Erosion wear of CrN, TiN, CrAlN, and TiAlN PVD nitride coatings

► Erosion wear tests were carried out on CrN, ZrN, CrAlN, and TiAlN nitride coatings. ► The coatings with Al exhibited higher erosion wear resistance over those without Al. ► The H3/E2 of the coating seemed to play an important role to the erosion wear. ► AlTiN and CrAlN coatings with high H3/E2 exhibited lower erosion rates.