Pacific National University (Khabarovsk, Russia)

E. Kh. Ri, Doctor of Technical Sciences, Professor, CEO of the Higher School of Industrial Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute, erikri999@mail.ru
M. A. Ermakov, Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor of the Higher School of Industrial Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute, ermakovma@yandex.ru
E. D. Kim, Candidate of Technical Sciences, Assistant Professor of the Higher School of Industrial Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute, jenya_1992g@mail.ru
K. V. Doroshenko, Post-Graduate Student of the Higher School of Industrial Engineering of the Polytechnic Institute, rbhbkk1212@yandex.ru

This paper presents a comprehensive study of the influence of alloying elements – zirconium and vanadium – in high-entropy anode alloys of the Al – Ni – Cr – Ti – V_x – Zr_{1 – x} system on the microstructure, phase composition, mechanical, and tribological properties of electro-spark deposition (ESD) coatings applied to C45 steel. Anode alloys with varying contents of zirconium (from 4.46 to 11.17 wt.%) and vanadium (from 17.84 to 5.36 wt.%) were produced by self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). The coatings were formed using an “Elitron-21” ESD unit in an argon atmosphere. Analysis was carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), microhardness measurements, and abrasive wear testing according to the “ball-on-plane” scheme. It was found that all of the alloys under investigation form highly adherent coatings on the steel substrate that are free of longitudinal cracks. The coating microstructure is characterized by columnar crystallites. The main phase in both the coatings and the anode alloys is a solid solution based on the system’s elements, alloyed with zirconium and vanadium. The results showed a direct correlation between the zirconium content and the operational properties of the coatings. The maximum values of microhardness (1088 HV) and wear resistance (5 times higher than that of untreated C45 steel) were achieved using an anode alloy with a zirconium content of 10.4 wt.% (Alloy 4). Transverse microcracks were observed in the coatings, caused by deposition stresses and the brittleness of intermetallic phases. An interesting finding was the identification of two-layer areas, free from cracks, in which the lower barrier layer of crystallites was significantly enriched with iron (up to 73 at.%) that had diffused from the substrate. This indicates the promise of further investigation into the formation mechanism of such iron-saturated layers for the targeted control of the structure and reduction of brittleness in ESD coatings. This research direction will allow for further optimization of their properties for application under conditions of intense abrasive wear.

The study was conducted at the Central Collective Use Center “Applied Materials Science” of Pacific National University (PNU) with the financial support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (state research registration number AAAA-A20-120021490002-1).

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