Wear characteristics of electroless NiP/bio-composite coatings on En8 steel

• To analyze the waste sea shell particles for the tribological applications.
• Various dispersions of sea shell powder/NiP composite coating are prepared by using electroless process.
• Friction and wear properties were analyzed by pin-on-disc apparatus.
• Characterizations of coatings were done by SEM-EDS, XRD, microhardness and surface roughness analysis.
• The waste sea shell is used as a good coating material and it has shown a better wear resistance property.

The availability of sea shell waste is increasing day-by-day in the coastal areas of the world, where proper utilization of these sea shells can have a significant impact on the environment in terms of biocompatibility and reducing raw material cost. This paper, as a preliminary work, reveals the advantages of using sea shell particles (SSPs) as reinforcement on the tribological performance of the NiP coating on En8 steel substrate. Pure NiP and NiP with various amounts (0.5 g/l, 1.0 g/l, 1.5 g/l, 2.0 g/l, 2.5 g/l, 3.0 g/l, 3.5 g/l, 4.0 g/l and 4.5 g/l) of SSP dispersed composite coatings are prepared using the electroless coating process. The structural characterization of sea shell particles, NiP and various composite coatings is done using an XRD analyzer. Sea shell particles exhibit both amorphous and crystalline structures. The phase structure of NiP is similar to that of the SSP incorporated NiP coating with some metastable peaks. Morphology and elemental study of the coatings is done using SEM with EDAX analyzer. Friction and wear behavior of composite coatings is investigated using a pin-on-disc apparatus. A better wear property with high frictional force is seen for 3.0 g/l composite coatings when compared to the pure NiP coating and uncoated En8 substrate.

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