Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Cr-SiC Particles-Reinforced Fe-Based Alloy Coating

• Published in: Journal of materials engineering and performance Vol. 24; no. 12; pp. 4673 - 4680
• Main Authors: Wang, Fu-cheng, Du, Xiao-dong, Zhan, Ma-ji, Lang, Jing-wei, Zhou, Dan, Liu, Guang-fu, Shen, Jian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.12.2015
• Subjects: Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemistry and Materials Science; Corrosion and Coatings; Engineering Design; Materials Science; Quality Control; Reliability; Safety and Risk; Tribology; protective layer; composite coating; microstructure; SiC; tribological performance
• ISSN: 1059-9495; 1544-1024
• DOI: 10.1007/s11665-015-1785-6

In this study, SiC particles were first coated with Cr to form a layer that can protect the SiC particles from dissolution in the molten pool. Then, the Cr-SiC powder was injected into the tail of molten pool during plasma-transferred arc welding process (PTAW), where the temperature was relatively low, to prepare Cr-SiC particles reinforced Fe-based alloy coating. The microstructure and phase composition of the powder and surface coatings were analyzed, and the element distribution and hardness at the interfacial region were also evaluated. The protective layer consists of Cr 3 Si, Cr 7 C 3 , and Cr 23 C 6 , which play an important role in the microstructure and mechanical properties. The protective layer is dissolved in the molten pool forming a flocculent region and a transition region between the SiC particles and the matrix. The tribological performance of the coating was also assessed using a ring-block sliding wear tester with GGr15 grinding ring under 490 and 980 N load. Cr-SiC particles-reinforced coating has a lower wear rate than the unreinforced coating.