Multilayer Coatings for Tribology: A Mini Review

• Published in: Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 12; no. 9; p. 1388
• Main Authors: Liu, Yanfei, Yu, Shengtao, Shi, Qiuyu, Ge, Xiangyu, Wang, Wenzhong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 19-04-2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Bending stresses; Chemical properties; Chemical vapor deposition; Coatings; Corrosion; Design; Diamond films; Diamond-like carbon; Diamond-like carbon films; Economic impact; Energy dissipation; Energy loss; Friction; Influence; Investigations; Lubricants & lubrication; Metal nitrides; Monolayers; multilayer coating; Multilayers; Protective coatings; Review; Transition metals; transition-metal nitride; Tribology; wear; Yield stress; wear; diamond-like carbon; transition-metal nitride; tribology; friction; multilayer coating
• ISSN: 2079-4991; 2079-4991
• DOI: 10.3390/nano12091388

Friction and wear usually lead to huge energy loss and failure of machine pairs, which usually causes great economic losses. Researchers have made great efforts to reduce energy dissipation and enhance durability through advanced lubrication technologies. Single-layer coatings have been applied in many sectors of engineering, but the performance of single-layer coatings still has many limitations. One solution to overcome these limitations is to use a multilayer coating that combines different components with varied physical and chemical properties. In addition, multilayer coating with alternating layers only containing two components can lead to improved performance compared to a coating with only two different layers. This paper systematically reviews the design concept and properties of different types of multilayer coatings, including transition-metal nitride coatings, diamond-like carbon-based coatings, and other multilayer coatings. The inherent functional mechanisms of the multilayer structures are also detailed and discussed.