Solid particle erosion of thermal sprayed coatings

Thermal sprayed coatings are commonly employed to enhance the wear resistance of a wide range of engineering components. Coatings of tungsten carbide based hardmetal, nickel based self-fluxing alloy and composites on the basis of NiCrSiB alloy were deposited from these powder by the detonation gun, continuous detonation spraying, and spray fusion process. Solid particle erosion tests were performed on these coatings with silica abrasives of size in between 0.1 and 0.3 mm. Influence of the test variables and material parameters is discussed. Differences in the wear behavior are rationalized in terms of the coating hardness and structure. Case study of the wear resistance of the coatings in disintegrator mill is proposed.