Corrosion and nanomechanical properties of vanadium carbide thin film coatings of tool steel

► Corrosion resistance of tool steel coated with VC films increases with the C/V ratio. ► Hardness reaches a maximum for C/V around unity and temperatures above 100 °C. ► The H3/E2 values are comparable to those for several other very hard coatings. ► Controlling C/V one can improve concomitantly the corrosion and the hardness.