FeAl Intermetallic Compound Research Articles

Evaluation of tensile shear strength for dissimilar spot welds of Al-Si-Mg aluminum alloy and galvanized steel by delta-spot welding process

According to the conventional studies, it was difficult to perform the dissimilar spot welding between aluminum alloy and steel. In this research, delta-spot welding was performed to evaluate the dissimilar weldability and mechanical properties of the Al 6061-T6 and GA440 steel sheets. A spot welding experiment was carried out varying process parameters. Also, the tensile shear strength was evaluated at each condition, and cross-sectional observation of the weld zone was performed with an electron microscope. The strength of the dissimilar spot welds decreased with increasing force, and increased in proportion to the weld time and current. As a test result of the influence of types of the process tapes, PT1407, which has a relatively higher heat input than PT2000, showed higher strength of the dissimilar spot welds. Especially, the Fe-Al intermetallic compounds (IMC) layer was less than 3 μm thick. It was thick at the center of the nugget and thin at the edge depending on the heat input.

Removal of 4-chlorophenol from polluted water by aluminum-iron alloys.

Chlorophenols are extremely toxic to the environment and recalcitrant to biological degradation. Herein chemical degradation of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) from aqueous solutions by zero-valent aluminum (Al), zero-valent iron (Fe), Al and Fe mixtures (Al/Fe mass ratio 90/10, labeled as Al/Fe10) and Al-Fe alloy (Al/Fe mass ratio 90/10, labeled as Al-Fe10) were investigated. No removal was found for 50 mg·L-1 4-CP under anoxic conditions at initial pH 2.5 during a period of 10 hrs while 56%, 83%, 78% and 99% of 4-CP were removed by Fe, Al, Al/Fe10 and Al-Fe10, respectively under aeration conditions. The removal of 4-CP by Al/Fe10 mixtures was primarily in the Fe mode in the beginning 4 h and then transitioned to the Al mode. The removal of 4-CP by Al-Fe10 alloy was accomplished via two intermediate products, hydroquinone (HQ) and 4-chlorocatechol (4-CC), and it was speculated that reactive oxygen species and hydroxyl radicals (·OH) play an important role in the degradation of 4-CP and that Al-Fe intermetallic compounds might catalyze the reactions. This study demonstrates that alloying Al with Fe offers a promising strategy for developing new materials for water and wastewater remediation.

Microstructural and Corrosion Behavior of High Velocity Arc Sprayed FeCrAl/Al Composite Coating on Q235 Steel Substrate

High velocity arc spraying was used to prepare FeCrAl/Al composite coating on Q235 steel substrate by simultaneously spraying FeCrAl wire as the anode and Al wire as the cathode. The composite coating was sprayed with varying voltage and current to obtain optimum coating characteristics. FeCrAl coating was also prepared for comparison purposes. The surface microstructure of the coatings was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The average microhardness of the coatings and the substrate was analyzed and compared. Corrosion resistance was investigated by means of electrochemical tests. The image results showed that a lamellar structure consisted of interwoven layers of FeCrAl and Al. Al and FeCr constituted the main phases with traces of oxides and AlFe intermetallic compounds. The average porosity was reduced and microhardness of the coatings was improved with increasing voltage and current. The FeCrAl/Al coating formed alternating layers of hard and ductile phases; the corrosion resistance of the coatings in the sodium chloride (NaCl) solution depended on the increase in Al content and spray parameters. The corrosion resistance tests indicated that FeCrAl/Al coating had a better corrosion resistance than the FeCrAl coating. FeCrAl/Al can be used to coat steel substrates and increase their corrosion resistance.

The Influence of Nickel Additions to Liquid A359 on Hot-Dip Aluminizing of Solid S45C Steel

The properties of hot-dipping A359 aluminum alloys can be improved by strategically placing the S45C steel inserts to locally improve properties such as oxidation and corrosion resistance, but soft A359 aluminum alloy can be easily worn out and thus decreased the S45C steel’s reliability. In this study, we have been added 20 wt.%Ni to increases the hardness of the A359 aluminum alloy, then hot dipped the S45C steel into the molten A359-20 wt.%Ni aluminum alloy for 1 min and then heat treated at 400-600 °C. The effect of nickel on the interface characteristic (including kinetic and shear strengths of interface between the S45C steel and aluminum alloy) and the surface glossiness and wear property of the A359-Ni aluminum alloy is also discussed. The experimental results show that the Fe2Al5 intermetallic compound thus the activation energy of the compound formation in the A359-20 wt.%Ni aluminum alloy, and its thickness increased with an increase in heating temperature. Nickel hindered formation of the Fe2Al5 intermetallic compound thus the activation energy of the compound formation in the A359-20 wt.%Ni aluminum alloy (0.413 eV) is larger than A359 aluminum alloy. The nickel could increase the surface glossiness and anti-wear of the hot-dipped coating layer, but they would not deteriorate the interface shear strength.

