Influence of surface finishing by grinding on the cavitation erosion resistance of 316L and NiAl-bronze

Abstract

Improving the mechanical properties of bulk and near-surface materials and alternating the dynamics of cavitating bubbles are two main methods to reduce cavitation erosion damage. Grinding and polishing, as two common surface finishing stages, can alter the cavitation erosion damage on metallic materials by affecting both the bubble dynamics and the mechanical properties of the surface. In this paper, the ultrasonic cavitation erosion resistance of 316L and NiAl-bronze alloys, each with two initial surface conditions of grinding and polishing is investigated, focussing on the material reaction. The mechanisms of material removal are discussed based on surface and subsurface observations to explain the effect of surface finishing on the cavitation erosion damage. After 8.5 h cavitation erosion testing time, a lower erosion mass loss was obtained for both alloys in the ground state as compared to the polished state suggesting that grinding can improve the cavitation erosion resistance of alloys. On the other hand, the polishing process improved the erosion resistance of NiAl-bronze at the early stages of cavitation. This is discussed in light of the two distinct surface characteristics of roughness and hardness, which, in turn, tend to increase and decrease cavitation erosion damage. Planar crystallographic boundaries and intermetallic-matrix interfaces were found to be the most susceptible sites to early erosion damage on the polished 316L and bronze, respectively.