Effect of mixing-ratio and current on Mo-Cu-WC-Si coating via EDC

• Published in: Surface engineering Vol. 40; no. 6; pp. 782 - 792
• Main Authors: V. V. N. Siva Rao, S., Biswas, Kaushik, Ghosh, S. K., Barma, J. D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.06.2024
• Subjects: corrosion; coating; microstructure; composite; wear; XRD; binder
• ISSN: 0267-0844; 1743-2944
• DOI: 10.1177/02670844241285305

The present study investigates the influence of the mixing ratio of copper (Cu) and molybdenum (Mo) powders in Mo-Cu-WC-Si composite powder metallurgy (P/M) briquettes on the performance of coatings produced on Al-2014 alloy using electrical discharge coating. Three mixing ratios of Cu and Mo are selected during briquette preparation, by varying Cu in 5 wt.% decrements and Mo in 5 wt.% increments: 50Cu:30Mo, 45Cu:35Mo, and 40Cu:40Mo, with fixed 15WC:5Si. The results indicate that even a 5 wt.% variation of copper significantly affects the coating output responses. At 3 A current the 50Cu:30Mo combination shows lowest roughness of 2.4 μm, followed by 3.2 μm, and 5.4 μm roughness with 45Cu:35Mo and 40Cu:40Mo. Coating with 50Cu:30Mo ratio shows the highest wear reduction, achieving a 3-fold decrease compared to the uncoated Al-2014. Furthermore, coated samples depict a 42% reduction in corrosion rate compared to uncoated sample. Experimental results suggest that the briquette with a higher copper percentage (50 wt.%) provides a more suitable coating.