Impact wear and abrasion resistance of CrN, AlCrN and AlTiN PVD coatings

► Impact wear and abrasion properties of CrN, AlCrN and AlTiN coatings were studied. ► AlCrN had both good impact wear performance and good abrasion resistance. ► Low tendency to pick-up ball material ensures the good impact wear resistance of AlCrN. ► AlTiN suffered heavier abrasive wear than AlCrN though they had similar hardnesses. ► AlCrN with high Al showed great increases in impact and abrasion resistance over CrN.