Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr coatings are commonly used to provide abrasion and erosion wear resistance on the surface of components, in particular for corrosive and atmospheric high-temperature environments. For these classical and new applications the knowledge of the thermophysical properties is highly important. In the present work the dependence of the heat conductivity on temperature of two HVOF-sprayed Cr 3 C 2 -25NiCr-coatings prepared by a liquid-fuelled HVOF-process from two different feedstock powders from room temperature up to 700 °C was determined. Thermal diffusivities, density functions, specific heat capacities and coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) were measured in order to compute the heat conductivity for the coatings. All measurements were performed twice (as-sprayed and after a first thermal cycle) in order to take into account the structural and compositional changes. XRD and FESEM studies were performed in order to characterize the phase compositions and microstructures in the as-sprayed and heat-treated states. Heat conductivities (average of the two coatings) ranging from about 11 W/(mK) at 50°C up to about 20 W/(mK) at 700°C were determined. Differences between the two coatings were clearly detectable. The heat conductivity of the Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr coatings is significantly lower than determined previously for a WC-17%Co coating.

The development of new hardmetal coating applications such as fatigue-loaded parts, structural components and tools for metal forming is connected with improvement of their performance and reliability. For modelling purposes the knowledge of thermophysical, mechanical and other material data is required. However, this information is still missing today. In the present work the thermophysical data of a WC-17Co coating sprayed with a liquid-fuelled HVOF-process from a commercial agglomerated and sintered feedstock powder from room temperature up to 700 °C was determined as an example. The dependence of the heat conductivity on temperature was obtained through measurement of the coefficient of thermal expansion, the specific heat capacity and the thermal diffusivity. Heat conductivities ranging from 29.2 W/(mK) at 50°C to 35.4 W/(mK) at 700 °C were determined. All measurements were performed twice (as-sprayed and after the first thermal cycle) in order to take into account the structural and compositional changes. Extensive XRD and FESEM studies were performed in order to characterize the phase compositions and microstructures in the as-sprayed and heat-treated states. Bulk samples obtained by spark plasma sintering from the feedstock powder were studied for comparison.