition of the smaller nanometer La₂O₃ particles with Ni effectively reduces the size of Ni crystals and significantly increases the hardness of the composite coatings, resulting in significantly improved wear resistance of the nano-sized La₂O₃/Ni composite coating.     

Synthesis and characterization of functionally graded nickel‐nickel coated ZrO2 composite coating

Electroless‐nickel plated ZrO₂ (NCZ) particles have been used to produce a functionally graded nickel‐electroless‐nickel plated ZrO₂ composite coating. So, electroless‐nickel plated ZrO₂ particles concentration was continuously increased from 0 to an optimum value in the electroplating bath (Watt's bath). The substrate was ST37 steel and the thickness of the coating was approximately 50 μm. Also a uniformly distributed nickel‐electroless‐nickel plated ZrO₂ composite coating has been manufactured as comparison. The composite coatings were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. Structure and phase composition were identified by X‐ray diffraction analysis. Microhardness of the coatings was evaluated by employing a Vickers instrument. Three‐point bend test was carried out to compare the adhesion strength of the coatings. Dry sliding wear tests were performed using a pin‐on‐disk wear apparatus. The electrochemical behavior of the coatings was studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The microhardness measurements showed that, with increasing the co‐electrodeposited electroless‐nickel plated ZrO₂ particle content in the nickel matrix, the microhardness increases from interface towards the surface of the functionally graded composite coating. Bend, wear and electrochemical test results confirmed that the functionally graded composite coating has higher adhesion, wear resistance and corrosion resistance as compared with the uniformly distributed coating. This has been attributed to lower mechanical mismatch between coating and substrate in functionally graded composite coating with respect to the uniformly distributed one.     

n-Al2O3P/Ni复合刷镀层的组织和摩擦磨损特性

研究了镍基纳米Al2O3复合电刷镀层（n-Al2O3^p/Ni）的组织特征及擦磨损特性，并与快镍刷镀（Ni)进行了比较。结果表明：n-Al2O3^p/Ni复合刷镀层表面粗糙度更小，组织更致密，镀层摩擦系数随镀液中纳米粒子含量增加稍有增大；n-Al2O3在复合刷镀层中弥散分布，与基相良好结合；复合镀的耐磨性能明显优于Ni刷镀层，镀液中n-Al2O3含量为20g/L时，复合刷镀层具有最佳耐磨性能。     

Evaluation on tribological design coatings of Al2O3, Ni–P–PTFE and MoS2 on aluminium alloy 7075 under oil lubrication

The current work evaluated the friction and wear properties of tribological design surface coatings on aluminium alloy 7075 under various speed and nominal contact pressure. Hard-anodized Aluminium Oxide (Al₂O₃), burnished Refractory Metal Sulfide (MoS₂) and composite electroless nickel coatings with polytetrafluoroethylene (Ni–P–PTFE) particles were subjected to pin-on-disc sliding test against grey cast iron (GCI) under Mach 5 SL SAE 10 W-30 lubrication. The results indicated that Ni–P–PTFE composite coating possessed excellent friction–reduction capability but limited wear resistance due to low mechanical strength. Al₂O₃ coated sample showed outstanding wear resistance with high friction characteristic leading to high surface contact temperature. Furthermore, MoS₂ coating improved the wear resistance of the aluminium alloy.     

Hardness,wear resistance and bonding strength of nano structured functionally graded Ni-Al2O3 composite coatings fabricated by ball milling method

Using initial powder mixtures with different Ni:Al₂O₃ weight ratios ranging from 1:1 to 16:1, nano structured Ni-Al₂O₃ composite coatings were deposited onto an aluminum plate by means of a planetary ball mill. It was shown that initial charges with Ni:Al₂O₃ weight ratios of 4:1 and greater, yielded well-compact coatings. Coating deposited from the powder charge with Ni:Al₂O₃ weight ratio of 4:1, contained 20?vol% of alumina particles in the Ni matrix and submitted the highest hardness value (657?±?28?Hv) and wear resistance. Nevertheless, composite coating containing smallest amount of alumina particles showed the highest cohesive strength of 9.8?±?0.3?MPa. In the next step, nano structured functionally graded composite coatings were produced by the deposition of two separate layers containing different amounts of alumina particles. Although the graded coating showed superior hardness and wear resistance compared with the non-graded coatings, it suffers from low cohesive strength attributed to the presence of alumina particles at the interface region between the two layers. To overcome the poor adhesion between two layers, a thin intermediate plain Ni one was deposited between two layers leading to 80% and 30% improvement in the adhesion strength and wear resistance, respectively.     

