Effects of rare earth oxides on wear resistance and corrosion resistance of 316L/TiC composite coating by laser cladding

In this paper, 316L/TiC composite coatings with different kinds of REOs (Y2O3, La2O3, CeO2, PrO2, Nd2O3) at identical contents (2%) were prepared on S355 marine steel using the laser cladding technology. The surface morphology, phase composition, microhardness, coefficient of friction curve (COF), Tafel curve and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) impedance of the test specimens were studied with such instruments as scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), X-ray diffractometer, Vickers microhardness tester, friction and wear tester, and multi-channel electrochemical workstation. The results show that the coating with REO added owns increased thickness and is uniform and dense without such defects as crack, and hole. The microstructure evolution mechanism of the coating from the bottom up is as follows: Cellular crystal, planar crystal -> columnar crystal -> equiaxed crystal. The phase composition of the coating with REO added remains unchanged, and is still Ni-Cr-Fe austenite phase and TiC phase. Further comparison shows that the coating with Nd2O3 added owns improved hardness, with a mean hardness of 3 times that of the substrate, and has a COF decreasing to 0.69, with wear loss becoming small. The coating with Nd2O3 added has the largest E-corr, the smallest I-corr, large |Z| value and phase angle, the greatest R-ct, and an n(ct) value of 1, indicating that the coating has dense passivation film and small corrosion tendency, with low corrosion rate. Therefore, this study provides reference experimental and theoretical bases for application of 316L/TiC composite coating with Nd2O3 added at 2% in surface strengthening and repair of steel for marine engineering equipment.