The effects of Ni and Al elements on microstructure and mechanical properties of low carbon CoCrMo alloy coatings

Low-carbon cobalt-based alloy coatings with high ductility and low thermal fatigue crack propagation rates were prepared using laser cladding (LC) technology. The microstructure of the coatings was characterized using SEM, EBSD, and TEM, while the mechanical properties were tested and analyzed. The CoCrMo alloy primarily consists of γ-Co and a minor amount of ε-Co. The addition of Ni increased the stacking fault energy (SFE), resulting in the retention of γ-Co in the alloy. However, the increase of Al content reduced the SFE, leading to the precipitation of Al₃Ni intermetallic compound along with a eutectic region with Al₃Ni, Cr₂₃C₆, and ε-Co. More ε-Co phase appeared after tensile deformation due to the stress-induced transformation induced plasticity (TRIP) effect. Ni addition increased the content of face-centered cubic (fcc) γ-Co, enhancing the coating's ductility by approximately 85 % compared to CoCrMo. With higher Al content, the ε-Co phase increased, and the dispersion of Al₃Ni improved the coatings' strength. The jagged structure of the eutectic region increased the resistance to thermal fatigue crack propagation, causing the crack propagated along the grain boundary. Optimal mechanical properties were achieved with the addition of 13 wt% Ni and 7 wt% Al, which achieved a 53 % increase in ductility and a 40 % reduction in the thermal fatigue crack propagation rate compared to CoCrMo.