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Morphological and optical properties of a multilayer film (CAZO/CZAO/ZACO) prepared by spin-coating method and deposited on a glass substrate were evaluated. The study was initially carried out for each layer, individually and then as a multilayer subsequently. Structural properties using X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), infrared spectra (IR) and X-ray photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) showed the presence of three phases of zinc, copper and silver oxides at different levels. The CZAO sample observed with scanning electron microscope (SEM) showed an excellent porous surface with a large deformation in the multilayer configuration. Doping with zinc and copper in the silver crystal lattice improved the crystal structure and reduced the optical energy gap, thus increasing the optical absorbance and refractive index. The dielectric constants and showed an increase in the optical polarization values for lower photonic energies. The maximum degradation rate for photocatalysts of methylene blue was 89 % for a 5-h exposure period with CAZO/CZAO/ZACO while it reached 71 % for the CZAO sample during the same time period. The sensitivity of samples to light proved that the presence of ultraviolet radiation increases the number of holes trapped by oxygen ions and causes more free electrons and contribute to a better production of photocurrent than in darkness.
In order to create alloys with exceptional properties for orthopedic uses, this study focuses on the impact of zirconium (Zr) content on the structural, electrochemical, and tribological qualities of nanostructured Ti–25Nb-xZr [x = 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 atomic (at.) %] alloys. The structural evolution was investigated using XRD and SEM techniques. The mechanical characteristics of the produced alloys, including Vickers hardness and Young's modulus, were measured. In addition, the corrosion tests were performed using the OCP, EIS, and PD methods in Ringer's solution within the independent pH range at 37 °C. A ball-on-disc tribometer was used to investigate the tribological behavior of the alloys under various loads and wet conditions using the Ringer solution. It has been verified that Zr content (at. %) in the alloys had an impact on their morphologies, structural evolution, and mechanical characteristics. According to the morphological analysis, the particle and crystallite size decreases with increasing Zr content. Young's modulus and Vickers hardness show the same tendency. The EIS data demonstrated that a single passive film formed on the alloy surfaces, and the addition of Zr enhanced the corrosion resistance of the passive films. The polarization curves demonstrate that the alloys had low corrosion current densities and large passive areas without the passive films disintegrating. Likewise, the inclusion of Zr resulted in a reduction in the corrosion and passive current densities values. All of these results suggested that the titanium alloys exhibit a more noble electrochemical activity caused by Zr. From the tribological perspective, it was found that the friction coefficient of the alloys reduced with increasing Zr content.
This study investigates the in vitro biocompatibility, corrosion resistance, and adhesion strength of a gas abrasive-treated Ti6Al4V alloy, alongside microplasma-sprayed titanium and tantalum coatings. Employing a novel approach in selecting microplasma spray parameters, this study successfully engineers coatings with tailored porosity, roughness, and over 20% porosity with pore sizes up to 200 μm, aiming to enhance bone in-growth and implant integration. This study introduces an innovative methodology for quantifying surface roughness using laser electron microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, facilitating detailed morphological analysis of both the substrate and coatings. Extensive evaluations, including tests for in vitro biocompatibility, corrosion resistance, and adhesive strength, revealed that all three materials are biocompatible, with tantalum coatings exhibiting superior cell proliferation and osteogenic differentiation, as well as the highest corrosion resistance. Titanium coatings followed closely, demonstrating favorable osteogenic properties and enhanced roughness, which is crucial for cell behavior and attachment. These coatings also displayed superior tensile adhesive strengths (27.6 ± 0.9 MPa for Ti and 28.0 ± 4.9 MPa for Ta), surpassing the ISO 13179-1 standard and indicating a robust bond with the substrate. Our findings offer significant advancements in biomaterials for medical implants, introducing microplasma spraying as a versatile tool for customizing implant coatings, particularly emphasizing the superior performance of tantalum coatings in terms of biocompatibility, osteogenic potential, and corrosion resistance. This suggests that tantalum coatings are a promising alternative for enhancing the performance of metal implants, especially in applications demanding high biocompatibility and corrosion resistance.
The effect of heat treatment at various temperatures (650, 850, 1050, and 1100°C) and dwell times (10 min and 1 h) on the metallurgical and microstructural evolution as well as on the related tensile properties of stainless steel 316L processed by selective laser melting (SLM) has been systematically evaluated. The metallurgical and microstructural features such as defects, stability of the columnar–cellular structure and substructure, second phase particles, and phase transformation imparted by SLM and heat treatment have been discussed. It has been shown that the processing conditions specific to SLM significantly alter the kinetics of phase evolution compared to standard welding techniques which affects the accuracy of the prediction. The influence of these characteristics on tensile properties and hardness was elucidated. It was disclosed that with increasing heat treatment temperature there was a gradual increase in elongation but a decrease in strength related to the dislocation density and the development of the microstructure.
Chromium carbonitride coatings were deposited by cathodic arc physical vapor deposition technology at a temperature of 300 °C, as were used the reactive gasses CH4 and N2. The structural analysis of the CrN coating showed a polycrystalline structure with mixed CrN and Cr2N phases. All studied coatings, including the CrC exhibits fcc structure. The phases were confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements where a surface oxidation was also detected. The increase of the CH4 gas flow during the deposition process leads to a parabolic trend with the highest hardness of 33.5 GPa for the coating deposited at CH4 / N2 = 0.53. At the same time the lowest coefficient of friction for both counterparts Al2O3 and ZrO2 (0.28 and 0.26, respectively) were measured at CH4 / N2 = 1.86. The tribological tests reveal that the wear of the coatings increases with an increasing CH4 flow rate, whereas the coefficient of friction decreases. This observed contradiction is explained by a phenomenon described as the effect of Rebinder.
