The study of tribological characteristics of advanced wear-resistant plasma coatings in sliding friction without lubrication

One of the best methods to create a wear-resistant coating is thermal spraying. However, despite its wide application in industry, there is no complete information on friction and wear mechanisms in thermal spray coatings. Attempts to predict the performance of such coatings on the basis of existing data on friction and wear are usually unsuccessful. This paper studies the friction and wear characteristics of four plasma coatings (Cr3C2 —25% NiCr, Mo-Mo2C, Al2O3 — 40% TiO2, and Cu — 9,5% Al — 1% Fe) in the finger-disc friction without lubrication. Tribological characteristics were correlated with microstructure and micromechanical properties of the coatings. The coatings Cr3C2 — 25% NiCr and Cu — 9,5% Al — 1% Fe showed high wear resistance at sufficiently low microhardness. The conducted tests showed no wear of the coating Cr3C2 — 25% NiCr contacted with a counterbody made of the alloy BrAZhNMts9-4-4-1. The experiments proved that tribological properties of plasma coatings are highly dependent on their microstructure, inclusions, internal residual stresses, and cohesive strength. The coating Al2O3 — 40% TiO2 has a small wear rate and a low friction coefficient when contacting with a counterbody made of BrAZhNMts9-4-4-1. The oxide coating wear track consists of plastically deformed particles of the coating and wear products of the counterbody. The tests have shown that the developed composite powder coatings have high durability and can be used as protective coatings of critical parts.

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