Study of tribological properties of detonation nanostructured WC-Co-based coatings

The study deals with tribological properties of the nanostructured WC-12%Co coatings deposited by the detonation method. It is found experimentally that their wear resistance depends on the concentration of monocarbide WC. The dependence of the WC concentration in the coating on deposition conditions is obtained. The microstructure of the coatings, their physical-mechanical properties, phase composition, porosity, hardness, and modulus of elasticity are studied. The advantage of the nanostructured coatings over the coatings deposited from micropowders is shown.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of nanostructured TiN/TiBN multilayer films

Nanostructured multilayer films of TiN/TiBN with different bilayer thicknesses (Λ) were deposited onto Si(1 0 0) wafers (for mechanical analyses) and AISI M42 tool steels (for tribological measurements) at room temperature by reactive unbalanced magnetron sputtering in an Ar–N₂ gas mixture. The effects of different Λ values on mechanical and tribological properties were studied by atomic force microscope (AFM), scanning electron microscope (SEM), microindentation measurements, Rockwell-C tester, nano- and micro-scratch tester, impact tester, pin-on-disc tribometer, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). It was found that the mechanical and tribological properties of multilayer films (typically 1.4 ± 0.1 μm in thickness) were closely related to Λ (varied from 1.4 to 9.7 nm). For the best multilayer film with Λ = 1.8 nm, a maximum hardness of 29.5 GPa was achieved and the best cohesive and adhesive strength was evidenced in terms of critical load values of L_C1 (37 N), L_C2 (>80 N) and the highest adhesion strength (HF1). Moreover, by the dynamic impact testing this multilayer film could endure impact cycles up to 4 × 10⁵ without adhesive failure. It was also found that the nano-scratch test under single-pass and constant-load conditions showed that the frictional coefficients decreased with Λ and increased with normal load due to the ploughing effect. The enhanced hardness in the multilayer films with small Λ values improved the wear resistance and lowered the frictional coefficients. The frictional coefficients obtained at 5 N were kept at 0.5 and increased from 0.52 to 0.65 when Λ increased from 1.8 to 9.7 nm at 2 N. By FTIR analyses, the multilayer films with Λ = 1.8 and 2.2 nm showed the presence of h-BN which provided a lubricating function resulted in lower frictional coefficients and wear rates. The tribological properties of the TiN/TiBN multilayer films with different Λ values are also explained in terms of mechanical properties and wear mechanisms.     

Mechanical and unlubricated tribological properties of titanium-containing diamond-like carbon coatings

Titanium-containing diamond-like carbon (Ti-DLC) coatings were deposited on steel with a close-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering in a mixed argon/acetylene atmosphere. The morphology and structure of Ti-DLC coatings were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Nanoindentation, nanoscratch and unlubricated wear tests were carried out to evaluate the hardness, adhesive and tribological properties of Ti-DLC coatings. Electron microscopic observations demonstrated the presence of titanium-rich nanoscale regions surrounded by amorphous carbon structures in Ti-DLC coating. The Ti-DLC coatings exhibit friction coefficients of 0.12–0.25 and wear rates of 1.82 × 10^?9 to 4.29 × 10^?8 mm³/Nm, depending on the counterfaces, sliding speed and temperature. The Ti-DLC/alumina tribo-pair shows a lower friction coefficient than the Ti-DLC/steel tribo-pair under the identical wear conditions. Increasing the test temperature from room temperature to 200 °C reduces the coefficient of friction and, however, clearly increases the wear rate of Ti-DLC coatings. Different wear mechanisms, such as surface polishing, delamination and tribo-chemical reactions, were found in the tribo-contact areas, depending on different wear conditions.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of vapour deposited low friction coatings on Ni plated substrates

Soft steel and aluminium substrates with load-carrying layers of electroplated nickel were coated with commercially available low friction vapour deposited coatings. The mechanical and tribological properties of the coating and substrate composites were evaluated with special emphasis on the influence of the nickel layer. Two different thicknesses of the intermediate load-carrying nickel layer were tested. The samples were evaluated regarding friction and sliding wear, abrasive wear, hardness and elastic modulus, morphology and coating thickness and adhesion between substrate and coating. It was found that all the evaluated low friction coatings were possible to be successfully deposited on the intermediate nickel layer. A relatively thick intermediate nickel layer is a promising candidate for improvement of the load-carrying capacity.     

