%0 Generic
%A Alonso, F.
%A Madina, V.
%A Viviente, J. L.
%A Mursell, T.
%A Oñate, J. I.
%T Zn-Cr alloy coatings produced by ion beam assisted deposition
%D 1998
%@ 0257-8972
%U https://hdl.handle.net/11556/3347
%X In the present work, Zn-Cr alloy coating have been deposited on a Ti + Nb interstitial free steel by an IBAD process. Zn was deposited by a resistance-heated evaporation source, while Cr was simultaneously evaporated with an electron beam gun. Low-energy Ar ion beam bombardment was used during the process to sputter-clean the surface prior to deposition and during deposition to obtain a dense coating. Different Zn:Cr evaporation ratios ranging from 30:30 were applied to produce several Zn-Cr alloy coatings until a final coating thickness of about 7 μm was obtained. The process was carried out at room temperature and XRD, which showed a change from the hexagonal Zn structure to a b.c.c. structure as the amount of Cr in the coating increased. Salt spray corrosion tests revealed that increasing the Cr content in the coatings improved significantly the corrosion resistance up to a maximum limit of about 20% wt., beyond which no substantial benefit could be observed. Mandrel bend tests showed a good adhesion of the coating to the substrate, and no delamination or cracks were observed. A dynamic microindentation test also showed the presence of chromium significantly improved the hardness of the Zn coating up to a factor of 5, with a similar effect on the elastic recovery of the indentation.
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