Abstract
This study investigates the relationship between in-flight particle characteristics, splat formation, and microstructure of CrMoBW-Fe base nanocomposite coatings produced by wire arc spraying. Focused ion beam milling was used to prepare transversal cross-sections of in-flight particles and splats for SE-SEM, EDS, and XRD analysis. The results show that particle size and splat morphology greatly influence the microstructure and properties of the coatings. In-flight particles were found to have a spherical shape with a broad size distribution ranging from 0.8 to 115 μm. The particles were well flattened on impact, resulting in flower-shaped splats with an average diameter of 100 μm. Splats were very thin with fine lamella structure, implying that the particles were fully melted at the time of impact.