Mechanical,thermal and tribological properties of electro- and chemodeposited composite coatings

By means of chemical (autocatalytic) and electrolytic codeposition of nickel and silicon carbide particles it is possible to produce coatings with enhanced wear and corrosion resistance on metallic and plastic substrates.In the first part of the paper the basic plating technique in relation to the type, form, grain size and activation of the SiC particles will be described.The mechanical properties of the coatings depend on the amount of incorporated particles in the nickel matrix. By activation of the SiC powder the content of particles in the coating can be increased significantly. Mechanical properties such as hardness, strength and elastic modulus improve with increasing content of particles. It will be further shown that the negative influence of a pure nickel coating on fatigue is reduced with a coating of NiSiC. This result can be explained by the behaviour of the internal stresses in the coating as a function of the SiC content. The tribological properties of the coatings were tested by an abrasive wear mechanism under lubricated conditions combined with corrosion. The corrosive wear tests were performed under potentiostatically controlled conditions.The high temperature application of these coatings is limited by the thermal decomposition of the SiC particles in the nickel matrix at about 500 °C. The coatings were examined by various techniques such as differential thermal analysis, X-ray diffraction and secondary ion mass spectrometry. The influence of different temperatures on the mechanical and tribological properties of the coatings will be described.     

纳米TiC颗粒对Ni-TiC复合镀层组织与性能的影响

采用双脉冲复合电镀技术,在瓦特型镀液中,制备含微-纳米TiC颗粒的Ni基复合镀层。研究镀液中纳米TiC添加量对复合镀层微观形貌、组织结构、硬度、摩擦和抗氧化性能的影响。结果表明:镀液中添加纳米TiC后,Ni-TiC复合镀层表面出现团聚、致密度降低,复合镀层的组织为Ni和TiC;随镀液中纳米TiC添加量的增加,复合镀层的显微硬度呈先增后降的趋势,而摩擦因数则先降后升;当纳米TiC颗粒添加量为6.0g/L时,复合镀层显微硬度最大,为445HV,摩擦因数较小,为0.22,磨损机制以磨料磨损为主;在900℃,100h氧化条件下抗氧化性能最佳,氧化增重为6.828mg/cm~2,为微米复合镀层的0.5倍。     

Pulse and direct electrodeposition of Ni–Co/micro and nanosized SiO2 particles

Ni–Co/SiO₂ composite coating was electrodeposited on the steel substrate. The coatings were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The microhardness of the composite coatings was studied by variation of the electroplating parameters, such as the pulse current (PC) and direct current (DC) electrodeposition methods, deposition temperature, electrolyte pH, concentration of surfactants, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), and cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB). Zeta potential of SiO₂ particles measurements was performed with various pH, SDS, and CTAB concentrations. The data depict that the hardness of Ni–Co/SiO₂ nanocomposite coatings manufactured by PC electrodeposition increases with the increase of bath temperature, pH, SDS, and CTAB concentration up to 50°C, 4.6, 0.3, and 0.2?g/L, respectively. Beyond mentioned optimum values, the microhardness of nanocomposite coating decreases. Using DC method led to reduce the microhardness. Utilizing SiO₂ microparticles instead of SiO₂ nanoparticles for reinforcing resulted in declining the microhardness. The friction coefficient and wear results demonstrated that using PC method and nanosized particles led to reduce the friction coefficient and increase the resistance to wear. Anodic polarization results illustrated that using SiO₂ nanoparticles and PC method to prepare coating caused corrosion resistance of coating in a 3.5?wt% NaCl solution to enhance.     

