Abstract
Many types of hard material are coated on the surface to improve their wear resistance. Addition of vanadium carbide to Co based alloys (stellite no. 21) as a hard material powder is one of the ways to improve the wear resistance characteristics of the surface layer. The plasma transfer arc (PTA) welding process was introduced as a coating technology for elevated temperature surface modification. This process has recently generated interest in the surface modification field owing to its operability, low initial cost of equipment, high deposition rate, and small dilution rate. Coated layers produced by PTA considerably improve the hardness and wear resistance of surface layers for elevated temperature applications. Vanadium carbide (VC) addition into stellite powder showed a significant improvement in wear resistance. However, alloys containing VC showed pronounced sensitivity to hot cracking under repeated heating and cooling environments. This study clarifies the cause of thermal fatigue cracking in Co based alloy deposits with VC powder additions. Cracks result from the difference in thermal expansion coefficient between the matrix and the carbides. Cracks initiate in the central part of the surface region and grow in a perpendicular direction towards the surface. The tendency for thermal fatigue crack initiation seems to increase with increasing carbide volume fraction and decrease as the volume fraction of the dendritic region decreases.
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