Mechanical properties of multilayer Ni-Fe and Ni-Fe-Al2O3 nanocomposite coating

A sulfate-based electrolyte was used for synthesis of multilayer (ML) and monolithic Ni-Fe-Al2O3 coatings. The ML electrodeposits were achieved by consecutive alteration of duty cycle of pulsed current between two values of 20% and 90%. The influences of the ML microstructure on mechanical properties and wear resistance of composite coatings were studied. The shear punch testing method was employed to evaluate the room temperature mechanical properties. It was shown that increasing the pulse frequency and decreasing the pulse duty cycle improved the mechanical properties of monolithic coatings. The electrodeposited ML coatings exhibited a pronounced improvement in microhardness, shear strength and wear resistance in comparison to the monolithic coatings. Pin-on-disk sliding wear tests revealed that the main mechanisms of wear are plastic deformation, fatigue crack of deformed layers and delamination.