A COMBINATORIAL APPROACH TO THE OXIDATION RESISTANCE OF (Ti,Al)N AND Ti-Al-Si-N HARD COATINGS

The increasing complexity of modern functional materials leads to the demandof a cost efficient tool for the development of new products. One possible approach to this questionis the adaptation of combinatorial methods to the specific requirements of materials industry.These methods, originally developed for the pharmaceutical industry, have recently been applied tothe screening of superconductive, magnetoresistant and photoluminescent materials. The principle ofthese combinatorial approaches is the deposition of large materials libraries in one processcombined with fast methods for the determination of the resulting properties. In this paper, thedeposition and characterization of laterally graded materials libraries (composition spread) ispresented. The films have been deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering, using two or threemetallic targets at a low angle to the substrate surface as well as a system of apertures. Toillustrate the advantages of combinatorial approaches for the development of advanced materials, themulticomponent metastable hardcoatings (Ti,Al)N and Ti-Al-Si-N are discussed with special emphasison the relations between structure and composition on the one hand and the oxidation resistance ofthese coatings on the other. The results illustrate that the composition spread approach is apowerful and cost efficient tool for the development and optimization of new multicomponentfunctional materials.

Review of the fatigue behavior of hard coating–ductile substrate systems

With the wide application of coating materials in aerospace and other fields, their safety under fatigue conditions in service is important.However, research on the fatigue properties of ceramic hard coatings started late, and a unified standard is yet to be established to evaluate the fatigue life of hard coating–ductile substrate systems.Studies also present different opinions on whether coatings can improve or reduce the fatigue life of substrates.In this paper, the influence of the properties of ceramic coatings on fatigue performance is reviewed, and the effects of coating on the mechanism of fatigue crack initiation in substrates are discussed, aiming to help readers understand the fatigue behavior of hard coating–ductile substrate systems.

TiN/CrN multilayered hard coatings with TiCrN interlayer deposited by a filtered cathodic vacuum arc technique

TiN/CrN multilayered hard coatings with TiCrN interlayer were deposited onhigh speed steel substrates by using a filtered cathodic vacuum arc technique. The structure andcomposition of the coatings were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Augerelectron spectroscopy (AES). A high adhesion of up to 80 N was demonstrated by scratching tests forthe multi-layered coatings. Nanoindentation tests were performed to determine the hardness andelastic modulus of the coatings as a function of the multiplayer modulation period. It was observedthat the hardness of the multilayered coatings is higher than those of either TiN or CrN singlecoatings, and it increases with decreasing modulation periods, which is consistent with predictionsfrom the Hall-Petch type strengthening mechanism, though at small modulation periods, deviation fromthe Hall-Petch relation has been observed for the multilayered coatings. The life-span of drillscoated with TiN/CrN multilayered is triple as long as that coated with TiN layer.

Study of the Wear and Corrosion Performance of Hard Coatings Applied by Different Processes on Low Carbon Steel

Most of materials used in applications that require high wear resistance also undergo corrosive action of the service environment. The damage caused by the combination of both processes on the materials leads to huge economic losses in industry. Hard coatings are widely used as engineering solution to increase the lifetime of components operating in conditions of wear combined with corrosion. Nowadays, the most versatile techniques for applying such coatings are welding and thermal spraying. This work evaluates and compares the properties of coatings obtained by thermal spraying and welding using selected feeding materials. The performance of the coatings in corrosion and erosive wear tests is discussed. From the erosion tests performed for impact angle of 90°, a similar performance for the thermally sprayed tungsten carbide coatings and the welded stainless steel coatings with higher input energy was observed. Welded samples presented the best performance in corrosion test.

RESIDUAL STRESS AND DAMAGE MODE OF HARD Ti(CN)COATINGS

Using free bending method,the residual stress of the Ti(CN)coating on alloy Nb-752 was measured to be 2-3 GPa of which the thermal stress cmounts to 10—20%.An analysis on coating/substrate interface stress state shows that the share stress at it is about O.1—0.2 GPa.The demage mode of the coating under external loading was proposed in terms of the amount and the direction of loading.

Microstructure characteristics of Ni/WC composite cladding coatings

A multilayer tungsten carbide particle（WCp）-reinforced Ni-based alloy coating was fabricated on a steel substrate using vacuum cladding technology.The morphology,microstructure,and formation mechanism of the coating were studied and discussed in different zones.The microstructure morphology and phase composition were investigated by scanning electron microscopy,optical microscopy,X-ray diffraction,and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy.In the results,the coating presents a dense and homogeneous microstructure with few pores and is free from cracks.The whole coating shows a multilayer structure,including composite,transition,fusion,and diffusion-affected layers.Metallurgical bonding was achieved between the coating and substrate because of the formation of the fusion and diffusion-affected layers.The Ni-based alloy is mainly composed of y-Ni solid solution with finely dispersed Cr7C3/Cr（23）C6,CrB,and Ni＋Ni3Si.WC particles in the composite layer distribute evenly in areas among initial Ni-based alloying particles,forming a special three-dimensional reticular microstructure.The macrohardness of the coating is HRC 55,which is remarkably improved compared to that of the substrate.The microhardness increases gradually from the substrate to the composite zone,whereas the microhardness remains almost unchanged in the transition and composite zones.

