Micro-structure and Wear Behaviour of Si-B Co-diffused Coating Prepared on TC4 Alloy

SUN Zegang; SUN Shihan; LI Xuan; YANG Yuanpeng; JIANG Jie; LI Ji; TIAN Jin

doi:10.16490/j.cnki.issn.1001-3660.2025.21.016

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Surface Technology ›› 2025, Vol. 54 ›› Issue (21) : 226-236. DOI: 10.16490/j.cnki.issn.1001-3660.2025.21.016

Friction, Wear and Lubrication

Micro-structure and Wear Behaviour of Si-B Co-diffused Coating Prepared on TC4 Alloy

SUN Zegang¹, SUN Shihan¹, LI Xuan^1,*, YANG Yuanpeng¹, JIANG Jie², LI Ji¹, TIAN Jin³

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Abstract

The poor wear resistance of TC4 alloy severely limits its application as a connecting component in aerospace, biomedical, and other fields. In order to improve the friction and wear resistance of TC4 alloy, a Si-B co-deposited coating was prepared on the alloy surface using a pack cementation process. The microalloying effect of boron was used to improve the brittleness of the silicide coating and the fluidity of SiO₂ formed on its surface, further enhancing the friction-wear protection performance of the silicide coating. The friction and wear performance of the coating was tested with a ball-on-disc tribometer, where the coating was rubbed against quenched GCr15 steel balls and Al₂O₃ ceramic balls. Microhardness measurements, 3D laser confocal microscopy, and analysis of the hardness distribution, surface roughness, and friction and wear properties along the cross section of the Si-B co-diffusion coating were performed. The morphology, composition, phase composition, and wear track morphology of the coating were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). The friction and wear mechanisms of the coating when sliding against the GCr15 steel balls and Al₂O₃ ceramic balls were discussed. The Si-B co-deposited coating prepared on the TC4 alloy exhibited a three-layer structure, and tightly bonded to the substrate. The outer layer was mainly composed of TiSi₂ and fine TiB₂ phases in its superficial zones, and had a high micro-hardness of about 910HV0.49-1 085HV0.49. The middle layer, mainly consisted of TiSi phases, had a micro-hardness of about 820HV0.49-900HV0.49. The inner layer was mainly consisting of Ti₅Si₃, and had a hardness that gradually decreased from approximately 820HV0.49 to nearly that of the TC4 substrate. The friction-wear test results showed that the Si-B co-deposited coating significantly improved the friction and wear resistance of TC4 alloy. After 60 minutes of testing against GCr15 balls, the average friction coefficient of the Si-B co-deposited coating was approximately 0.423, which was significantly lower than that of the TC4 alloy (0.643), and showed smaller fluctuations in the friction coefficients. The wear rate of the coating was about 2.8×10^-5 mm³/(N·m), approximately 28.6% of that of the TC4 alloy. After 60 minutes of testing against Al₂O₃ balls, the average friction coefficient of the coating was approximately 0.771, which was slightly higher than that of the TC4 alloy (0.685), with larger fluctuations in the friction coefficient. The wear rate of the coating was about 3.6× 10^-5 mm³/(N·m), which was one order of magnitude lower than that of the TC4 alloy. When tested against GCr15 balls, the wear mechanism of the Si-B co-deposited coating was mainly slight material pull-out; while against Al₂O₃ balls, the wear mechanism included fatigue wear, plowing wear, and slight oxidative wear. The formation of TiB₂ phases in the coating played a positive role in improving its friction-wear performance. On the one hand, the high hardness of TiB₂ effectively suppressed the plowing wear of the coating by the friction pairs. On the other hand, the B₂O₃ formed by oxidation of B effectively reduced the viscosity and fluidity of SiO₂, thereby lowering the friction coefficient and wear rate of the coating, which in turn enhanced the wear resistance of the coating.

Key words

TC4 alloy / Si-B co-diffused / coating structure / hardness distribution / friction and wear / wear mechanisms

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SUN Zegang, SUN Shihan, LI Xuan, YANG Yuanpeng, JIANG Jie, LI Ji, TIAN Jin. Micro-structure and Wear Behaviour of Si-B Co-diffused Coating Prepared on TC4 Alloy[J]. Surface Technology. 2025, 54(21): 226-236 https://doi.org/10.16490/j.cnki.issn.1001-3660.2025.21.016

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Funding

National Natural Science Foundation of China (52161009); Major Project of Science and Technology Department of Sichuan Province (2023YFG0239); Project of Science and Technology Department of Yibin (2024GY001); Scientific Research and Innovation Team Program of Sichuan University of Science and Engineering (H92322)