Yashodhan Purandare

yashodhan.purandare@strath.ac.uk

CO-Supervisor: Dr Papken Hovespean, Materials Research Group, Sheffield Hallam University

PhD Title: Nanoscale studies of mechanisms of erosion-corrosion of "superlattice" PVD coatings

New generation "superlattice" PVD coatings developed by the Surface Coatings group in Sheffield Hallam University have shown promising performance compared to conventional multilayered coatings. However, there has been very little work carried out to assess the performance in combined tribological and corrosive environments. The aim of this work is to carry out a systematic study of the erosion of CrN/NbN coatings at a range of pH and electrochemical potentials using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) to characterize the eroded surface. Erosion-corrosion maps are being constructed on the basis of this work. Sheffield Hallam University provide the coated specimens for this project and carry out development work based on the experimental results. A paper on this work published in the Journal Surface and Coatinsg Technology was awarded the R F Bunshah prize in 2005.

Return