The project TRIBOMETGLASS aimed to demonstrate the potential of thin film metallic glasses as novel tribological coating materials, used to improve the performance of tools, dies, and moulds in many different applications. These coatings are characterized by a high hardness, as well as high wear- and oxidation resistance. Thin film metallic glasses are promising materials to fulfil these demands. Due to their amorphous structure they have excellent mechanical properties such as high specific strengths and large elastic limits above 2%. The absence of defects like grain boundaries also makes them resistant against corrosion and wear.
In comparison to conventional protective coatings based on transition metal nitrides, thin film metallic glasses have the added benefit of a relatively low elastic modulus, making them tougher and able to accommodate a certain degree of substrate deformation without delaminating. Within the project, amorphous WZrB coatings were successfully deposited by a combinatorial dc magnetron sputter process from three elemental targets onto commercially relevant substrate materials and the mechanical, tribological and structural properties have been characterized. The results show promising tribological properties up to high temperatures.
Key features and benefits of our technology
- The ternary TFMG developed in TriboMetGlass is based on the refractory metal W. Within the project we validated several unique advantages our coating has over alternatives:
- With a refractory metal as the primary component, the resulting TFMG is more likely to withstand the high temperatures encountered in tribological applications (further detail in the ‘proof of concept’ section.
- W is already a major component in the tooling industry, therefore optimization and implementation would not require a significant, costly switch.
- Zr is a relatively cheap material that can be integrated in an industrial magnetron sputtering process without the need to adapt the magnetron configuration.
- Further improvements of the TFMG are possible by tuning the Boron content as an additional element.
Potential application markets comprise cutting tools, automotive, medical and the semiconductin industry. Tribological phenomena cause enormous costs in industrial processes as well as in consumer products and materials with enhanced tribological properties can help to reduce these costs.
