Carbon Diffusion Behavior And Mechanical Properties Of Carbon-Doped Tizrn Coatings By Laser Carburization

This study was investigated in carbon diffusion behavior of laser-carburized TiZrN coating layer and the changes of mechanical properties. The carbon paste was deposited on TiZrN coatings, and the laser was irradiated to carburize into the coatings. The XRD peak corresponding to the (111) plane shifted to a lower angle after the carburization, showing the lattice expansion by doped carbon. The decreased grain size implied the compression by the grain boundary diffusion of carbon. The XPS spectra for the bonding states of carbon was analyzed that carbon was substitute to nitrogen atoms in TiZrN, as carbide, through the thermal energy of laser. In addition, the combination of sp(2) and sp(3) hybridized bonds represented the formation of an amorphous carbon. The cross-sectional TEM image and the inverse FFT of the TiZrN coating after carburizing were observed as the wavy shape, confirming the amorphous phase located in grain boundaries. After the carburization, the hardness increased from 34.57 GPa to 38.24 GPa, and the friction coefficient decreased by 83 %. In particular, the ratio of hardness and elastic modulus (H/E) which is used as an index of the elastic recovery, increased from 0.11 to 0.15 and the wear rate improved by 65 %.