The characteristic of interface microstructure for aluminum-steel butt joint by arc assisted laser welding-brazing

An arc-assisted laser welding-brazing technique was used to join 5A06 aluminum alloy to galvanized steel. The result shows that a layer of intermetallic compounds (IMC) consisting of Fe4Al13 and Fe2Al5 are formed along the interface between the Al alloy and the steel. Both the shape and thickness of the IMC layer vary spatially, and there is a significant portion of Fe2Al5 IMC near the galvanized steel. The interface morphology of Fe2Al5 and steel changes from tongue-like shape to straight with the increase of laser power, and the Fe4Al13 IMC from dotted-like shape to needle like shape. The weld joint with straight Fe2Al5-steel interface morphology exhibits low tensile strength from 65Mpa to 92 MPa. The tongue-like Fe2Al5-steel interface morphology may play a role of ‘nailing’, which can inhibit the rapid propagation of cracks and improve the bonding strength. The Fe2Al5 IMC show the highest hardness of 8.39 GPa and low dissipation of plastic energy for the nanoindentation test.

Evaluation of DC-MS and HiPIMS TiB2 and TaN coatings as diffusion barriers against molten aluminum: An insight into the wetting mechanism

TaN and TiB2 ceramic coatings on steel were tested as barriers to protect steel against molten aluminum by sessile drop experiments. Coatings tested were deposited by PVD using conventional DC-MS (Direct Current Magnetron Sputtering) and HiPIMS (High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering) techniques. The evolution of contact angle and contact radius of the molten aluminum drop was recorded at 800 °C for H13 tool steel bare and coated samples. The influence of the thickness and microstructure of the coatings was investigated by XRD, SEM/EDS to elucidate the mechanism of the wetting process. Spreading rate of aluminum on coated samples was between 10 and 50 times slower than on bare steel samples. Coated samples showed reactive wettability with a reaction-controlled spreading stage observed as a constant spreading rate after an initial transient stage. The spreading mechanism of the molten metal on coated samples is a two-step mechanism: (i) molten metal infiltration through the coatings and (ii) fracture of the coating after the formation of Fe-Al intermetallic compounds that leads to an increased volume of the metallic substrate. The quantification of both steps proves that the coating's thickness plays a key role in the reactive wettability kinetics. Results show that HiPIMS deposited TaN coatings could be a promising candidate to protect steels against molten aluminum attack.

Improving pulsed laser weldability of duplex stainless steel to 5456 aluminum alloy via friction stir process reinforcing of aluminum by BNi-2 brazing alloy

Abstract Effects of laser pulse distance and reinforcing of 5456 aluminum alloy were investigated on laser weldability of Al alloy to duplex stainless steel (DSS) plates. The aluminum alloy plate was reinforced by nickel-base BNi-2 brazing powder via friction stir processing. The DSS plates were laser welded to the Al5456/BNi-2 composite and also to the Al5456 alloy plates. The welding zones were studied by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffractometry, micro-hardness and shear tests. The weld interface layer became thinner from 23 to 5 μm, as the laser pulse distance was increased from 0.2 to 0.5 mm. Reinforcing of the Al alloy modified the phases at interface layer from Al-Fe intermetallic compounds (IMCs) in the DSS/Al alloy weld, to Al-Ni-Fe IMCs in the DSS/Al composite one, since more nickel was injected in the weld pool by BNi-2 reinforcements. This led to a remarkable reduction in crack tendency of the welds and decreased the hardness of the interface layer from ˜950 HV to ˜600 HV. Shear strengths of the DSS/Al composite welds were significantly increased by ˜150%, from 46 to 114 MPa, in comparison to the DSS/Al alloy ones.

