Due to the high hardness and good self-lubricating property, TiAlCN coatings can be applied in high-speed cutting and non-lubricating working environments. However, the service environment is becoming increasingly demanding, which also places higher requirements on the performance of the coating. Although the development of TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coatings can enhance the mechanical properties and wear resistance of the coatings, the multilayer structure cannot completely eliminate the numerous challenges faced by traditional material coatings in friction and wear, such as large residual stress in the coating, susceptibility to deformation and cracking, and limited mechanical properties. These limitations restrict the further wide application of the coating in tribological properties. Therefore, annealing, as an effective approach to release a large amount of accumulated stress within the multilayer coating, is chosen to further enhance the mechanical and frictional performance of TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coatings.
On this basic, the work aims to investigate how the annealing temperature and atmosphere affect the microstructure and frictional performance of TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coatings. Herein, the TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coatings were prepared on the substrate (316L stainless steel) by the cathodic arc technology. Subsequently, these coatings were subjected to annealing at 400 ℃, 600 ℃, and 800 ℃ under the Ar and N2 atmospheres, respectively. The phase constituents, topographies, and microstructure of the coatings were explored via X-ray diffractometer (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman spectrometer, etc. The mechanical properties of the multilayer coatings were characterized by a nanoindentation instrument. The frictional behavior and mechanism of the TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coatings were evaluated by a wear testing machine, SEM, Raman spectrometer, energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), and white light interferometer.
The results showed that the multilayer coatings were mainly composed of (Ti,Al)(C,N) phase. With the increase of the annealing temperature, the (220) diffraction peak positively shifted and even split. Moreover, the ID/IG of the TiAlCN coatings first increased and then decreased, reaching the maximum at 600 ℃. The surface quality of the coatings annealed in N2 atmosphere was better than that of the coatings annealed in Ar atmosphere, and the grain size of the former was smaller than that of the latter. This was contributed to the fact that the N2 could inhibit the growth of grain size during the annealing process, thereby improving the mechanical properties (including the hardness, modulus, and toughness) of the coatings. Besides, the wear rate of the coating annealed in N2 atmosphere reached its minimum value at 600 ℃, being 0.72×10-5 mm3/N·m. Whereas, the coating annealed in Ar atmosphere exhibited relatively poor wear resistance. This phenomenon might be due to the N2 being more conducive to the formation of the a-C structure and enhancing the transformation of sp3-C to sp2-C.
In summary, after the annealing in Ar and N2 atmospheres, the mechanical properties and wear resistance of the coatings are enhanced. Moreover, compared with the Ar atmosphere, the mechanical properties and wear-resisting capacity of the TiAlN/TiAlCN multilayer coating after annealing in N2 atmosphere are better. This work provides theoretical and technical support for the further preparation of high-performance TiAlCN coatings and expands their application in harsh cutting environments.
Key words
TiAlN/TiAlCN /
multilayer coating /
annealing /
mechanical property /
frictional performance
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Funding
Program of Shanghai Technology Research Leader (22XD1434500)
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