JoungHyun La

Effects of interlayer thickness and the substrate material on the adhesion properties of CrZrN coatings

To confirm the influence of the interlayer thickness and substrate material on adhesion properties, CrZrN coatings with various Cr interlayer thickness were deposited on AISI H13, high speed steel, and tungsten carbide using unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The adhesion strength showed maximum value at 300 nm of the interlayer, but as the interlayer increased further to 450 nm, the adhesion strength decreased. The adhesion properties of the coatings were dependent upon not only interlayer thickness but also the substrate materials. The adhesion strength of the coating were measured 12, 32, 53 N on the tungsten carbide, AISI H13 steel, high speed steel, respectively and three different failure modes such as buckling spallation, wedging spallation, and chipping were observed on each substrate. The difference in adhesion properties could be attributed to the difference in value of elastic strain to failure (H/E) among the CrZrN coating, the interlayer, and the substrates material.

Effects of Annealing Heat Treatment on the Corrosion Resistance of Zn/Mg/Zn Multilayer Coatings

Zn coatings alloyed with magnesium offer superior corrosion resistance compared to pure Zn or other Zn-based alloy coatings. In this study, Zn/Mg/Zn multilayer coatings with various Mg layer thicknesses were synthesized using an unbalanced magnetron sputtering process and were annealed to form Zn-Mg intermetallic phases. The effects of the annealing heat treatment on the corrosion resistance of the Zn/Mg/Zn multilayer coatings were evaluated using electrochemical measurements. The extensive diffusion of magnesium species into the upper and lower zinc layer from the magnesium layer in the middle of the coating was observed after the heat treatment. This phenomenon caused (a) the porous microstructure to transition into a dense structure and (b) the formation of a MgZn2 intermetallic phase. The results of the electrochemical measurements demonstrated that the heat treated Zn/Mg/Zn multilayer coatings possessed higher levels of corrosion resistance than the non-heat treated coatings. A Zn/Mg/Zn multilayer coating with MgZn2 and (Zn) phases showed the best corrosion resistance among the heat treated coatings, which could be attributed to the reduced galvanic corrosion effects due to a small potential gradient between the MgZn2 and zinc.

The Study on the Corrosion Property of the Zn-Mg Alloy Coatings with Various Mg Contents using EIS Measurement

In this study, the Zn-Mg alloy coatings with various Mg contents were deposited using an unbalanced magnetron sputtering process. Their surface microstructure, chemical composition, phase, and corrosion property were investigated. The microstructure of the Zn-Mg coatings changed from porous microstructure to dense one with increasing Mg contents in the coatings. As Mg contents in coatings increased, intermetallic phases such as Mg2Zn11 and MgZn2 were detected from X-ray diffraction (XRD) results. The corrosion resistance of the Zn-Mg alloy coatings was investigated quantitatively using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurement with 3.5% NaCl solution. The results of EIS measurement showed that the charge transfer resistance and the phase angle of the Zn-Mg alloy coatings were increased from 162.1 Ω·cm 2 to 558.8 Ω·cm2 and from about 40o to 60o with increasing Mg contents from 5.1 wt.% to 15.5 wt.% in the coatings. These results demonstrate that the Zn-Mg coatings with increasing Mg contents showed an enhanced corrosion resistance.

Influence of N2 partial pressure on the microstructure, hardness, and thermal stability of CrZrSiN nanocomposite coatings

The effects of N2 partial pressure in the unbalanced magnetron sputtering process on the microstructure, hardness, and thermal stability of the CrZrSiN nanocomposite coating were investigated. A typical nanocomposite structure, composed of a crystalline phase and an amorphous phase was obtained and the distribution of these phases changed with increasing N2 partial pressure. The N1s spectra revealed the presence of two-peak characteristic of nitrogen in the CrZrN and SiNx phases, and the ratio of the peak’s SiNx to CrZrN intensity increased with increasing N2 partial pressure, indicating an increase in the amorphous phase in the nanocomposite microstructure. As N2 partial pressure increased, the CrZrSiN coating hardness decreased from 38 to 30 GPa due to the increasing amount of the SiNx amorphous phase. After the thermal stability test, the hardness values of the CrZrSiN coatings were maintained at approximately 30 GPa up to 800°C, but the hardness decreased rapidly to 18 GPa after annealing at 900°C. This drastic change of hardness over 900C was due to the formation of a Cr2O3 phase in the CrZrSiN coating.

Effects of Bilayer Period on the Microhardness and Its Strengthening Mechanism of CrN/AlN Superlattice Coatings

CrN/AlN multilayer coatings with various bilayer periods in the range of 1.8 to 7.4 nm were synthesized using a closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering method. Their crystalline structure, chemical compositions and mechanical properties have been investigated with Auger electron spectroscopy, X-ray diffractometry, atomic force microscopy, nanoindentation, scratch tests. The properties of the multilayer coatings varied strongly depending upon the magnitude of the bilayer period. The multilayer coating with a bilayer period of 1.8 nm showed the maximum hardness and an elastic modulus of approximately 37.6 and 417 GPa, respectively, which was 1.54 times higher than the hardness predicted by the rule of mixture from the CrN and AlN coatings. The hardness of the multilayer coating increased as the bilayer period decreased, i.e. as the rotation speed increased. The Hall-Petch type relationship, hardness being related to (1/periodicity)?“1/2, suggested by Lehoczky was confirmed for the CrN/AlN multilayer coatings with bilayer period close to the 5-10 nm range. With decreasing bilayer period, the surface morphology of the films became rougher and the critical load of films for adhesion strength gradually decreased.