Enhancement of microhardness and wear resistance of Ni–CeO₂ nanocomposite coatings

The improvement of the incorporated nanoparticle content in nanocomposite coatings is a key factor in composite electrodeposition. This paper describes a modified sediment co-deposition (SCD) technique which has been developed to produce Ni–CeO₂ nanocomposite coatings, with the aim of enhancing the embedded CeO₂ nanoparticle content. The maximum content of CeO₂ particles in the nanocomposite coatings created using this modified SCD technique is 7·09 wt-%, which is the highest reported. A maximum microhardness of 630 HV is obtained, which is significantly greater than that observed in nanocomposite coatings fabricated using the conventional electrodeposition technique. As the wear resistance of the nanocomposite coatings increases with increasing incorporated CeO₂ nanoparticle content, so this nanocomposite coating with an incorporated CeO₂ nanoparticle content of 7·09 wt-% exhibits maximum wear resistance.