Reactive plasma spraying of TiAl6V4 alloy

Titanium and its alloys have been widely used in various industries from aeroplane to chemistry due to their high strength to weight ratio and excellent corrosion resistance. However, they are characterised by their poor tribological properties which limit their applicability in tribological systems. The increasing interest in their application in tribological systems, like in automotive engineering, presents a challenge to improve their tribological properties significantly. In this study, reactive plasma spraying of TiAl6V4 alloy was investigated to increase the wear resistance of titanium alloys. Microstructural analyses showed that titanium nitrides were formed in situ during spraying. The coatings produced by reactive plasma spraying showed much higher microhardness and wear resistance than the corresponding bulk material.