Formation Mechanism and Distribution of Al and O in the Ferrotitanium with Different Ti Contents Prepared by Thermite Method

Ferrotitanium is used as a deoxidizer, a degassing agent and an alloying element additive in the steel industry. The thermite method, as a way of preparing ferrotitanium, has the advantages of abundant raw material resources, low energy consumption, and low production costs. However, Al and O impurities in ferrotitanium prepared by this method change greatly with its Ti content. The distribution of Al and O residuals and their relationship with the Ti content of the ferrotitanium prepared by the thermite method were studied. The results show that Al and O residuals in the ferrotitanium prepared by the thermite method are mainly caused by intermetallic compounds and Al2O3 inclusion. The Al and O residuals are the quadric function of the Ti content in the alloy prepared by thermite reduction. With increasing Ti content in the ferrotitanium, the amount of intermetallic compounds and Al2O3 inclusions both increase. When the Ti content in the alloy is lower than about 30%, the Al residual in the ferrotitanium prepared by the thermite method is mainly caused by Fe-Al intermetallic compounds, while the O residual is mainly caused by the Al2O3 inclusion. When the Ti content in the alloy is higher than about 30%, the Al residual in the ferrotitanium prepared by the thermite method is caused by Ti-Al intermetallic compounds and Al2O3 inclusion, while the O residual is mainly caused by a great number of Al2O3 inclusions and sub-oxides, such as Ti4Fe2O.

Interface reaction of high-strength low-alloy steel with Al–43.4Zn–1.6Si (wt.%) metallic coating

The microstructure, elemental distribution, phase composition, and thickness of intermetallic layers between high-strength low-alloy steel (H420)/mild carbon steel (DC51) and Al–43.4Zn–1.6Si (wt.%) (galvalume, GL) alloy were comparatively investigated. The experimental results reveal that the interfacial reaction layer was composed of Fe2Al5, Fe4Al13, and Al8Fe2Si intermetallic compounds. Moreover, the growth curves of the Fe2Al5 and Fe4Al13 intermetallic layers fit the parabolic law well, and the total thickness of the intermetallic layers of H420 + GL was almost the same as that of DC51 + GL. However, the thickness of the Fe2Al5 layer in H420 + GL was thinner than that in DC51 + GL. In addition, first-principle calculations were performed to explore the effect of Mn on the growth of the Fe2Al5 intermetallic phase, and the results indicate that Mn substitution in Fe2Al5 removes electronic charge from the Al atoms, thus decreasing the thickness of the Fe2Al5 interface layer.

Effect of Zn Coating and Al–Zn Coating on Al/Steel Joints by Vacuum Electron Beam Welding

Two-mm-thick 6061 Al alloy plate to non-coated and coated Q235 steel plates, which were covered with Zn coating and Al–Zn coating, respectively, were successfully vacuum electron beam-welded, and a Fe–Al intermetallic compounds (IMCs) layer was formed at the interface. Compared with the Al/non-coated steel joint, Al/coated steel joints offered better lap shear tensile values, which were increased by around 37% and 29% from 1.83 to 2.51 kN (Al/Zn-coated steel joint), and to 2.36 kN (Al/Al–Zn-coated joint). The increase was mainly attributed to a longer effective bonding length through a better wettability and spreadability of liquid Al on steel surface. In all the cases, failure occurred at the Al/steel interface along the Fe2Al5 layer. It can be concluded that Zn element, consisting of coatings, has a positive influence on the improvement of wettability and fracture load value, and the main factors are acting as flux, changing atmosphere and reducing IMCs growth. On the other hand, Al–Zn coating, containing less Zn element, leads to a relatively worse wettability. However, Al-containing Zn coating can receive a productive result in reducing the vaporization of Zn coating in vacuum.

Nanoindentation behavior of nanostructured bulk (Fe,Cr)Al and (Fe,Cr)Al-Al2O3 nanocomposites

The purpose of the present study was to design a new generation of FeAl-based intermetallic compounds with improved mechanical and oxidation properties. Synthesis of powders of FeAl, (Fe,Cr)Al and (Fe,Cr)Al in situ composites with 5 and 10% Al2O3 contents was reported elsewhere. In this paper the sintering behavior is reported. FeAl, (Fe,Cr)Al and (Fe,Cr)Al - Al2O3 powders were sintered by a hot-pressing method at 1600 °C and 5.5 GPa for 15 min to produce bulk specimens for mechanical and microstructural characterization. Microstructural characterization by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of theses nanocomposites disclosed uniform distribution of Al2O3 nano-particles. XRD analysis indicated the presence of FeAl, (Fe,Cr)Al and Al2O3 phases. The presence of nano-sized Al2O3 particles effectively retarded grain growth by pinning the grain boundary during hot pressing. Nanoindentation tests indicated that with increasing content of Cr and Al2O3 reinforcement, the hardness and Young's modulus increased, and the fracture toughness reaches a high value of 19.6 ± 0.4 MPa m1/2 for the (Fe,Cr)Al-10%Al2O3 composition, with a hardness value of 21.7 ± 1.8 GPa. Nanoindentation creep tests at room temperature showed that composites with Al2O3 nanoparticles had higher creep rate than FeAl and (Fe,Cr)Al. It was found that improvements in the mechanical properties of FeAl intermetallic compound can be achieved by adding Cr and uniform distribution of Al2O3 nanoparticles.

