Increase in Wear Resistance of Traction Wheel via Chromizing: A Study Combining Experiments and Simulations

The wear failure of traction wheels in orchard transport severely restricts the stability of orchard conveyors and impedes the mechanization of orchard work. In this study, the thermal-diffusion chromizing method was employed to increase the hardness of a traction wheel for the enhancement of wear resistance. The results show that a uniform and dense chrome coating with a thickness of 16 μm was formed on the surface. The coating was revealed to have a hardness of 1752.7 HV and benefited from the formation of Cr-C compounds. A friction test and a wear simulation test under both dry-friction and lubrication conditions were conducted to assess the enhanced wear resistance based on the friction coefficient and wear loss. The friction coefficient of QT400 and that of the chrome coating were 0.37 and 0.36, respectively, under dry conditions. Additionally, the friction coefficient of QT400 decreased to 0.12, while that of the chrome coating remained at 0.35, under lubrication conditions. In the wear simulation test, the wear loss of the chromed traction wheel was about 1/28 of that of the QT400 traction wheel under dry-friction conditions. In addition, the wear loss of the chromed traction wheel was about 1/24 of that of the QT400 traction wheel under lubrication conditions. Moreover, the wear mechanism was analyzed with a microstructure study and finite element analysis (FEA). The synergetic effect between fatigue wear and abrasive wear was likely responsible for the wear failure of the traction wheel. The method proposed in this study may be a promising way to enhance the wear resistance of QT400 traction wheels through the application of a chrome coating without sacrificing the loading capacity, and this work contributes to the understanding of the wear failure mechanism of traction wheels.