Erosion resistance performance of magnetron sputtering deposited TiAlN coatings

TiAlN coatings with different Al concentrations have been deposited on Ti–6Al–4V substrate by reactive magnetron sputtering and characterized by scanning electron microscopy, nanoindentation and solid-particle erosion testing. It has been found that erosion resistance of TiAlN coatings depends not only on the coating chemistry, but also on the deposition conditions (microstructures). TiAlN coatings demonstrate marked improvement in erosion performance with the best erosion resistance several times higher than TiN coating. The excellent erosion resistance results from a good combination of high hardness and good toughness.