Comparison of Wear Behavior of Basic Oxygen Furnace Slag and WC-CoCr Coating

Abstract

Metallurgical slags can be re-evaluated depending on their structural properties for reuse in many industrial applications. This study investigated the possibility of reusing these slags as a commercial value. The results of benchmark research comparing the friction and wear behavior of basic oxygen furnace slag (BOFS) and commercial wear-resistant coating against an Al2O3 counter body under dry conditions are presented in this work. Reciprocating wear tests were carried out on WC-CoCr, and slag coatings were deposited on 316L stainless steel substrates under different loads and sliding speeds. The wear track surfaces were compared using a scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and a 3D optical profilometer for wear-depth and wear-loss measurements. As a result of the experimental studies carried out, it was observed that BOFS coatings exhibited an appealingly superior wear performance. The study results showed that coatings with BOFS content could be used as an alternative candidate coating material equivalent to the wear-resistant coatings used in commercial and industrial areas in terms of performance.