Tribological characteristics of nickel based composite coatings

doi:10.1016/S0043-1648(03)00080-2

Wear

Volume 255, Issues 7–12, August–September 2003, Pages 893-902

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0043-1648(03)00080-2 Get rights and content

Abstract

Nickel composite coatings have been prepared on mild steel substrates by sediment electro-co-deposition (SECD) technique. Silicon nitride, fly ash and calcium fluoride are used as the reinforcements. Metallographic studies, microhardness, friction and wear tests under various loads and sliding speeds have been carried out on these coatings. Optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies on the worn surfaces were conducted. A theoretical model was used to predict the wear rates of the composite coatings. All the composite coatings exhibited a lower coefficient of friction and better wear resistance when compared with nickel coatings at all loads and sliding velocities studied. However, nickel–calcium fluoride composite coatings possessed the lowest coefficient of friction and wear rates. Significant effect of load and sliding speed on both the coefficient of friction and wear rates of nickel, nickel–silicon nitride and nickel–fly ash coatings has been observed. SEM studies of the worn surfaces reveal delamination process at higher loads. The predicted wear rates are in reasonable agreement with the experimental values.

Introduction

Friction and wear are surface phenomena and are of high concern especially in industrial components resulting in huge economic losses and sometimes lead to catastrophic failure [1]. Hence, it is of utmost importance to minimize their ill effects. Use of coatings would enhance the wear resistance as well as anti-friction resistance of the materials. In addition, coatings enable use of relatively cheaper materials for machine components.

Metal matrix composite coatings possessing excellent tribological properties [2], [3], [4], good corrosion resistance [5] and higher fatigue life [6] are gaining widespread popularity as compared to metallic coatings and the expensive poorly bonded ceramic coatings. Composite coatings can be prepared by various techniques, such as thermal spray, physical vapor deposition, chemical vapor deposition and electro-co-deposition. Of these, electro-co-deposition is the most sought after, owing to several merits, such as low cost, lower operating temperature, ease of fabrication and high quality deposits, free from porosity and uncontrolled oxide inclusion.

In recent years, a modified electro-co-deposition technique, namely, sediment electro-co-deposition (SECD) [7] is gaining importance in producing better quality metal matrix composite coatings. The salient features of this technique are higher incorporation of the reinforcements, for lower bath concentrations and higher degree of uniformity of the distribution of reinforcing particles in the metallic matrix.

Wear properties can be improved by use of hard metal ceramic composite coatings obtained by dispersing refractory oxides, nitrides and carbides in nickel matrix [2]. Coatings with better anti-frictional properties can be obtained by reinforcing softer matrix like lead or copper with solid lubricants, such as graphite and molybdenum-di-sulphide [8]. Nickel which possess high tensile strength, good toughness and corrosion resistance is a popular choice as the matrix to disperse both hard and soft reinforcements to improve its wear and anti-friction resistance. Further nickel plating is widely adopted in automobile industries. Much data is not available regarding the use of silicon nitride, fly ash and calcium fluoride as dispersoids in nickel matrix. Silicon nitride possess low friction and high wear resistance combined with good resistance to high temperature oxidation [9]. Fly ash is an inexpensive waste material possessing high hardness [3]. Calcium fluoride is a good solid lubricant which can be used for high temperature application [10]. Based on the above considerations, this study was conducted to investigate the effects of volume fractions of silicon nitride, fly ash and calcium fluoride, microstructure, load (contact pressure) and sliding velocity on the friction and wear behavior of nickel based composite coatings.