Effect of current density,MoS2 content and bath agitation on tribological properties of electrodeposited nanostructured Ni-MoS2 composite coatings

ABSTRACT

Nanostructured nickel coatings with molybdenum disulphide particles were electrodeposited to form composite coatings. Three different current densities, i.e. 3, 5 and 7?A/dm² were investigated initially. The best results were obtained with 5 A/dm² for codeposition of nanostructured Ni-MoS₂ composite coatings. With the addition of 1–4?g/L molybdenum disulphide to the bath, the weight percentages of MoS₂ particles in the coatings were 23–38%. This increase of MoS₂ content was accompanied with decrease in friction coefficient of the coatings from 0.35 to 0.08. Wear resistance of the coatings was increased with increasing MoS₂ content and the weight loss was decreased from 1.4 to 0.7?mg. Hardness was decreased from 585 to 400 VHN with increasing the MoS₂ content. By increasing bath agitation speed up to 150?rpm, more MoS₂ particles were embedded in the matrix and the coatings showed better wear resistance. However, increase of agitation speed from 150 to 200?rpm caused a decrease of MoS₂ particles in the nickel matrix due to the turbulent motion of particles in the bath. Overall, it was shown that the lubricating effect of MoS₂ in the coating was more influential than the nanocrystallinity of the nickel matrix in improving tribological properties of these composite coatings.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of amorphous carbon films

The mechanical and tribological properties of amorphous carbon films have been studied in more detail in recent years because these films (a) can be deposited near room temperature, thus allowing film deposition on common engineering alloys (i.e., aluminum and steel) without altering their mechanical properties, and (b) are smooth and conform to surface roughness of the substrate, thus requiring no post deposition processing. In addition, amorphous carbon films exhibit low unlubricated sliding friction in contact with steel and ceramics which is comparable to that of steel against steel in a lubricated contact. The wear resistance of these films is also better than Ti‐based hard coatings. Further improvement in film tribological properties can be achieved by modifying film chemical composition. Because of these attractive features, amorphous carbon films have been evaluated in several applications including automotive, electronic and biomedical engineering. However, environmental factors such as oxygen and humidity have been found to influence tribological properties significantly. This paper reviews the current understanding of the tribological properties of both hydrogenated and non‐hydrogenated amorphous carbon films, the mechanisms responsible for low friction coefficient and identifies areas that require further research. This revised version was published online in June 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of short-fiber-reinforced SiC composites

The short-carbon-fiber-reinforced SiC (C_sf/SiC) composites were prepared by hot-pressing sintering with Si, Al and B as sintering additives. The effects of fiber volume fraction on the mechanical and tribological properties of the C_sf/SiC composites were investigated. The results show that the bending strength values of the composites containing a certain content of the short carbon fibers are higher than that of the monolithic SiC. The friction coefficients of the composites decrease with increasing short carbon fibers content. Except of the composite containing 53 vol% short carbon fibers, the wear rates of the composites decrease with increasing short carbon fibers content, and are lower than that of the monolithic SiC drastically.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of complex-modified material based on ultra high molecular weight polyethylene and CuO

Results of studying nanocomposite materials based on ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene filled with copper oxide nanopowder produced in plasma of low-pressure arc discharge are presented. The process of the vacuum-plasma synthesis of powdered composite mixtures, which involves the treatment of powders of the polymer matrix material in a device for synthesizing nanopowders at low temperatures, is described. Results of the experimental study of the specimens are presented.     

Mechanical and tribological properties of Al-40Zn-Cu alloys

One binary Al-40Zn and five ternary Al-40Zn-Cu alloys with different copper contents were prepared by permanent mould casting. Their microstructure and mechanical properties were investigated in as-cast state. Friction and wear properties of the ternary alloys were studied using a conforming block-on-disc type tester. The results obtained were compared with those of SAE 65 bearing bronze.The microstructure of Al-40Zn-Cu alloys consisted of aluminium-rich α dendrites surrounded by eutectoid α+η phases and θ (CuAl₂) particles. Hardness of the ternary alloys increased continuously with increasing copper content, but their tensile strength decreased above 3% Cu. Friction coefficient and temperature of the Al-40Zn-Cu alloys and bronze increased in the initial period of run. This was followed by a reduction in the properties and attainment of constant levels afterwards. However, volume loss of the alloys increased rapidly at the beginning of the test run and reached almost constant levels after a sliding distance of approximately 400 km. The Al-40Zn-Cu alloys were found to be much superior to the SAE 65 bronze, as far as their wear resistance is concerned. Among the alloys tested, highest strength and wear resistance were obtained with the Al-40Zn-3Cu alloy.     

