A novel approach of in-situ synthesis of WC particulate-reinforced Fe-30Ni ceramic metal coating

In-situ synthesis of WC/Fe-30Ni ceramic metal coating (CMC) by plasma transferred arc metallurgical reaction (PTAMR) with raw materials W, C and Fe-30 wt% Ni were investigated. The in-situ metallurgical reaction was investigated by thermodynamic calculation and X-ray diffractometry (XRD). The in-situ WC grain size, grain growth characteristic and microstructures were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The mechanical properties such as hardness, toughness and wear resistance were tested. Results show that the morphology of in-situ WC grain is triangular prism which is a multi-layered crystal structure with high hardness, good toughness and high wear resistance. The excellent mechanical behaviors of in-situ WC are decided by its growth mechanism. Increasing the contents of in-situ WC will directly increase the wear resistance of WC/Fe-30Ni coating.