Tribological Characteristics of TiC, TiN and TiC/TiN Coatings
The tribological properties of TiC, TiN and TiC/TiN coatings on steels prepared by the cathodic-arc (CA) ion plating technique were investigated. Experiments were carried out on a tribo-test machine using a Falex journal V block system. The friction and wear characteristics of the coatings were determined by varying the applied load and sliding speed. The TiC, TiN and TiC/TiN coatings markedly increased the tribological characteristics of the surface. As far as a single layer coating was concerned, TiN goes better results than TiC. However, the TiC/TiN multilayer coating performed better than either single layer coating. The major factor in the improved performance of the multilayer coating was the role of TiC in improving the adhesion between the external TiN layer and the substrate steel.