In order to develop protective coatings for sink rolls in continuous hot-dip galvanizing, a sprayed MoB/CoCr cermet coating was formed on a 316L stainless steel by the HVOF spraying process and its durability in the molten 55%Al-Zn- 1.5%Si bath (923 k) has been investigated by SEM and EDS. The immersion test revealed that the MoB/CoCr coating has much higher durability (640 hours) in 55%Al-Zn-1.5%Si bath than the conventional sprayed coatings (120 hours), such as WC-Co, WC/Co/Cr and ceramics. It was found that the failure of MoB/CoCr coating is mainly caused by the mismatch of coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) between the top coating and the substrate. The failure procedure is that first crack is generated because of heat stress, then the crack proceeds and causes scaled delamination, at the same time molten Al-Zn will enter into cracks and/or Al-Zn reaches the undercoat and/or substrate, finally molten Al-Zn dissolves the substrate.

Thermal spray coatings of new MoB/CoCr cermets were developed. The mechanical behavior of HVOF-sprayed MoB/CoCr novel composite coatings was evaluated via Vickers microhardness. Microstructure of the coatings on 316L stainless steel substrates, as well as powders, were studied with optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD). X-ray microanalysis of the coatings was carried out using energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) attached to the SEM. The distributions of microhardness values of the coatings were analyzed via Weibull statistic. Weibull analysis revealed a bimodal distribution of Vickers microhardness values. Such distribution was attributed to the presence of melted and unmelted phases in the resultant coating produced from the microstructured powder feedstock. The excellent mechanical properties of the coating are due to the MoB/CoCr powder, which results in the formation of complex ternary transition metal boride hard particles that exhibit exceptional mechanical properties.

MoB/CoCr with excellent durability against molten metal has been developed to be applied to aluminum die casting parts in automobile and to hot continuous dipping rolls in Zn and Al- Zn plating lines for steel industries. Our previous study has revealed that the MoB/CoCr coating prepared by high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) spraying has much higher resistance against attack of the molten Al-45wt%Zn alloys compared to conventional WC/12wt%Co coating from evaluation by laboratory scaled molten metal immersion test. However, performance with no damage is only limited when applying onto the substrate with smaller thermal expansion similar to the MoB/CoCr coatings. This paper describes the solution to prepare the MoB/CoCr coating without damage onto austenitic stainless steel of AISI316L with larger thermal expansion, whose material is commonly utilized for the hot continuous dipping rolls. It has been found that use of undercoat is effective to reduce the negative influence of large difference in thermal expansion between the MoB/CoCr coating and substrate of AISI316L. Optimized thickness of topcoat and undercoat and its combination showed intrinsic performance of low reactive MoB/CoCr without any mechanical damage such as crack and/or peeling.

In many aeronautical applications such as in the fan blade / disk dovetail notch, two parts made up of a titanium alloy are in contact and relative motion between them can occur. Titanium alloys like Ti-6Al-4V are promising candidates for tribological application because of their low weight and high specific strength. However, because of the poor tribological behavior of Ti-6Al-4V under self-mating conditions, modification of the surface has become imperative. In this work, we report on the fretting wear of plasma sprayed Cu-Ni- In along with MoS 2 solid bonded lubricant and Ti-6Al-4V. Substrate coated pins were tested against a flat plate of Ti- 6Al-4V alloy. The effect of temperature and frequency on fretting wear of Cu-Ni-In, the composite coating and Ti-6Al- 4V was investigated. Wear properties of the coatings and substrate were evaluated. The morphologies of the worn surfaces and surfaces beneath the worn surfaces were characterized with the help of an optical microscope, scanning electron microscope, electron probe micro analyzer and energy dispersive spectroscopy. Results showed that the composite coating exhibited better fretting resistance than the Cu-Ni-In plasma sprayed coating with no additive. It also exhibited lower surface roughness and a lower coefficient of friction than Cu-Ni-In or Ti-6Al-4V under the same testing condition. Therefore, the use of MoS 2 solid bonded coating scan be considered as one of the possible simple and cheap approaches for reducing fretting wear.

