A study of CVD diamond deposition on cemented carbide ball-end milling tools with high cobalt content using amorphous ceramic interlayers

•Two types of amorphous ceramic interlayers (a-SiO2 and s-SiC) are synthesized on WC- 10 wt.% Co substrates by precursor pyrolysis.•Improved adhesion between the diamond coatings and WC- 10 wt.% Co substrates is obtained by employing amorphous ceramic interlayers.•The milling tests against zirconia indicate that the amorphous ceramic interlayers can significantly enhance the cutting performance of diamond coated tools.

In this paper, CVD diamond coatings are deposited on cemented carbides with 10 wt.% Co using amorphous SiO2 and amorphous SiC interlayers. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), Raman spectrum and X-ray diffraction (XRD) are carried out to characterize the microstructure and composition of as-deposited films. Moreover, the adhesion and cutting performance of as-fabricated diamond coatings are studied. Indentation tests show that the amorphous ceramic interlayers can enhance the adhesion between diamond films and WC–Co substrates. The cutting tests against zirconia indicate that the tools with amorphous ceramic interlayered diamond coatings exhibit improved cutting performance. The amorphous ceramic interlayers can improve the adhesive strength and wear endurance of diamond coatings on WC–10 wt.% Co substrates, which provide a viable way for adherent diamond coatings on cemented carbide tools with high cobalt content.

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