Effect of Surface Roughening of Substrate Steel on the Improvement of Delamination Strength and Tribological Behavior of Hydrogenated Amorphous Carbon Coating Under Lubricated Conditions

The adhesion strength of diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings is an obstacle in efforts to improve the reliability of coated products. It is generally believed that the roughening of the substrate surface improves the adhesion between a substrate and coating. The effect of surface roughening of the substrate on the delamination strength of DLC coating and the tribological behavior under lubrication were studied. Five types of roughened substrates were prepared by a wet blast device with differing materials, shapes, and sizes of the shot particles. A hydrogenated DLC film was deposited using plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition on the roughened substrates. The tribological properties were investigated under air and lubrication with pure water or n-decane. It was found that the delamination strength of the DLC coating could be improved by roughening the substrate surface, especially by spherical particles. It was also found that slight polishing of either the DLC surface deposited on the rough substrate or the roughened substrate before deposition significantly reduced the wear of the counter surface. The remaining chemical element of alumina particles on the roughened surface affected the delamination strength of the DLC coating.