纳米SiC浓度对Ni/纳米MoS_2基复合镀层结构和耐磨性能的影响

采用双脉冲复合电镀技术,在瓦特型镀液中,制备含纳米SiC的Ni/MoS2基复合镀层。研究纳米SiC浓度对复合镀层微观形貌、组织结构、显微硬度和摩擦性能的影响。结果表明:镀液中添加纳米SiC后,Ni/MoS2复合镀层的微观形貌产生明显的变化,随镀液中SiC浓度的增加,复合镀层表面致密度提高;镀液中纳米SiC浓度在1.0~1.5g/L时,组织由Ni+MoS2+SiC组成;纳米SiC为1.5g/L时,显微硬度达到最大,为505HV,摩擦因数为0.28,分别为纯Ni/MoS2的1.6倍和1/2。复合镀层的磨损机制以磨料磨损为主。     

Effect of cobalt content on microstructure and property of electroplated nickel‐cobalt alloy coatings

Nickel‐cobalt alloys were electrodeposited on copper sheets in sulfate bath containing 288.5 g/l NiSO₄·6H₂O, 30 g/l CoSO₄·7H₂O, 40 g/l HBO₃, 15 g/l NaCl and 0.08 g/l lauryl sodium sulfate. The effects of cobalt content on microstructure, microhardness, and wear resistance of electroplating nickel‐cobalt alloys were studied by using SEM and XRD techniques, and microhardness tester and wear tester. The relationship between the microhardness of nickel‐cobalt alloy coatings and heat treatment procedures was also investigated. The experimental results show that cobalt content (W_t) in coating increases with Co²⁺/(Co²⁺ + Ni²⁺)% (X) in plating solution. Fitted regression equation is as following: W_t = –0.7399 + 2.2847X – 0.0133X². The increase of cobalt content leads to that the longitudinal section morphology of coating transforms from the cone into sphericity and at last into the shape of willow leaf, and its structure transforms from face centered cubic (fcc) nickel solid solution into fcc cobalt solid solution and at last into hcp cobalt solid solution. The increase of cobalt content results in the increase of microhardness of nickel‐cobalt alloy coatings, and the hardness reaches a maximum value (363 HV) when cobalt content is 54.9%. After heat treatment at 400°C and 600°C, the microhardness of coatings begins to decrease except the coating containing 79.2% Co. Moreover, the wear resistance of electroplated coatings increases with the increase of cobalt content.     

Dry sliding wear behaviour at ambient and elevated temperatures of plasma transferred arc deposited aluminium composite coatings

Abstract

Plasma transferred arc (PTA) surfacing is a surface engineering process in which a coating is deposited on the substrate by the injection of metal powders and/or ceramic particles into the weld pool created by the formation of a plasma plume. The present work involved the tribological evaluation of metal matrix composite (MMC) coatings deposited onto an aluminium alloy using the PTA technique. Coatings were fabricated by the deposition of an Al–Ni powder containing either Al₂O₃ or SiC particles. Dry sliding wear behaviour of the coatings was evaluated at ambient and elevated temperatures. Under sliding conditions of low applied stress and ambient temperature, reinforcement properties such as interfacial structure and fracture toughness have a significant influence on wear resistance. The SiC particles, which exhibit high interfacial bonding and toughness, support the matrix by acting as load bearing elements, thereby delaying the transition in wear mechanism as applied stress increases. As applied stresses exceed the fracture strength of the SiC and Al₂O₃ particles, these particles suffer fragmentation and/or debonding and no longer support the matrix. At higher stresses and elevated temperature, matrix properties such as flow stress and the tribolayer formation play more important roles in determining wear resistance.     

Wear behaviors of Fe-based amorphous composite coatings reinforced by Al2O3 particles in air and in NaCl solution

In this paper, the influence of the addition of Al₂O₃ particles on the microstructure and wear properties of Fe-based amorphous coatings prepared by high velocity oxygen fuel (HVOF) has been studied. The wear behaviors of the composite coatings were evaluated against Si₃N₄ in a pin-on-disk mode in air and in 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. It was found that the Al₂O₃ particles were homogenously distributed in the amorphous matrix and the composite coatings exhibited improved wear resistance and reduced coefficient of friction (COF) in both air and wet conditions as compared to the monolithic amorphous coating. The composite coating reinforced with 20 wt.% Al₂O₃ particles exhibit the best wear performance, which, for example, has extremely low COF (< 0.2) and high wear resistance (2–3 times higher than monolithic amorphous coating). Detailed analysis on the worn surface indicated that the wear mechanism for the amorphous and composite coatings is similar and is dominated by oxidative delamination in air and by corrosion wear in 3.5% NaCl solution. The enhanced wear resistance is mainly attributed to the addition of Al₂O₃ particles which exhibit high hardness, good corrosion resistance and excellent chemical and thermal stability.     

