Preparation of titanium carbide–titanium boride coatings on Ti6Al4V by PIRAC

Abstract

In the present work, titanium carbide–titanium boride coatings are prepared on Ti6Al4V by powder immersion reaction assisted coating (PIRAC). Microstructure and phase composition of the gained surface layers are characterised by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy equipped with energy dispersive spectrometer. Results show that homogeneous titanium carbide–titanium boride coatings can be formed on the substrate. Phases of the prepared coatings are co-existed TiC, TiB and TiB2 and their content varies with PIRAC treatments. Hardness of the titanium carbide–titanium borides coating prepared at 900°C is about 24·5 GPa, while that of prepared at 1000°C is about 22·5 GPa and shows a larger scatter.