Microstructure, wear and oxidation resistance of CrWN glass molding coatings synthesized by plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering.

CrWN glass molding coatings with different W contents were synthesized by plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering (PEMS). The microstructure, mechanical, wear resistance, and anti-oxidation properties of as-deposited coatings were investigated using various techniques and tests. The results showed that the as-deposited coatings exhibited typical columnar growth structure, consisting of layered CrN and W 2 N, and showed increased lattice expansion and hardness enhancement with increasing W content. Whereas the coating with high H/E value showed better toughness to resist fatigue deformation and fracture, which eventually resulted in excellent wear performance and low wear rate of 0.89 × 10−6 mm3/Nm. Annealing revealed that the as-deposited coating with low W content showed a slight increase in thickness and Ra value because of high volume fraction of Cr 2 O 3 phase, which effectively delayed the oxidation reaction and suppressed the expansion of WO 3 phases. With the increase in W content, the rising volume fraction of WO 3 phases weakened the stabilized effects of Cr 2 O 3 phases and eventually led to a constant increase in thickness and Ra value of the annealed coating. The mold tests confirmed that the CrWN coating showed a stable structure and excellent chemical inertness and anti-sticking performance, making it a potential coating for glass molding processes. • Microstructure, wear and oxidation resistance of CrWN coatings are investigated. • The coating shows a multilayer columnar structure of CrN and W 2 N phases. • The coating with high H/E value shows better toughness and anti-wear performance. • The coating undergoes aggravated oxidation damage with the increase of W content. • The oxidation damage induces severe volume expansion and surface coarsening. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]