Material transfer during high temperature sliding of Al-Si coated 22MnB5 steel against PVD coatings with and without aluminium

Press hardening of Al-Si coated 22MnB5 steel is the dominant technology to enable light weight design in automotive applications. Transfer of the Al-Si coating onto the tool surface occurs during hot forming. This affects process economy and quality of produced components. The reported galling mechanisms are adhesion and compaction of wear debris. Surface engineering of forming tools has been proposed to minimise the transfer of Al-Si coating. Plasma nitriding of tool steel surfaces reduces adhesion but has poor abrasive wear resistance. PVD coatings have generally been found to promote galling due to higher chemical affinity but improve abrasive wear resistance. Most studied PVD coatings are transition metal nitrides containing aluminium. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of aluminium in PVD coatings and its effect on transfer of Al-Si coating material during sliding against coated tool steel at high temperatures. This work has focussed on PVD coatings (AlCrN and CrWN) deposited on plasma nitrided tool steel. Their tribological behaviour was studied using a hot strip-drawing tribometer capable of simulating the conditions prevalent in press hardening. The results showed that PVD coatings containing aluminium induce more material transfer. The material transfer is mainly related to chemical affinity since all coatings were polished to a low surface roughness (Sa =~120 nm) to minimise transfer initiated by surface defects. The hardness of the PVD coatings does not seem to influence the material transfer since the softer coating (CrWN, HV0.05 = ~1850) showed less transfer compared to AlCrN (HV0.05 = ~2100). The CrWN coating showed longer running-in compared to AlCrN due to reduced initial material transfer. Formation of thicker transfer layers governs the steady state friction mechanisms. Material transfer of Fe-Al intermetallic compounds occurs at the initial stages of sliding through direct adhesion to the PVD coating. The layers grow to > 5 µm thickness within a few decimetres of sliding.

Studies on as-cast microstructure and oxidation behavior of the Fe[sbnd]Cr[sbnd]B[sbnd]Al alloys at 1073 K

Based on the FeCrB alloy, the Fe12Cr1.5BxAl (x = 0, 2, 4, 6 and 8 wt%) alloys were designed by adding Al. The as-cast microstructure and cyclic oxidation behavior have been investigated extensively in this study. The results reveal that the as-cast microstructure of FeCrB alloy consists of martensite (bcc), retained austenite (orthorhombic) and M2(B,C)-bct, M7(C,B)3-hcp, M23(C,B)6-complex fcc boron-carbides, gradually changing to α-(Fe,Al,Cr) solid solution (bcc), M2(B,C)-bct, M7(C,B)3-hcp, M23(C,B)6-complex fcc boron-carbides and Fe3Al intermetallic compound with the increasing of Al contents. The oxidation kinetics of all alloy samples follow a parabolic oxidation kinetic law. The oxidation rate constant kp in Al-free FeCrB alloy is nearly four times of that in FeCrB8Al alloy. The additions of Al refine the grains and make the distribution of elements more uniform, which results in forming a continuous and dense oxide film containing Al2O3 oxide with excellent fluidity and thermal stability, remarkably enhancing the high temperature oxidation resistance of FeCrBAl alloy.

