Erosion wear performance of Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC(Co) composite coatings deposited by HVOF technique

Abstract

Purpose

This study/paper aims to investigate the erosion wear performance of Ni-based coatings [Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC(Co)] under sand-water slurry conditions.

Design/methodology/approach

A high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) process was used to deposit the Ni-based coatings [Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC(Co)] on the surface of stainless steel (SS 316L) substrate. A Ducom TR-41 erosion tester was used to conduct the tribological experiments on bare/HVOF coated SS 316L. The erosion wear experiments were carried out for different time durations (1.30-3.00 h) at different impact angles (0-60°) by running the pot tester at different rotational speeds (600-1,500 rev/min). The solid concentration of sand slurry was taken in the range of 30-60 Wt.%. The surface roughness of Ni-based coated surfaces was also measured along the transverse length of the specimens.

Findings

Results show the arithmetic mean roughness (Ra) values of Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC coated SS-316L were 7.04 and 6.67 µm, respectively. The erosion wear SS-316L was almost 3.5 ± 1.5 times greater than that of the NiCrBSiFe-WC coatings. NiBCrSi-WC(Co) sprayed SS-316L showed lower erosion wear than Ni-Cr-O sprayed SS-316L. Microscopically, the eroded Ni-Cr-O coating underwent plowing, microcutting and craters. Ni-Cr-O coating have shown the ductile nature of erosion wear mechanism. NiBCrSi-WC(Co) surface underwent craters, plowing, carbide/boride pullout, fractures and intact. Erosion wear mechanisms on the eroded surface of NiBCrSi-WC(Co) were neither purely ductile nor brittle.

Practical implications

It is a useful technique to estimate the erosion wear of hydraulic machinery coated with Ni-based coatings imposed under mining conditions.

Originality/value

The erosion wear performance of HVOF-sprayed Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC(Co) powders was investigated through extensive experimentation, and the results are well supported by scanning electron micrographs and 3D topology.

Citation

Singh, J., Kumar, S. and Mohapatra, S.K. (2019), "Erosion wear performance of Ni-Cr-O and NiCrBSiFe-WC(Co) composite coatings deposited by HVOF technique", Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, Vol. 71 No. 4, pp. 610-619. https://doi.org/10.1108/ILT-04-2018-0149