Cavitation Erosion Characteristics of HVOF Thermal Sprayed WC-Cermet Coatings

This study investigates the cavitation erosion (CE) behavior and fracture morphology of tungsten carbide thermal spray coatings. WC-CoCr and WC-CrC-Ni powders of various sizes were deposited on stainless steel substrates by HVOF spraying using different combustion pressures. Coating samples and Cr steel reference specimens were subjected to vibratory cavitation erosion tests, volume loss was measured, and erosion damages were examined by SEM to assess fracture morphology. The results indicate that CE resistance can be improved by reducing porosity and increasing interparticle bonding strength.