Mechanical characterization of a novel nanocrystalline coating: first-principles calculations and nanoindentation

Abstract

A nanostructured MoSi 2 coating with the average grain size of 5 nm and a strong (111) preferred orientation, was synthesized potentially for jet engine hot-zone components against volcanic ash damage. The high hardness of the resulting coating was predicted using first-principles calculations and found to agree well with the experimental data determined by nanoindentation. We also found that the softening and subsequent breaking of the Mo - Si bonds were responsible for the failure of this nanostructured coating under tensile loading. © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.