Comparison of tribological characteristics of nanostructured TiN,MoN, and TiN/MoN Arc-PVD coatings

The tribological properties of TiN, MoN, and TiN/MoN coatings have been investigated. It has been shown that, for multilayer (alternate) TiN/MoN coatings, a maximum hardness reaches 29–31 GPa that is significantly less than the hardness of MoN coatings (36.0–40.2 GPa) when changing the deposition conditions. MoN coatings possess lower coefficients of friction compared to TiN coatings, in particular at the initial stages of a scratch test. Two mechanisms of destruction are revealed by the adhesion tests, i.e., a cohesive failure with a minimum critical loading L _C1 and an adhesive test (plastic abrasion) with the appearance of a first crack L _C2. The resistance of multilayer (nanoscale) nanostructured TiN/MoN coatings with a total thickness of up to 8 μm is greater than that of TiN coatings.     

Tribofilm formation and tribological properties of TiC and nanocomposite TiAlC coatings

In a recent work a concept for self lubricating low friction TiC and nanocomposite TiAlC coatings was developed. Here we further investigate the mechanical and tribological properties of these coatings. Under identical deposition conditions, the addition of Al initiates the formation of a nanocomposite consisting of (Ti,Al)C grains in an amorphous carbon matrix. The coefficient of friction is lowered from ～0.2 to below 0.1 in a pin-on-disc test against steel with unaffected coating wear rate. The lower friction is attributed to a more extensive formation of amorphous carbon and graphitisation on both the counter surface and in the coating wear track. The addition of Al also reduces coating hardness, Young's modulus and the residual stress, which can be explained by the weak carbide-forming ability of Al and the formation of a nanocomposite microstructure.     

Evaluation of wear and tribological properties of coatings rubbing against copper

A new crossed-cylinders tribo-tester is proposed. This tribo-tester can decrease the tendency of the chatter vibration. The tribological properties of coatings against copper is evaluated with this tribo-tester. The wear rate of TiN, TiC and TiCN rubbing against copper is higher than the substrate high speed tool steel: SKH51 (JIS). The catalytic action of copper for oxidation of Ti-based coatings is a main reason of this high wear rate of TiN, TiC and TiCN rubbing against copper. The wear rate of CrN rubbing against copper is in a very low level because CrN shows the excellent oxidation resistance and Cr₂O₃ film formation decreases the wear loss of CrN coating.     

Investigation of mechanical and tribological properties of amorphous diamond-like carbon coatings

We investigated the mechanical and tribological properties of amorphous diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings deposited on Si(100) by a pulsed bias deposition technique. Tribological studies were performed using a pin-on-disc (POD) apparatus under a normal load of 6.25 N and at 10% relative humidity, with a ruby pin as a slider. Hardness measurements were performed using a nanoindenter and apparent fracture toughness using indentation techniques. We studied the influence of residual stresses on apparent fracture toughness. The data revealed that the thickness, hardness and compressive stress of the coating play different roles in the apparent fracture toughness. Crack initiation is influenced by the thickness and hardness of the coating, whereas crack propagation is influenced by the compressive stress in the film. The apparent fracture toughness of DLC coatings increased with coating hardness.     

The effect of substrate properties on tribological behaviour of composite DLC coatings

