Friction and Wear Characteristics of Electrodeposited Ni‐based Metallic Coatings on Cu‐substrate under High‐Temperature Conditions

The Ni self‐lubricating coatings on copper substrates are deposited by electrodeposition using an aqueous electrolyte at room temperature. These coatings have the potential to improve the service life of Cu as a structural component in high‐temperature abrasion environments. A combination of low wear rate and coefficient of friction (CoF) is required in the coatings. Herein, friction and wear characteristics of the deposited Ni coatings are done by a ball‐on‐disc tribometer operated in the temperature range of 25–500 °C. The morphology and wear mechanism of tribo/transfer films are investigated using X‐ray diffraction, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. The CoF of Ni coating is substantially lower (CoF 0.37) at 500 °C than the Cu‐substrate, which is 0.79 at 25 °C. The Ni‐coating also reveals a low wear rate due to the formation of in situ oxides of Ni and Cu on sliding surfaces at high temperatures.