Preparing a high-particle-content Ni/diamond composite coating with strong abrasive ability

Electrophoretic deposition and electrodeposition techniques are effective methods to increase particle content in composite coatings. In this paper, typical non-conductive diamond and conductive molybdenum disulfide were chosen to fabricate composite coatings using such methods. The results indicate that while Ni/MoS2 composite coatings cannot be achieved using this method, high-particle-content Ni/diamond coatings can. The surface morphology, particle content and hardness of the Ni/diamond coatings were examined. An anti-wear experiment was performed on the coating under dry sliding conditions in a ball-on-disk tester. The wear resistance of the coatings was evaluated based on the wear rate, and their abrasive ability was assessed by measuring the material removal rate of the corresponding balls. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.