Effect of thermal spray processes on microstructures and properties of Ni-20%Cr coatings

Ni-20%Cr coatings were produced using different thermal spray techniques, which were spray and fuse, flame spray and arc spray. The Ni-20%Cr powder was sprayed onto a mild steel substrate using the spray and fuse and the flame spray systems, while the Ni-20%Cr wire was sprayed using the arc spray system. SEM microstructures of the coatings suggested the spraying conditions used were able to produce dense microstructures. However, the microstructure of the arc sprayed coatings showed fine lamellar characteristics compared to the coatings prepared by the spray and fuse and the flame spray techniques. Chemical elements and oxide were quantified by EDS-SEM technique. Differences in microstructure and coating characteristics such as content of porosity and oxide due to different processing techniques significantly affected the coating properties such as adhesion strength, hardness and wear rate