TIG assisted surface modification of Ti-6Al-4V with B 4 C,SiC particles

Abstract

This research article assesses the improved hardness and wear behaviour of Ti–6Al–4V (Titanium-6Aluminium-4Vanadium) ex-situ produced composite case on its surface by TIG Arcing. This method is recognized for its potential to modify the surface of various metallic substrates by carefully controlling the melting and solidification of the substrate using a significantly less expensive high density electric arc heat source of the widely used autogenous (without filler) gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) process.The molten base and the hard particles in the applied coating through reinforcement led to the development of hard surface characteristics in the Ti-6Al-4V surface matrix. The hard particles that have been reinforced by using TIG arcing to develop a hard wear-resistant surface coating are boron carbide (B₄C) and silicon carbide (SiC). The presence of hard particles on the surface of Ti64 has been verified by XRD Pattern and EDS examination. The effect of different reinforced particles on the wear behaviour as well as the hardness of the modified surface has been studied by comparing the Ti64 modified surface without reinforcement and the as-built Ti64 surface samples. Vickers micro hardness testing measures the hardness of the modified particulate surface composite and demonstrates a significant increase in hardness, ranging from 1.5 to 2 times that of the base metal and wear tests confirm that the surface-coated samples of B₄C and SiC on the base metal, showed a reduction in wear rate of approximately 55% and 45% respectively, compared to the base metal.