The unique features of DLC coatings in providing low friction and low wear and, at the same time, causing low wear to the counterface make them very attractive in industrial applications, in improving tribological performance of mechanical components on various substrates. In this study, composite DLC coatings have been deposited on sintered ferrous alloy, M42 tool steel, 2618 aluminium alloy, and 6063 aluminium extrusion substrates using the combined CFUBMS–PACVD technique. The effect of mechanical properties of substrate materials on tribological behaviour of the composite DLC coatings has been investigated at various loads on a ball-on-disk wear machine in dry air. A transition load was usually observed for coatings on the various substrates except for the aluminium extrusion; above the transition load the coating was completely destroyed via some spallation/fragmentation process after 2 h sliding, and the wear rate increased dramatically with further increase in load. The coating system on sintered ferrous alloy substrate exhibited the highest transition load among the four types of substrates studied. This is considered to have resulted from the combined effects of the lower elastic modulus of the porous sintered ferrous alloy substrate, which decreases the stress concentrations in the contact region, and the surface roughness and porosity, which enhance the bonding strength between the coating and the substrate under multi-contact conditions. The high elastic modulus of the tool steel substrate leads to tensile stress conditions in the sliding contact region and therefore makes coatings deposited on such a substrate more prone to breakdown/fragmentation, resulting in a transition load close to that for coatings on the soft 2618 aluminium alloy substrate. For coatings on the 6063 aluminium extrusion substrate, significant plastic deformation occurred in the substrate at loads above 1.5 N. However, despite the heavy deformation in the substrate, coatings on this substrate were not scraped off, as were coatings on the 2618 aluminium alloy substrate, even at a load as high as 20 N. The specific wear rate increased continuously with load, no apparent transition load being explicitly identifiable. This study shows that hard DLC coatings can be applied on both hard and soft substrates for improvement of the tribological behaviour of mechanical components.     

Ways of improving the tribological properties of steel gas-flame coatings

The paper reports the results of study of the structure and properties of steel gas-flame coatings. The effect of the formation of an abnormally great amount of retained austenite during the deposition of coatings from steel wire is found. Techniques for implementing the “austenite effect” to improve the wear resistance of the coatings are proposed. A method for introducing a solid lubricant into the coating during its deposition is developed. A possibility of enhancing the tribological properties of the coatings for friction members is shown. It is based on thermochemical treatment (nitrocarburizing) and tribomodification of the friction surfaces during running-in with a lubricant containing nanosized modifiers.     

Combined influences of mechanical properties and surface roughness on the tribological properties of amorphous carbon coatings

Carbon films (∼2 μm thick) with a range of mechanical properties and underlying substrate roughnesses were evaluated for delamination and wear under conditions of combined impact and sliding contact. One-side-coated and both-sides-coated titanium alloy pin and disk wear couples were assessed using a custom-made impact/sliding pin-on-disk apparatus in a colloid-based blood volume expansion medium. The normal stress distribution along the film/substrate interface upon impact loading by a smooth titanium alloy pin was modelled analytically for each coated system. For disk surface roughness centre-line average (R_a) values below 0.05 μm, the area of disk film delamination was shown to correlate with the presence of tensile stress at the film/substrate interface. The interfacial tensile stress was shown to occur when there was a film/substrate elastic modulus mismatch, either within or outside the perimeter of contact, depending on the direction of the film modulus deviation. We propose that the tensile stress promotes delamination by lifting the film locally from the substrate. With increased disk R_a, the area of disk coating loss tended to decrease, because the surface roughness improved the mechanical bonding of the composite system.     

MoS2-Zr复合薄膜的结构及摩擦特性研究

采用中频磁控溅射技术及多弧离子镀相结合的复合镀膜工艺,在硬质合金YT14基体上制备了MoS2-Zr复合薄膜.观察了MoS2-Zr复合薄膜表面及截面形貌,测试薄膜的厚度、结合力和显微硬度,进行摩擦磨损试验,并分析薄膜的摩擦磨损机理.结果表明,制备的MoS2-Zr复合薄膜结构致密,性能明显优于MoS2薄膜;厚度由2.0μm提高到2.5μm,结合力由28N提高到60N,显微硬度由280HV提高到900HV.MoS2-Zr复合薄膜的摩擦特性明显优于MoS2薄膜.MoS2薄膜磨损初始阶段摩擦因数只有0.06,在磨程15m后摩擦因数升到0.4.而MoS2-Zr复合薄膜的摩擦因数磨损初始阶段可达0.08,直到磨程60m摩擦因数达到0.4.薄膜的摩擦磨损过程主要是薄膜的剥落和转移的过程,复合薄膜由于结合力和硬度的提高,能够延缓薄膜的剥落及转移,提高薄膜的摩擦特性,延长薄膜的减摩润滑时间.     

Microhardness and tribological characteristics of coatings

The hardness and frictional coefficients of two-layer coatings are investigated. The coating life of steel samples is investigated on the basis of its elastoplastic deformation and the microhardness before and after testing on a frictional machine. The two-layer Mo₂N + Mo coating considerably outperforms the steel in terms of microhardness. The life is greatest for TiC coatings.