Two feasible approaches to enhance the wear behaviors of NiCrBSi coating in atmosphere and aqueous environments

NiCrBSi coating was deposited successfully on the surface of 316 stainless steel substrate by means of plasma spraying. The microstructures and mechanical property were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and a Vickers hardness tester. The wear performances of the coatings sliding against the GCr15 ball under ambient air and water conditions were investigated, and two feasible approaches (tungsten carbide (WC)-doping and heat treatment) were used to improve the tribological performance. Results showed that the hardness of the NiCrBSi coating increased by 12.5% and 28.5% and the porosity decreased by 26.1% and 47.8%, respectively, after WC-doping and heat treatment. During dry friction, the friction coefficient and wear rate of the NiCrBSi coating were about 0.47 and 1.4 × 10⁻⁵ mm³ N⁻¹ m⁻¹, respectively. These values were higher than those obtained on other coatings. In water conditions, all coatings showed a lower friction and wear rate than that in ambient air, which was as a result of the lubrication effect of water. Significantly, with WC-doping and heat treatment, the friction coefficients of both coatings were about 18.5% and 36.7%, respectively, lower than that of the NiCrBSi coating. Furthermore, the wear rates of both coatings were about 20% and 70%, respectively, lower than that of the NiCrBSi coating.