Cascading microstructures in aluminum-steel interfaces created by impact welding

With the growing need to develop light weight structures joining dissimilar metals is inevitable. Hence a fundamental understanding of the microstructure evolution and bond formation mechanism is necessary. In this work we probe the welded interface in aluminum and steel joined using vaporizing foil actuator welding (VFAW) a novel impact welding process. The goal of such a detailed characterization campaign is to understand the bond formation mechanism. The study shows that the interfacial microstructure has a pronounced hierarchical nature. At the macro scale, the interface is characterized by a wavy interface which is a result of extensive plastic deformation that accompanies the process. Detailed transmission electron microscopy shows evidence for the formation of a liquid film at the interface resulting in significant inter diffusion of Fe. The solidified structure at the interface consisted of crystalline α-Al and an amorphous metastable Al-Fe intermetallic compound similar to the observations in rapid solidification of Al-Fe alloys. The sub-nm scale characterization of the interface using atom probe tomography showed two distinct zones1.A magnesium (5 at.%) and oxygen (15 at.%) rich (not detectable using energy dispersive spectroscopy) which was probably from the decomposition of the surface oxide film2.The rapidly solidified reaction zone consisting of primary crystalline α-Al and an amorphous Al-Fe (15 at.%)-O (0.5 at.%)-Si (1.5 at.%).Based on these observations a mechanism for the bond formation is presented.

Microstructure evolution and high temperature tensile properties of AlNp/Al–Fe composites induced by microalloying

In order to get higher heat resistance, microalloying elements like Cu, Si and Mn were added to optimize the microstructure of AlNp/Al–Fe composites. After Mn addition, the Al–Fe intermetallic compounds become small, while Cu and Si elements have no optimistic influence on the Al–Fe intermetallic compounds. The AlNp/Al–Fe composites containing Cu or Si present limited reinforcement on tensile properties at 350 °C, due to the detrimental morphology of Al–Fe intermetallic compounds and element aggregation on the interface between AlNp and Al matrix. Mn is good for increasing the microstructural stability during the elevated temperature deformation and the 8.2AlNp/Al–Fe composites containing 0.1%Mn get the highest ultimate tensile strength (UTS), which is 135 MPa at 350 °C. The influence of microalloying elements (Cu, Si, Mn) on microstructural evolution and correlated tensile response at 350 °C of the 8.2AlNp/Al–Fe composites were revealed in this work.

Interfacial morphologies and corrosion behaviours of novel Fe-Cr-B alloys immersed in molten aluminium

In aluminium industry, the molten aluminium and its alloys have a serious attack to the holders and the contact instruments, and therefore forming a layer Fe-Al intermetallic compounds (IMCs), which leads to relative mass loss or even failure. For this question, three kinds of Fe-Cr-B alloys were prepared and their interfacial morphologies and corrosion behaviours immersed in static molten aluminium at 750 °C were systematically investigated using SEM, XRD and TEM. The results showed that the M2B-type boride phase had the excellent corrosion resistance property, especially the coarse rod-like Cr-rich M2B boride. Additionally, the periodic layered structures (PLSs) produced from the corroded rod-like Cr-rich M2B boride, which could not only retard the reaction diffusion of Al atoms and matrix but also reduce the Fe-Al IMCs spallation. The corrosion behaviour of Fe-Cr-B alloy was mainly the corrosion of matrix, the formation and the spallation of Fe-Al IMCs and the degradation of boride phase. Notably, the volume loss rate of the Fe-13.54 wt% Cr-3.88 wt% B alloy, was 78% lower than that of H13 steel.

Dissimilar metals AISI 304 steel and AA 2219 aluminium alloy joining by friction welding method

Abstract Welding of dissimilar metals is very much interested in industrial applications. In dissimilar metals in particular light weight metals aluminium alloy in combination with steel is advantage in automotive and aerospace industries. Welding of aluminum alloy and steel is a great challenge because of their different thermal and metallurgical properties. In this present work the joining of dissimilar metals AISI 304 steel and AA2219 aluminium with continuous drive friction welding method is used for study. This solid state welding process can be done with minimum heat affected zone so that the properties of metals cannot change. In this method because of friction heat will generate and the metals at the interface become plasticized and it was forged to weld. The welding process was done with different process parameters, rotational speed, friction pressure, upset pressure and burn of length was selected as per the previous study. The friction time kept constant for all welding joint samples. The experimental results were analyzed by means of tensile test, Vickers micro hardness test and microstructure. The strength of the joints varied with increasing friction pressure and more influenced by upset pressure. As the friction pressure and upset pressure increases the flash increases with brittle fractures at the joint interface. The welding progresses from the outer to the inner region and the intermediate compounds are formed. The optical microscope observation and SEM analysis is done for microstructure characterization. The intermetallic compounds FeAl are observed at the inter face. The elemental composition was also analyzed by EDX technique. The solid state welding enables to join dissimilar metal combination of ferrous and non ferrous metals which are difficult in conventional fusion welding methods.

