Surface property study of additively manufactured Inconel 625 at room temperature and 510 °C

Various mechanical systems are subjected to inherent oscillatory motions often paired with extreme, high-temperature environments resulting in fretting wear. In this work, the fretting wear resistance of additively manufactured Inconel 625 was studied at room and elevated temperatures. In-situ temperature-controlled nanoindentation was employed to further elucidate mechanical property evolution as a function of temperature. The results showed a 30% decrease in near-surface mean hardness at 510 °C compared to room temperature. However, the material exhibited significantly lower wear and coefficient of friction values at high temperatures, attributed to the formation of a compacted, intermediate oxide layer preventing excessive friction and wear.