MoB/CoCr, a novel thermal spray material, with high durability in molten Al and/or Al-Zn alloys has been developed to utilize for die casting parts of Al alloy, and for hot continuous dipping roll in Zn and Al-Zn plating lines. The durability of the MoB/CoCr coatings prepared by high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) spraying has been investigated using a molten metal immersion tester. The immersion tests revealed that the MoB/CoCr coating has much higher durability without dissolution in the Al alloys than conventional spray coatings, such as WC/12%Co and WC/10%Co/4%Cr, as well as various other surface modification methods. The MoB/CoCr coating also has showed higher durability in the molten Al-Zn alloy when the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the substrate is similar to that of the MoB/CoCr. The lifetime of the coating on stainless 316L substrate, widely used as the hot continuous dipping roll, was insufficient because of the generation of cracks due to a large difference in the CTE between the MoB/CoCr coating and substrate. Basic anneal examinations have revealed that optimization of coating structure by changing undercoat material and its thickness is effective to improve the lifetime.

MoSi 2 -TiB 2 coatings were applied on Ti6Al4V substrates by means of low pressure plasma spraying with and without a surface pre-treatment with plasma-transferred-arc. The coatings were characterized by optical and scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis and hardness measurements. No difference in the microstructure between the coatings was detectable. The microstructure shows the typical lamellar structure of thermal spray coatings with a good embedding of the titanium borides in the matrix. At the interface between matrix and some borides a reaction zone is visible. In comparison to the feedstock powder, the phase composition of the coatings has change, because a great amount of the tetragonal MoSi 2 phase transformed into the hexagonal high temperature modification. The content of titanium diboride is lower in the coating. Coatings on substrates with a pre-treatment show a good adhesion to the substrate, while the adhesion of the coatings on the pre-treated substrates is poor.

The tribological behavior of Mo/NiCrBSi coatings obtained by atmospheric plasma spray was studied under dry conditions using an Amsler machine. Discussion is made on the effects of the plasma gas mixture and of the preheating of the substrate. The wear process of Mo/NiCrBSi in situation of dry rolling-sliding contact versus cast iron was observed using a profilometer, an optical microscope, and a scanning electron microscope. It was found that the wear mechanism could be divided into two steps : the first one corresponds to an abrasive wear; it results from the difference in hardness between the counter-specimen and the Mo/NiCrBSi coating. The second one corresponds to an adhesive wear resulting from the transfer of cast iron from the counter-specimen to the coating.

Molybdenum based thermal spray coatings are used extensively for wear and friction control. However, the sprayed Mo lamellae have been found to have low breakout resistance leading to decreased wear life of these coatings. An alternate approach is to increase the strength of Mo lamellae by alloying them with Mo-C. This work examines the effect of such alloying on the differences in the friction and wear mechanisms of four Mo and Mo-Mo-C based coatings. It was found that alloying the Mo with Mo-C leads to an improvement in the friction behavior of Mo-Mo-C based coatings.

Near-net-shape spray forming reduces the cost and complexity of fabricating certain types of structures. Although such components perform adequately as-sprayed, improvements achieved through alloying, thermal treatments, and additional coating steps are often worth pursuing. In tungsten components, for example, additions of rhenium, nickel, or iron can significantly improve material strength and ductility; thermal treatments such as heat treating and hot isostatic pressing can change and densify microstructures; and coating exposed surfaces can improve environmental compatibility. Such improvements in plasma spray formed refractory metal components are presented in this paper.

This paper assesses the performance of a supersonic flame spraying gun along with the quality of molybdenum coatings produced with it. The hardness of the wire sprayed molybdenum was compared to coatings made using conventional flame spraying methods. The coatings were also evaluated for porosity, bond strength, and phase distribution by X-ray diffraction. The results indicate that the supersonic gun performs better than conventional flame spray equipment when depositing refractory metals such as molybdenum.

Plasma sprayed tungsten coatings are considered as potential candidates for materials in contact with the plasma in future fusion reactors. In this work, the thermal shock resistance of these coatings is studied to determine which of five changed deposition parameters most influences the coating's performance. The thermal shocks were generated with a pulsed electron beam gun. The pulse duration was 0.2 and 0.5 s and the absorbed power density 60 MW/m 2 . Two series of samples were analyzed. One was plasma sprayed at atmospheric pressure (AP) and the other at low pressure (LP). The LP coatings were deposited on a molybdenum alloy (TZM). AP coatings were deposited on molybdenum and on water cooled copper coupons for fatigue tests. The porosity seems to be a positive factor for thermal shock resistance. The thickness of the coatings and the spraying atmosphere were found to strongly influence the thermal shock resistance. In the case of the fatigue test, some coatings withstood up to 1000 shocks of 0.5 s duration.