Effect of He and N-2 gas on the mechanical and tribological assessment of SS316L coating deposited by cold spraying process

In this study, simulation and experimental methods were used to investigate the influence of cold spray conditions on AISI 316L stainless steel coatings. The effect of both helium and nitrogen gases used was investigated. The temperature, particle sizes of spraying powder, and distance from the nozzle throat to the impinging point were estimated by using the Kinetics Spray Solutions GmbH software. The 316L stainless steel (SS) coatings were examined by X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Microanalysis. The tribological behavior was evaluated under different loads (2 N and 5 N) in dry conditions. It was found that the nitrogen and helium propellant gas with high speed and fine particles led to produce good coatings with dense microstructures. From the nanoindentation experiments, the Young's modulus and hardness of the SS 316L samples were enhanced of about 8% with helium due to the high particle velocity. It was shown that the wear resistance of SS 316L produced with helium was higher than that of the standard SS 316L coatings. The coatings produced with helium revealed lower friction coefficient (0.65) and wear rate (6.9 x 10(-4) mm(3)/Nm) under 2 N applied load than that obtained nitrogen. It was also found that the SS 316L cold sprayed by helium with dense structure presents high hardness and good tribological performance that can be suggested for several applications. [GRAPHICS] .