Abstract
The present article explores the ability of synthesized graphene carbon nitride (g-C3N4) towards the improvement of microstructure, surface energy, surface hardness, and scratch resistance of electroless nickel phosphorus-graphene carbon nitride (NiP/g-C3N4) coated AISI 4140 steel. Comparative studies were conducted to evaluate how the g-C3N4 concentrations affect the physical, mechanical, and surface properties of electroless NiP/g-C3N4 composite coating. Morphology analysis confirmed the nodular formation for the NiP/g-C3N4 composite coating due to the nucleation phenomenon induced by the g-C3N4 particle. Further, the g-C3N4 particle has favoured the growth of the Ni crystal, which is confirmed in the X-ray diffractometer study. In comparison, the higher weight percentage of g-C3N4 particles has increased the hardness, residual stress, surface roughness, and contact angle of the electroless NiP/g-C3N4 composite coating. The maximum tensile residual stress had a positive impact on controlling the formation of slippage cracks for the NiP/g-C3N4 composite coating, which is confirmed in the fractography analysis of the hardness indentation. Furthermore, the detailed failure mechanisms of the coatings during the hardness and scratch test of NiP/g-C3N4 composite coatings were precisely discussed and compared with the particle-free NiP coating.
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