A Review of TiCN Coating Prepared by Reaction Plasma Spraying

As a new ternary material, the TiCN ceramic has attracted a lot of attention because of its advantages of high hardness, toughness, and wear resistance. Therefore, it has become one of the important materials to replace cemented carbides, such as WC-Co. Compared to bulk TiCN ceramic materials, TiCN ceramic coatings are easier to prepare and have excellent properties. Among the surface technologies used for the preparation of TiCN coatings, reactive plasma spraying can use the in situ reaction of inexpensive raw materials to synthesize TiCN coatings with high efficiency. However, the powder properties, spraying process parameters, and second phase additives significantly affect the performance of the plasma-sprayed ceramic coatings. In this work, the preparation of reactive plasma-sprayed TiCN coatings by different reaction systems, and the effect of parameter optimization and types of additives on the microstructure and properties of the coatings, were critically examined. Based on these studies, the trends and suggestions for future development of reactive plasma sprayed TiCN coatings are presented.