Properties and Strengthening Mechanism of Brush Plated Nanoparticle Reinforced Composite Coatings

Nanoparticle reinforced nickel matrix composite coatings, such as n-Al2O3/Ni, n-SiO2/Ni, n-SiC/Ni and n-TiO2/Ni, were fabricated by brush plating technique. Hardness, wear resistance and contact-fatigue resistance of the composite coatings were determined, and strengthening mechanism of the composite coatings was discussed. Results showed that the composite coatings had superior properties to the Ni metal coating. Compared with properties of brush plated Ni metal coating, the composite coatings had hardness over 1.5 times and wear resistance capability of about 2.5 times. The strengthening mechanism of the composite coatings mainly included fine-crystal grain effect, nanoparticle dispersion effect and dislocation effect.     

Pulse electrodeposition and corrosion properties of Ni–Si3N4 nanocomposite coatings

The development of modern technology requires metallic materials with better surface properties. In the present investigation; Si₃N₄-reinforced nickel nanocomposite coatings were deposited on a mild steel substrate using pulse current electrodeposition process employing a nickel acetate bath. Surface morphology, composition, microstructure and crystal orientation of Ni and Ni–Si₃N₄ nanocomposite coatings were investigated by scanning electron microscope, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis, respectively. The effect of incorporation of Si₃N₄ particles in the Ni nanocomposite coating on the micro hardness, corrosion behaviour has been evaluated. Smooth composite deposits containing well-distributed silicon nitride particles were obtained and the crystal grains on the surface of Ni–Si₃N₄ composite coating are compact. The crystallite structure was face centred cubic (fcc) for electrodeposited nickel and Ni–Si₃N₄ nanocomposite coatings. The micro hardness of the composite coatings (720 HV) was higher than that of pure nickel (310 HV) due to dispersion-strengthening and matrix grain refining and increased with the increase of incorporated Si₃N₄ particle content. The corrosion potential (E _corr) in the case of Ni–Si₃N₄ nanocomposite had shown a negative shift, confirming the cathodic protective nature of the coating.     

Cr3C2 incorporation into an Inconel 625 laser cladded coating: Effects on matrix microstructure,mechanical properties and local scratch resistance

There is an increasing industrial demand for metal alloys with high wear resistance under severe operating conditions. Ni-based alloys, such as Inconel superalloys, are an excellent option for these applications; however, their use is limited by their high cost. Ni-based coatings deposited onto carbon steel substrates are being developed to achieve desired surface properties with reduced cost. Laser cladding deposition has emerged as an excellent method for processing Ni based coatings. In this work, microstructure, mechanical properties and local wear behaviour have been investigated in response to the addition of Cr₃C₂ ceramic particles into an Inconel 625 alloy deposited onto a ferritic steel substrate by laser cladding. Using this deposition technique, a homogeneous distribution of Cr₃C₂ particles was observed in the coating microstructure. The addition of ceramic particles to the starting powder resulted in the formation of hard precipitates in the coating microstructure. The partial dissolution of Cr₃C₂ particles during the laser cladding process increased the hardness of the Inconel 625 matrix. Depth sensing indentation and scratch tests were performed to study the local wear behaviour and scratch resistance of the cermet matrix compared with the conventional Inconel 625 alloy. Finally, the effect of Cr₃C₂ on mechanical properties was correlated with the observed microstructure modifications.     

