AN EVALUATION OF METALLIC COATINGS FOR EROSIVE WEAR-RESISTANCE IN DIE-CASTING APPLICATIONS

An accelerated testing procedure with a multi-pin die has been establi shed for the study of the erosive wear of die materials and surface tr eatments in die casting applications, under production conditions. Thi s test procedure utilizes the wear of core pins as a surrogate measure of die erosive wear, and is used to evaluate the efficacy of coatings and die surface treatments in reducing erosive wear in dies under act ual production conditions. Metallic coatings of W, Mo, and Pt deposite d on the test pins using the plasma source ion implantation technique (PSII) technology in the ion assisted deposition mode, were then evalu ated for erosion resistance using this developed test procedure. The r esults of this evaluation on the effectiveness of these metallic coati ngs are presented here along with possible reasons for such coating be havior.