Section snippets

Experimental details

Thoroughly cleaned mild steel of dimensions 30 mm diameter and 5 mm thick has been used as the substrate for producing nickel composite coatings. The substrates served as cathode while electrolytic grade nickel served as anode. Purified Watts bath consisting of 240 g/l NiSO₄, 40 g/l NiCl₂ and 30 g/l boric acid dissolved in 500 ml of distilled water was used as the plating bath. The pH of the bath was 4.69 while current density was varied from 5 to 75 mA/cm². Silicon nitride (alpha type, 1 μm), fly ash

Microstructural studies

The optical micrographs for all the three nickel composite coatings are shown in Fig. 1. All the micrographs clearly reveal uniform distribution of the reinforcing particles. The scanning electron micrographs of the composite coatings are shown in Fig. 2a and b. They reveal low degree of porosity in the coatings and also lesser tendency of agglomeration of the reinforcements. They also indicate absence of intermetallic phases or compounds. The STEM micrograph of nickel–silicon nitride composite

Model development

Four different mechanisms do dominate the process of material removal in composite coatings: (a) wear of the matrix, (b) particle sliding wear, (c) particle cracking, and (d) wear by particle/matrix separation at the interface. Considering the above mechanisms, the wear rate of composite coatings (W_s,C) can be expressed as given below. $W_{s,C} =W_{s,s} (V_{p})+W_{s,Pci} (V_{p})$ where W_s,s is the pure sliding component and V_p the volume fraction of the particulate reinforcements in the composite coatings. All the

Conclusions

Nickel–silicon nitride, nickel–fly ash and nickel–calcium fluoride composite coatings exhibited lower coefficient of friction and better wear resistance as compared to nickel coatings at all the studied loads and sliding velocities. However, nickel–calcium fluoride composites possess lowest coefficient of friction as well as the lowest wear rates. Delamination wear processes dominates at higher loads. The predicted wear rates are in reasonable agreement with the experimental wear rates.

References (22)

C.S. Ramesh et al.
A model for wear rates of composite coatings
Wear
(1992)
T.E. Fischer et al.
Inter action of tribochemistry and micro fracture in the friction and wear of silicon nitride
Wear
(1985)
H.E. Sliney
Solid lubricant material for high temperatures—a review
Tribol. Int.
(1982)
S.K. Biswas et al.
Dry wear of Al–graphite particle composites
Wear
(1981)
G. Levy et al.
Wear behaviour and mechanical properties: the similarity of seemingly unrelated approaches
Wear
(1972)
D. Scott et al.
Materials and metallurgical aspects of piston ring scuffing—a literature survey
Wear
(1975)
H.E. Hintermann
Adhesion friction and wear of thin hard coatings
Wear
(1984)
T.P. Murali et al.
Friction and wear behavior of aluminum alloy coconut shell char particulate composites
Wear
(1982)
C.S. Ramesh et al.
A survey of aspects of wear of metals
Indian J. Technol.
(1991)
C.S. Ramesh et al.
Wear resistant nickel silicon nitride electro composite coatings
Ceram. Trans. Adv. Compos. Mater.
(1991)

C.S. Ramesh et al.

Wear resistance of nickel fly ash composite coatings

Wear

(1991)

Cited by (104)

