Influence of Al/Ti atomic ratio on hard Al–TiCN films

The present work aimed to improve the wear resistance of titanium carbonitride (TiCN) films by the solid solution of aluminium atoms forming aluminium–TiCN films with varying Al/Ti atomic ratios, which was deposited by arc ion plating technique with a gas mixture of Ar, N 2 and C 2 H 2 . The wear rate of the films was investigated by a Pin-On-Disc wear tester at room temperature (RT) and 600°C. The results indicated that the aluminium addition induced the increase in wear rate at RT. However, the Al introduced films showed good antifriction effect at 600°C, possessing lower wear rate than TiCN films, and their antiwear property was continuously improved with further increasing the Al/Ti atomic ratio. The mechanism of wear was discussed considering the temperature and oxygenic factors.