Properties of Al2O3 nano-particle reinforced copper matrix composite coatings prepared by pulse and direct current electroplating

Cu–Al₂O₃ nano-composite coatings have high potential for use in applications in which high mechanical properties together with high corrosion resistance are required. In the present study it is intended to produce copper nano-alumina composite coatings with various nano-alumina contents in order to investigate the effect of alumina reinforcement particles on corrosion resistance and mechanical properties such as hardness and wear resistance. The composite coatings were deposited using direct current (DC) and pulse current (PC) plating. The microstructures of the coatings produced from both methods were examined via scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The wear behaviors, micro hardness, coating thickness, corrosion rate and coating porosity were examined using appropriate methods. Compared to DC deposition, PC plating facilitated higher amounts of particle incorporation with more uniform distribution. The results indicated that the mechanical properties of the applied coatings with incorporated nano-alumina reinforcement were far more superior as compared to its own matrix as well as non-composite copper coatings. It was also found out that increasing the amount of nano-alumina content in the coating, led to enhanced general properties of the coatings.     

Automatic brush plating: An update on brush plating

An automatic brush plating system was developed to eliminate the disadvantages resulting from the operator in conventional brush plating. With this system, Ni/nano-Al₂O₃ composite coatings on 45 steel substrates were prepared from an electrolyte containing 20 g/l nano-Al₂O₃ particles. For comparison, Ni/nano-Al₂O₃ composite coatings were also prepared manually. Microstructure, surface morphology, microhardness, modulus and wear resistance of two Ni–matrix composite coatings were investigated comparatively. Our present study shows that coating prepared automatically is much more dense, smooth, and uniform than that prepared manually. The former exhibits better mechanical and anti-wear properties than the latter.     

Corrosion and wear behaviour of multilayer pulse electrodeposited Ni–Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript> nanocomposite coatings assisted with ultrasound

In this study, the Ni–Al₂O₃ nanocomposite multilayer coatings with six consecutive layers were electrodeposited on the mild steel by pulse electrodeposition with ultrasound agitation from nickel Watts-type bath. The structure and morphology of the etched coatings cross-section were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The corrosion behaviour of these coatings was investigated in 1 M H₂SO₄ solution. All of the coatings showed the active–passive transition and the distinct difference in structure had negative influence on their corrosion resistance. Moreover, the tribological behaviour of these coatings was evaluated by pin-on-disc type. The results showed that wear resistance increased with increase in duty cycle and frequency.     

Ni对TiC-Ni超音速火焰喷涂层组织和耐磨性的影响

Ni对Ti-Ni-C体系SHS反应中的热力学与动力学均有重要影响,Ni在超音速火焰喷涂合成中的作用尚不明确.利用超音速火焰喷涂合成技术制备了3种不同Ni含量的TiC-Ni金属陶瓷涂层,并对涂层进行了组织和性能研究.结果表明,Ni在喷涂过程中起到了吸收反应热、减缓喷涂合成过程中粉末组分的氧化、并在涂层中黏结相金属的作用.原料中的Ni含量对涂层的组织和性能影响较大,Ni含量低涂层中含有大量氧化物,且组织疏松、滑动磨损性能差;随着Ni含量升高到40%时,涂层的氧化物含量降低,滑动磨损性能增强; Ni含量过高,涂层中Ni片层增多,硬质相间距加大,涂层的耐磨损性能有所降低.     

Influence of SiC, Si3N4 and Al2O3 particles on the structure and properties of electrodeposited Ni

The structure and properties of electrodeposited nickel composites reinforced with inert particles like SiC, Si₃N₄ and Al₂O₃ were compared. A comparison was made with respect to structure, morphology, microhardness and tribological behaviour. The coatings were characterized with optical microscopy, Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. The cross-sectional microscopy studies revealed that the particles were uniformly distributed in all the composites. However, a difference in the surface morphology was revealed from SEM studies. The microhardness studies revealed that Si₃N₄ reinforced composite showed higher hardness compared to SiC and Al₂O₃ composite. This was attributed to the reduced crystallite size of Ni — 12 nm compared to 16 nm (SiC) and 23 nm (Al₂O₃) in the composite coating. The tribological performance of these coatings studied using a Pin-on-disk wear tester, revealed that Si₃N₄ reinforced composite exhibited better wear resistance compared to SiC and Al₂O₃ composites. However, no significant variation in the coefficient of friction was observed for all the three composites.