The Influence of Powder Composition and Hydrogen Consumption on the Structural, Corrosion and Tribological Characteristics of Fe-Cr-Al Coatings Obtained by Air Plasma Spraying
Kengesbekov A. Buitkenov D. Erdogan G. Nabioldina A. Komekov S.
December 2025Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)
Materials
2025#18Issue 23
Fe-Cr-Al coatings were obtained by air plasma spraying (APS) from 85Fe-12Cr-3Al and 68Fe-26Cr-6Al powders at two hydrogen flow rates (8 and 13 L/min), which resulted in four deposition regimes (A1, A2, B1, B2). Stainless steel 20Kh13 (equivalent to AISI 420) was used as the substrate material. The microstructure of the coatings has a typical lamellar layering with molten and semi-molten particles. When the hydrogen flow rate is increased to 13 L/min, a denser and more homogeneous structure with reduced porosity is observed. X-ray phase analysis revealed the presence of metal and oxide phases (Fe,Cr), Fe3O4, FeO, Fe2+Cr2O4, which indicates partial oxidation of particles during the spraying process and stabilization of the structure. Electrochemical tests in 3.5% NaCl solution showed that the 85Fe-12Cr-3Al coatings are characterized by a corrosion potential of Eo ≈ −0.60…−0.67 V, a corrosion current density of io = (2.6–4.7) × 10−5 A/cm2, and a corrosion rate of 0.30–0.55 mm/year, whereas the 68Fe-26Cr-6Al coatings exhibit lower values of io = (1.4–2.9) × 10−5 A/cm2 and a corrosion rate of 0.17–0.34 mm/year, indicating the formation of a denser protective oxide film (Cr2O3 + Al2O3) and enhanced surface passivation. Tribological tests showed that 85Fe-12Cr-3Al coatings demonstrate more stable friction compared to 68Fe-26Cr-6Al, while for regime B2, after 180 m, an increase in the friction coefficient is observed, caused by brittleness and the local destruction of the oxide film. A comprehensive analysis of the results showed that increasing the hydrogen consumption to 13 L/min improves the density and corrosion–tribological characteristics of the coatings.
air plasma spraying (APS) , corrosion resistance , Fe-Cr-Al coatings , friction coefficient , hydrogen flow rate , microstructure , X-ray phase analysis
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Institute of Composite Materials, Ust-Kamenogorsk, 070000, Kazakhstan
Research Center Surface Engineering and Tribology, Sarsen Amanzholov East Kazakhstan University, Ust-Kamenogorsk, 070000, Kazakhstan
Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Department, Sakarya University, Sakarya, 54050, Turkey
Institute of Composite Materials
Research Center Surface Engineering and Tribology
Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Department
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