Phase thermal stability and mechanical properties analyses of(Cr,Fe,V)–(Ta,W)multiple-based elemental system using a compositional gradient film

High-entropy alloys(HEAs)generally possess complex component combinations and abnormal properties.The traditional methods of investigating these alloys are becoming increasingly inefficient because of the unpredictable phase transformation and the combination of many constituents.The development of compositionally complex materials such as HEAs requires high-throughput experimental methods,which involves preparing many samples in a short time.Here we apply the high-throughput method to investigate the phase evolution and mechanical properties of novel HEA film with the compositional gradient of(Cr,Fe,V)-(Ta,W).First,we deposited the compositional gradient film by co-sputtering.Second,the mechanical properties and thermal stability of the(Cr0.33Fe0.33V0.33)x(Ta0.5W0.5)100−x(x=13-82)multiplebased-elemental(MBE)alloys were investigated.After the deposited wafer was annealed at 600℃for 0.5 h,the initial amorphous phase was transformed into a body-centered cubic(bcc)structure phase when x=33.Oxides were observed on the film surface when x was 72 and 82.Finally,the highest hardness of as-deposited films was found when x=18,and the maximum hardness of annealed films was found when x=33.

Laser-Plasma Deposition of Silicon Carbonitride Films by the HMDS Vapor Gas Flow Activation after a Laser Beam Focus

A new laser-plasma deposition method has been developed for the plasma chemical deposition of hard silicon carbonitride coatings on stainless steel substrates from the hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) Si2NH(CH3)6 vapor in a high-speed Ar and Ar + 10 vol.% He gas stream at the HMDS gas flow activation after the laser beam focus. The method allows depositing silicon carbonitride coatings at the rate of 0.4 - 1.2 μm·min-1, i.e. ~2 times higher than that at introducing HMDS in the laser beam focus zone. The properties of the prepared coatings have been studied by the methods of IR and Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, nanoindentation and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Studying the film structure with the use of XRD showed that the prepared silicon carbonitride coatings are X-ray amorphous. It has been found that the coating deposition rate and the structure of coatings depend on the process parameters: HMDS flow rate and plasma-generating gas (argon or (Ar + He). The method allows depositing SiCN films at a high speed and a hardness of 20 - 22 GPa.

Microstructure,corrosion and tribological properties of Ti(CN)multilayer coatings on 35CrMo steel by CVD

Multilayer hard coatings of TiC/Ti(C,N)/TiN on 35 CrMo steel substrates were deposited by a chemical vapor deposition system(CVD).X-ray diffraction(XRD),scanning electron microscopy(SEM),and energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer(EDX)were used to analyze phase composition,morphology,and chemical composition of the coatings.The mechanical,corrosion,and wear properties of the produced coatings were primarily examined.The results indicate that multilayer coatings are consisted of TiC,Ti(C0.2N0.8),and TiN.The coatings surface is dense,and the thickness is about 11μm.The adhesion between coatings and steel substrate was characterized by critical load(Lc)and is found to be about 70 N.The microhardness of the multilayer coatings is HV 2400,which is about 5 times as that of the 35 CrMo steel substrate.The corrosion current of the coated sample is 4.368×10^(-5)A·cm^(-2),which decreases by one order of magnitude compared with the uncoated one(1.324×10^(-4)A·cm^(-2)).Friction and wear tests show that the TiC/Ti(C,N)/TiN coatings with high hardness adhere well to the 35 CrMo substrate and display good wear resistance and low friction coefficient under non-lubricated friction test at room temperature.

Optimization of geometrical design of nested conical Wolter-I X-ray telescope

Optical design of nested conical Wolter I X-ray telescope covering energy band from 1 to 30 keV is investigated systematically. Recurrence relation of the nested structure is deduced, and the impact of the initial parameters on the performance is analyzed. Due to the need for hard X-ray astronomical observations in China, the initial structure is presented, for which six groups of W/B4C aperiodic multilayer coatings between the innermost and the outermost shell of the mirror are designed. The effective area, resolution, and field of view are calculated in the simulation. The results show that the effective area can achieve 71 cm^2 and the field of view can achieve 13 at 30 keV. The resolution is estimated to be ～10 in half-power diameter.

Model for the static friction coefficient in a full stick elastic-plastic coated spherical contact

Finite element analysis is used to investigate an elastic-plastic coated spherical contact in full stick contact condition under combined normal and tangential loading. Sliding inception is associated with a loss of tangential stiffness. The effect of coating thickness on the static friction coefficient is intensively investigated for the case of hard coatings. For this case, with the increase in coating thickness, the static friction coefficient first increases to its maximum value at a certain coating thickness, thereafter decreases, and eventually levels off. The effect of the normal load and material properties on this behavior is discussed. Finally, a model for the static friction coefficient as a function of the coating thickness is provided for a wide range of material properties and normal loading.