Preparation and Characterization of Pulse Electrodeposited Ni/W-SiC Nanocomposite Coating on Mild Steel Substrate

Abstract

In order to improve the performances of metal containers, furnace bodies and agricultural tools manufactured by mild steels, Ni/W-SiC nanocomposites are prefabricated on mild steel substrate by the pulse electrodeposition (PED) method. The morphology, texture, microstructure, microhardness, and wear performances of Ni/W-SiC nanocomposites are examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), hardness tester, and friction wear testing. The results indicate that the SiC size in nanocomposites is ~32.4 nm when its concentration in electrolytes is 7 g/L. The S1 and S4 nanocomposites’ microstructures (the S1 composite was prefabricated at 4 g/L, and the S4 composite was deposited at 13 g/L) reveal many large cauliflower-shaped grains. However, the S2 nanocomposite (the S2 composite was obtained at 7 g/L) demonstrates the homogeneous, finest and smoothest surface morphology. The diffraction angles of S1 nanocomposite are 41.2°, 51.7°, and 71.2° depicting the sharpest diffraction peaks, corresponding to the (1 1 1), (2 0 0), and (2 2 0) crystal planes of Ni-W grains, respectively. Moreover, the S2 nanocomposite exhibits the lowest wear depth and width of 34.2 μm and 5.5 mm, respectively. Some shallow and fine scratches on the as-described nanocomposites’ surface indicate its excellent tribological performance. However, the S4 nanocomposite exhibits a wear depth of 86.3 μm and a width of 11.9 mm.