ABSTRACT
Coatings are applied in order to extend the life of components operating in harsh environments. Metal-ceramic coatings known as cermet, such as WC-Co, consist of tungsten carbides immersed in a cobalt matrix and are used as wear-resistant materials. The HVOF (High Velocity Oxygen Fuel) spraying process is most suitable when one wants to obtain carbide coatings. The HVOF thermal spray presents excellent quality coatings with respect to porosity, hardness, strength, density, roughness and adhesion to the substrate. The present study investigates and compares the erosive and abrasive wear resistance of coatings obtained by HVOF, applied on AISI 1020 steel substrates. Were performed erosion tests using a specific tribometer, abrasion test according to ASTM G65-16, scanning electron microscope (SEM), microhardness and roughness of the coatings. The materials used were WC 12Co alloys. As a result of the erosive wear test, the coating has proved to be a good choice when dealing with resistance at lower angles of incidence. In the first hour of testing, erosion rate was 42% higher at 90° angle than at 30° impact angle. In the abrasive wear test, the result of the volumetric wear can be observed in the micrographs after the test, noting that there was a removal of carbides from the surface of the coating, resulting in wear, in which the samples had a volumetric loss of 2.68 ± 0.28 mm³. Such results indicate the WC 12Co material a good choice when it comes to wear resistance for protection of industrial mechanical components that suffer wear.
Keywords
cermets coatings; WC 12Co; HVOF; abrasive wear; erosive wear
