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Preparation and characterization of superhard Al B 2 ‐type WB 2 nanocomposite coatings
Author(s) -
Jiang Chunlei,
Pei Zhiliang,
Liu Yanming,
Xiao Jinquan,
Gong Jun,
Sun Chao
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
physica status solidi (a)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.532
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1862-6319
pISSN - 1862-6300
DOI - 10.1002/pssa.201228828
Subject(s) - materials science , nanocomposite , nanoindentation , microstructure , tribology , sputter deposition , high resolution transmission electron microscopy , composite material , transmission electron microscopy , chemical engineering , metallurgy , sputtering , nanotechnology , thin film , engineering
WB 2 nanocomposite coatings were synthesized by dc magnetron sputtering. The morphology, chemical composition, chemical bonding state, microstructure, hardness, and tribological properties were investigated. The columnar‐structured coatings are dense and uniform. The as‐deposited coatings were found to have a metastable AlB 2 ‐type structure as characterized by X‐ray diffraction and further confirmed by high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy. Coatings exhibit superhardness about 43.2 ± 5 GPa (taken from the plateau region) obtained by nanoindentation. In addition, the steady‐state friction coefficient µ = 0.23 and wear rate K = 6.5 × 10 −6 mm 3 N −1 m −1 were obtained under dry sliding condition in ambient environments. These characteristics indicate AlB 2 ‐type WB 2 coatings have high potential application as superhard and low wear coatings. Moreover, the AlB 2 ‐type WB 2 can hardly be prepared using the conventional powder metallurgy technology without high pressure, and this study proposes a new practical approach to prepare it.