Microstructures and mechanical properties of AZ91D/0Cr19Ni9 bimetal composite prepared by liquid-solid compound casting

Abstract The liquid-solid compound casting technology was used to produce the AZ91D/0Cr19Ni9 bimetal composite without and with hot dipping aluminium, respectively. The influences of Al coating on microstructures and mechanical properties of AZ91D/0Cr19Ni9 interface were investigated. The results showed that the mechanical bonding was obtained between AZ91D and bare steel 0Cr19Ni9 where a gap existed at the interface; the metallurgical bonding was formed between AZ91D and Al-coated 0Cr19Ni9, which could be divided into two different intermetallic layers: layer I was mainly composed of α-Mg+β-Mg17Al12 eutectic structure and a small amount of MgAl2O4, and layer II mainly comprised of Fe2Al5 intermetallic compound. Furthermore, the hardness value of interface was obviously higher than that of AZ91D matrix, and the average hardness values of layers I and II were HV 158 and HV 493, respectively. The shear strength of AZ91D/Al-coated 0Cr19Ni9 interface was higher than that of AZ91D/bare 0Cr19Ni9 interface, which confirmed that Al coating could improve the adhesive strength between AZ91D and 0Cr19Ni9 during liquid-solid compound casting process.

Influence of Ni and Cr on the high-temperature wear resistance of FeNiCrAl coatings

Abstract To reduce the brittleness of Fe-Al intermetallic compound coatings, FeNiCrAl powder wire for high-speed electric arc spraying is developed by integrating Ni and Cr into an Fe-Al intermetallic compound. The corresponding FeNiCrAl coating is prepared via high-speed electric arc spraying technology. A 3Cr13 coating is selected as the material for comparison, and the friction and wear properties of the two coatings are investigated from 200 °C to 800 °C. The friction coefficient variations and friction surface topography patterns of the two coatings are analyzed via X-ray diffractometry (XRD), hardness testing, and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The phase compositions of the materials on the wear surfaces are analyzed via X-ray photoelectron energy spectrometry (XPS). The results show that after the friction coefficient of the FeNiCrAl coating reaches its peak value at 400 °C, it declines with increasing temperature, and its wear volume is less than that of the 3Cr13 coating. An XPS-based wear surface composition analysis and SEM wear scar topography results show that the FeNiCrAl coating produces not only Fe, Ni and Cr oxides but also Ni-Al intermetallic compounds during high-temperature friction. After the friction coefficient of the FeNiCrAl coating reaches its peak at 800 °C, more Al2O3 is formed around the Fe3Al, and these compounds aggregate to form a protective film that effectively prevents further intrusion of O ions. A dense oxide layer covers the wear surface, and the formation of hard-phase chemical compounds improves the wear resistance and bearing capability of the coating.

MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF THE Fe-Al-Nb COATING BY DOUBLE GLOW PLASMA SURFACE METALLURGY

The Q235 steel was covered by Fe–Al–Nb alloyed coating to improve the mechanical properties of the Q235 steel. This double glow plasma surface metallurgy (DGPSM) surface modification technique was carried out at 1023[Formula: see text]K and pressure of 38[Formula: see text]Pa for 4.5[Formula: see text]h. The surface morphology represented the typical Volmer–Weber mode, an island structure which was accumulated by numerous small particles, and most of the angles formed between three islands were about 120[Formula: see text] where there was no appreciable defect. Meanwhile, in the cross-sectional morphology of the Fe–Al–Nb coating, there was a deposition layer, a diffusion layer and two transition regions between the different adjacent interfaces, and the coating approximate 17[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]m was found to be metallurgically adhered to the Q235 steel. The basic mechanical properties of the Fe–Al–Nb coating and Q235 steel including the hardness, elastic modulus and friction performance were measured and compared. The results showed that the formation of Fe3Al, FeAl, and Fe2Nb intermetallic compounds and Nb carbides in the coating can enhance the mechanical properties of the treated sample. The nanoindentation tests indicated that the hardness and elastic modulus of Fe–Al–Nb coating were 8.08[Formula: see text]GPa and 260.03[Formula: see text]GPa which were much higher than Q235 steel. The sliding friction tests showed that Fe–Al–Nb coating significantly improved the friction performance of Q235 steel at the speed of 300, 600 and 900[Formula: see text]rpm with load 320[Formula: see text]g for 15[Formula: see text]min.