Study of effective utilization of the Al2O3 nanoparticle for the enhancement of steel surface properties after cooling operation

Abstract

The utilization of the additives in a coolant is a challenge for the current generation researchers. Therefore, in the current investigation, an effort has been made to develop a coating after the deposition of the Al2O3 nanoparticle. Before the deposition, the nanofluid has been characterized using XRD, TEM, and cryo-TEM techniques. After the formation of the coating, in addition to the physical characterization, the water interaction characteristic of the coating has also been investigated. The surface analysis of the heat-treated steel by nanofluid ascertains the existence of superhydrophobicity by depicting a contact angle of 168.8° ± 1.6 and sliding angle 8° ± 1 due to the deposition of nanoparticles on the steel surface. The surface roughness of the coating, which was determined by AFM technique, has been expected to be the main reason for the attainment of superhydrophobicity. The adhesion strength of the coating was investigated by a peeling test and the results revealed that the coating retained its superhydrophobicity up to 15 cycles. Although the nanocoating retained its superhydrophobicity up to 10 cycles, the coating can survive up to 60 cycles of abrasion resistance. Furthermore, the coating also retained its superhydrophobicity up to 10 days of immersion in a salty environment.