Microstructure, texture, and mechanical properties analysis of novel AA7178/SiC nanocomposites
2023, Ceramics International
The current research aims to use stir casting to create a composite made from AA7178 aluminium alloy with nano SiC reinforcement at 1, 2, and 3 wt percent. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) with energy dispersive X-Ray (EDAX) was used to examine the microstructural changes of AA7178/nSiC composites. The addition of nano SiC reinforcement to the AA7178 matrix promotes grain refinement by providing additional nucleation sites for smaller grains to form. The microstructure of AA7178 composites underwent a considerable alteration due to the SiC addition, improving their mechanical properties. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) study revealed the development of finer grains from coarser grains. All the samples seemed to have a completely random texture. The texture does not seem to be drastically altered by either the processing conditions or the incorporation of SiC. The uniform distribution of SiC particles and good interfacial bonding between the reinforcement matrix was confirmed by a transmission electron microscope (TEM). The maximum tensile strength was 206.12 MPa for AA7178 nanocomposite with 3 wt% of SiC reinforcement. The efficient transmission of load and dislocation strengthening were the strengthening mechanism for increasing in the tensile strength. The inclusion of 3 wt% of SiC particles increased the hardness of AA7178 nanocomposite to 51.70%.
Nanocomposites for anticorrosive application
2023, Nanocomposites-Advanced Materials for Energy and Environmental Aspects
Organic, metallic, ceramic, and hybrid organic–inorganic coatings are widely used for corrosion prevention. The corrosion protective function of coatings can be categorized into three mechanisms: sacrificial, barrier, and active inhibition. Sacrificial coatings utilizing the more active metallic powders (acting as anodic particles) can decrease corrosion attacks on the metallic substrates through cathodic protection. Barrier coatings can protect the metallic substrate due to their ionic resistance and low water uptake. Barrier effect fillers can increase the penetration path of the electrolyte to the coatings and increase the coatings’ ionic resistance. Coatings employing active inhibitive fillers can protect the metal surface in the defect areas by releasing inhibitive species. Taking advantage of the high surface area of nanoparticulates, nanocomposites coatings have gained increasing attention with regard to corrosion protection. Nanocomposite coatings have been reported for their superior protective properties compared to their conventional counterparts. In this chapter, a wide range of nanoparticles from carbon-based materials to metal oxides introduced for each of the polymer, inorganic, and hybrid organic–inorganic coatings have been reviewed.
Electrodeposited metallic glasses with superlative wear resistance
2021, Materials Science and Engineering: A
Citation Excerpt :
The average COF was in the range of 0.45–0.5 for the three EMGs, which was 15–25% lower than electrodeposited pure Ni (~0.6) irrespective of sliding frequency. All the alloys showed a slight increase in COF at 5 Hz which may be attributed to change in contact area and severe plastic deformation on the contact surface creating more asperity junctions [37,39]. In contrast, Ni based BMGs showed an increase in frictional force with increase in contact pressure indicating an increase in COF with load [40].
The electrodeposition route to obtain amorphous alloys offers a facile, low-cost, and versatile alternative to conventional melt quenching. However, there are significant knowledge gaps in tribological properties and wear mechanisms for electrodeposited metallic glasses (EMGs). Here, the wear behavior and the scratch response of a model binary amorphous alloy system were investigated. Electrodeposited Ni–P metallic glasses were systematically studied as a function of composition, with amorphous alloy formation over the narrow range of 10 at% to 20 at% phosphorus. The electrodeposited metallic glasses showed hardness values in the range of 6.6–7.4 GPa, modulus in the range of 155–163 GPa, and friction coefficient around 0.50. Among the studied alloys, electrodeposited Ni₈₀P₂₀ showed the lowest wear rate, which was two orders of magnitude lower than electrodeposited pure Ni. The wear mechanism was determined to be extensive plastic deformation along with mild ploughing, micro tears, and formation of discontinuous lubricious oxide patches. Scratch tests showed an increase in critical load for damage initiation with the increase in phosphorus content among the amorphous alloys following the trend: Ni₈₀P₂₀ > Ni₈₅P₁₅ > Ni₉₀P₁₀. The overall wear rate for the electrodeposited metallic glasses was found to be lower than most reported bulk metallic glasses (BMGs). This represents a fundamental study on structure-property correlations in electrodeposited metallic glasses and demonstrates the versatility of electrodeposition in tuning the surface properties of amorphous alloys.
