Study of the oxidation mechanism at high temperature of nanofiber textured AlTiCrN coatings produced by physical vapor deposition using high-resolution characterization techniques

• Published in: Corrosion science Vol. 201; p. 110226
• Main Authors: Alhafian, M-R., Chemin, J-B., Valle, N., El Adib, B., Penoy, M., Bourgeois, L., Ghanbaja, J., Barrirero, J., Soldera, F., Mücklich, F., Choquet, P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2022; Elsevier BV
• Subjects: Aluminium-titanium-chromiumnitride (AlTiCrN) coatings; Aluminum; Chromium; Coatings; High temperature; High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS); Mechanical properties; Nanofibers; Oxidation; Oxidation resistance; Oxygen isotopic analysis; Physical vapor deposition; Thermal stability; Titanium dioxide; Oxygen isotopic analysis; APT; High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS); dcMS; SAED; Hybrid HiPIMS; Thermal stability; HRTEM; D-SIMS; Oxidation resistance; EDS; Aluminium-titanium-chromiumnitride (AlTiCrN) coatings; FE-SEM; TEM
• ISSN: 0010-938X; 1879-0496
• DOI: 10.1016/j.corsci.2022.110226

AlTiN coatings with a NaCl structure have onset point of oxidation around 850 °C. To withstand oxidation above 850 °C, we studied the influence of Cr addition on the structure, mechanical properties and oxidation resistance of different AlTiCrN coatings. The structural evolution during the annealing of the AlTiCrN coating was revealing that all coatings kept the NaCl structure up to 950 °C. The oxidized coatings shown that the addition of Cr promoted the formation of a TiO2 layer over a gradient CrAl2O3 layer. This last layer is very rich in aluminum under the TiO2 layer and richer in chromium at the nitride-oxide interphase. [Display omitted] •Al0.45Ti0.29Cr0.26N coating kept the single-phase cubic structure up to 950 °C.•Cr content can stabilize the hardness and the elastic modulus independently of the Al/Ti ratio in the as-deposited coating.•The addition of Cr to AlTiN coating promoted the formation of a TiO2 layer over a gradient (CrxAly)2O3 layer at 950 °C.•The oxidation mechanism is controlled by the cationic diffusion of oxygen to the oxide-nitride coating interface and by the anionic grain-boundary diffusion of titanium at the external surface.