An experimental study of the wear performance of NiCrBSi thermal spray coatings

The increasingly extreme conditions in which components are required to work have led to the use of thermal coatings in a lot of industrial applications. Special attention has been paid in NiCrBSi alloys since they provide a high wear and corrosion resistance at high temperatures. In this communication, an experimental programme has been carried out to analyse the influence of several factors such as load, temperature, presence of reinforcement particles and the type of thermal spray technique on the wear behaviour of a NiCrBSi alloy. Specimens were tested in a reciprocating pin on plate wear machine able to select loads ranging from 50 to 200 N and temperatures up to 500 °C. Four sets of specimens were tested varying the composition (with the presence or not of WC in the powders) and the type of thermal spraying technique (plasma or flame+fusion). A statistical analysis based on the design of experiments methodology was applied to identify the main significative effects and interactions.