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Microstructure and Sliding Wear Performance of Cr7C3-(Ni,Cr)3(Al,Cr) Coating Deposited from Cr7C3 In Situ Formed Atomized Powder

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Abstract

This work is aimed at developing a new type of Cr7C3-(Ni,Cr)3(Al,Cr) coating for parts used in heavy-duty diesel engines. The feedstock, in which the stripe-shaped Cr7C3 was in situ formed, was firstly prepared by vacuum melting and gas atomization and then subjected by high-velocity oxy-fuel spraying to form the coatings. The carbon content, microstructure and phase constitution of the powders, as well as the sprayed coatings, were analyzed by chemical analysis, SEM and XRD. The hardness and sliding wear performance of the sprayed coatings were also tested and compared to a commercial Cr3C2-NiCr coating used on piston rings. The results showed that the content of carbon in feedstock was almost the same as designed, and that the volume content of in situ formed Cr7C3 was increased with carbon and chromium added. The major phases of the powders and sprayed coatings are Cr7C3 and Cr-alloyed Ni3Al. Only a small amount of carbon lost during the spraying process. As Cr7C3 content increased in the coatings, the microhardness at room temperature was firstly increased to about 1000Hv0.3. The microhardness of the coatings stayed almost constant, while the testing temperature was raised up to 700 °C for 0.5 h, which illustrates the potential application of the investigated coatings under high temperature conditions. The coatings containing 70 and 77 vol.% Cr7C3 showed the most promising wear resistance, lower friction coefficient and better tribological compatibility to gray cast iron counterpart than other tested Cr7C3-(Ni,Cr)3(Al,Cr) coatings and the reference Cr3C2-NiCr coating.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful for the financial support by National Natural Science Foundation of China (51541107, 51101017) and International Science & Technology Cooperation Program of China (2015DFA50970).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Beijing General Research Institute of Mining and Metallurgy, Beijing Engineering Technology Research Center of Surface Strengthening and Repairing of Industry Parts, Beijing, 102216, China

    Hong-Bin Zhu, Jie Shen, Feng Gao, Yueguang Yu & Changhai Li

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  1. Hong-Bin Zhu
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  3. Feng Gao
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Correspondence to Hong-Bin Zhu.

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Zhu, HB., Shen, J., Gao, F. et al. Microstructure and Sliding Wear Performance of Cr7C3-(Ni,Cr)3(Al,Cr) Coating Deposited from Cr7C3 In Situ Formed Atomized Powder. J Therm Spray Tech 26, 254–264 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11666-016-0498-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11666-016-0498-1

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