In this study, heat-treated and multisurface engineered DIN 1.2367 tool steel was subjected to room and elevated temperature wear tests, and the effect of nitriding on its tribological behavior was investigated. CrN, AlTiN, and CrN/AlTiN coatings with a total thickness of 2 µm were obtained by arc cathodic physical vapor deposition on conventional heat-treated and gas-nitrided steels. The white layer formed during nitriding was removed, and a diffusion layer (100 µm) was achieved in the cross section of the steel having a tempered martensitic matrix. The highest surface hardness was attained with an integral coating (CrN/AlTiN), and surface hardness increased even more after nitriding due to the formation of a multicomponent ceramic layer on top of the diffusion layer. The room temperature wear tests performed against an alumina counterpart revealed that (i) CrN/AlTiN-coated steel had the highest friction coefficient of 0.26, which further increased to 0.33 by nitriding due to the increase in shear strength, and that (ii) with increasing surface hardness, the specific wear rates (W) of the heat-treated and coated steels could be ranked as follows: WCrN/AlTiN < WAlTiN < WCrN. The wear rates decreased when nitriding was carried out prior to coating. In order to simulate the aluminum extrusion conditions, hot wear behavior of the surfaces against AA6080 alloy at 450 °C was investigated. The hot wear tests revealed that (i) high friction coefficients were reached due to the adhesive characteristic of aluminum to the surfaces, (ii) the nitrided and CrN/AlTiN-coated sample exhibited the lowest wear rate among all studied surfaces, and (iii) the film damage on the worn surfaces mostly occurred in the form of droplet delamination.
A necklace structure composed of fine grains formed by dynamic recrystallization was uncommonly observed at the pre-existing grain boundaries during the hot compression of a BCC Fe-25Al-1.5Ta alloy containing C14 - (Fe, Al)2Ta Laves phase precipitates. Two possible mechanisms for necklace formation were proposed; particle-stimulated nucleation and grain boundary bulging, depending on whether the original grain boundaries are occupied by C14 particles, or they are free of them. Recrystallization was initiated preferentially around the clusters of large particles at the boundaries containing particles. In contrast, the bulging of the original grain boundaries by strain-induced boundary migration was observed as a preliminary stage for necklace formation at the particle-free boundaries. The necklace structure expanded into the deformed volume in such a way that low-angle subgrain boundaries decorating the necklace layers transformed into grains with increasing deformation strain.
The influence of milling time on the tribological behavior of a Co–Cr–Mo alloy designed for biomedical applications, synthesized via mechanical alloying is investigated. Elemental Co, Cr and Mo powders are milled using different milling times (2, 6, 12 and 18 h) in a high-energy ball mill. The resulting powders were subjected to cold uniaxial and hot isostatic pressing respectively, followed by sintering to obtain cylindrical samples, which were evaluated for their structural, mechanical and the wear behavior. Results showed that the grain and crystallite sizes of the powders decreased with increasing milling time, reaching low values of <10 μm and 32 μm respectively, at higher milling times. Furthermore, the wear rates and the coefficients of friction were lower, at higher milling times due to high densities (96%), and higher elasto-plastic resistance, as presented by the H/E and H3/E2 values of 0.026 and 0.0021 GPa, respectively. Increased milling time enables the refinement of grains and reduction in porosity in the Co–Cr–Mo alloy, which in turn increases the alloy's elasto-plastic resistance and enhances its wear resistance.
In the present work, a combined process of laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) and hot working in terms of microstructure refinement was investigated for Fe-25Al-1.5Ta alloy samples. Uniaxial compression tests were carried out parallel and perpendicular to the building direction (BD) at 1000 °C, where BCC A2-phase was stable, at a strain rate of 0.0013 s−1. The true stress–true strain curves indicated a broad flow stress peak followed by a slight decrease, which is typical for dynamic recrystallization (DRX) of conventional BCC metals such as ferritic iron. A negligible dependence in the flow stress behavior on the compression direction was observed. DRX initiated at a stress of 18.7 MPa for the sample compressed parallel to the BD, corresponding to a true strain of 0.011, and at 18.1 MPa for the samples compressed normal to the BD, which corresponded to a true strain of 0.010. The microstructural investigations by electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) showed that the relatively coarse and elongated grains of the as-LPBF builds were significantly refined after hot working. The microstructure of the compressed samples mainly consisted deformed grains. These were fragmented by sub-grains bounded by low-angle boundaries independent of the compression axis, indicating the occurrence of dynamic recovery (DRV) during hot working. In addition, a few equiaxed, small grains were observed in the pre-existing grain boundaries, which formed due to DRX. Most pores in the as-LPBF builds were closed after hot compression, particularly in the central region of the deformed specimens where the compressive stress state is dominant. In summary, hot compression reveals a practical thermomechanical post-processing treatment for Fe-Al-Ta iron aluminides built by LPBF. The hot working refines the epitaxially elongated microstructure of the as-LPBF builds by DRV/DRX and reduces the porosity.