Influence of particle size and content on the friction and wear behaviors of as-annealed Ni–Mo/diamond composite coatings
2020, Wear
Citation Excerpt :
The coatings can be produced by electrodeposition which is regarded as an efficient and economical method [1,3,4]. Currently, hard pure metal coatings (i.e., Ni and Cr) and alloy coatings (i.e., Ni–Mo, Ni–W and Ni–P) are commonly used because these coatings display an unusual combination of mechanical and tribological properties [3,5–8]. However, these coatings may not overcome the enormous challenges of the hardness and the wear resistance in harsh industrial environments [9].
Ni–Mo/diamond composite coatings have been electrodeposited in a Ni–Mo electrolyte containing micron diamonds with five different sizes, respectively. The diamond content in coatings is in the range of 5–31 vol%. The grain size of as-annealed coatings is smaller than 10 nm. Microhardness of as-annealed coatings increases with the diamond content, and the highest hardness is about 15.4 GPa. The as-annealed coatings incorporated with 5 μm diamonds have supvderior wear resistance to that of the other coatings. The lowest wear rates of the as-annealed coating and the pin-on-disk system are about 2 × 10⁻⁶ and 5 × 10⁻⁶ mm³ N⁻¹ m⁻¹, respectively, which all correspond to the coating containing 31 vol% diamonds with the size of 5 μm.
Wear characteristics of Fe-based diamond composites with cerium oxide (CeO<inf>2</inf>) reinforcements
2020, International Journal of Refractory Metals and Hard Materials
To obtain better wear resistance for the metal bond diamond grinding tools, cerium oxide (CeO₂) with different contents were introduced into Fe-based diamond composites. A pin-on-disc wear test was performed to assess the wear properties of the fabricated specimens, and the morphological properties of the worn surface and corresponding wear debris were evaluated to examine the wear mechanism. Results show that the Fe-based diamond composites with CeO₂ addition exhibited an improvement in the densification, mechanical properties and wear resistance. The original long rod-shaped CeO₂ particles converted into the spherical particles <1 μm, dispersing in the Sn phase. The cerium oxide acted as a sintering aid, promoting the diffusion of Fe in the Sn phase during the sintering process. The dominant wear mechanism of the specimen with CeO₂ addition was the adhesive wear, compared with the abrasive wear in the specimen without CeO₂. With the increase in CeO₂ addition amount, the wear rate decreased. But an excessive amount of CeO₂ was detrimental to mechanical and wear performances. The optimal amount of cerium oxide to achieve the best wear resistance was investigated to be 0.8 wt%.
Assessment of mechanical and tribological characteristics of Silicon Nitride reinforced aluminum metal matrix composites
2019, Composites Part B: Engineering
The present paper focuses on the investigation of physical, mechanical and tribological characteristics of Al6063 alloy reinforced with Silicon Nitride powder. The Al6063-Silicon Nitride Metal Matrix Composites were fabricated by following stir casting method of liquid metallurgy technique. The amount of reinforcement incorporation in matrix material was from 0 to 10 wt% varied in intervals of 2. The obtained composites were used in the investigative studies related to physical, mechanical & tribological experimentations. The tests were performed on the Al6063 alloy and its composites as per in harmony with the ASTM Standards. The test results it can be observed and appreciated that increasing the reinforcement percentage, the characteristics like hardness and density increased monolithically and significantly. The dry sliding wear test is performed using pin on disc configuration tribometer and the results state that the composite has higher wear resistance. Basically the Al6063 is relatively soft and as per dry sliding wear concern at the applications of stringers, upper and lower wings of aircraft, floor breams, seat tracks, fuselage of an aircraft's, the wear resistance plays a crucial role in relative movement at contact surfaces, hence the present work focused on developing Al6063-Silicon Nitride Metal Matrix Composites with enhanced mechanical and tribological properties. Off all the compositions, the composite material having the highest percentage of reinforcement showed better properties. Scanning Electron Microscope, Energy Dispersive Microscopy images were used to study the fabricated composites before and after the wear morphology during wear test.

View all citing articles on Scopus

View full text

Tribological characteristics of nickel based composite coatings

Abstract

Introduction

Section snippets

Experimental details

Microstructural studies

Model development

Conclusions

Wear

Wear

Tribol. Int.

Wear

Wear

Wear

Wear

Wear

A survey of aspects of wear of metals

Indian J. Technol.

Wear resistant nickel silicon nitride electro composite coatings

Ceram. Trans. Adv. Compos. Mater.

Wear resistance of nickel fly ash composite coatings

Wear