Microstructures and properties of PVD aluminum bronze coatings

Abstract Aluminium bronze coatings were deposited by the hollow cathode discharge (HCD) ion plating technique. The thickness of coatings were over 20 μm with excellent adhesion to the substrate. The structures of the coatings deposited on QAL10-4-4 aluminum bronze were studied by cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (X-TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The results show that coating consists of different morphology zones. There are more γ2(Cu9Al4)and β(NiAl) phase in the coating than in the bulk material. The wear test and practical application showed that after deposit the wear resistance evidently improved.