Slurry Erosion Performance of Ni + B4C Microwave Composite Clads

A composite clad of Ni-based alloy and B4C was developed on austenitic steel substrate through microwave hybrid heating. The B4C was added with Ni-based alloy powder in various weight proportions (0%, 5%, 10%, and 20%). The clads were investigated for the microstructural details, nanohardness and slurry erosion performance. Silt collected from river Uhl was used as the erodent for the slurry erosion test. Slurry erosion performance of the clads was evaluated at an impact angle of 90 deg and jet velocity of 40 m/s. Microstructural characterization confirms the uniform distribution of hard (boride and carbide) phases in the Ni-based matrix of the microwave composite clads. The presence of hard phases in the Ni-based matrix enhanced the slurry erosion resistance performance.