Friction and Wear Characteristics of Electrodeposited Ni‐based Metallic Coatings on Cu‐substrate under High‐Temperature Conditions

The Ni self‐lubricating coatings on copper substrates were deposited by electrodeposition using an aqueous electrolyte at room temperature. These coatings have the potential to improve the service life of Cu as a structural component in high‐temperature abrasion environments. A combination of low wear rate and coefficient of friction (CoF) was required in the coatings. In this study, friction and wear characteristics of the deposited Ni coatings were done by a ball‐on‐disc tribometer operated in the temperature range of 25 – 500 °C. The morphology and wear mechanism of tribo/transfer films were investigated using X‐ray diffraction, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The CoF of Ni coating was substantially lower (CoF 0.37) at 500 °C than the Cu‐substrate, which was 0.79 at 25 °C. The Ni‐coating also revealed a low wear rate due to the formation of in situ oxides of Ni and Cu on sliding surfaces at high temperatures. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.