The Effect of the Addition of 316L Stainless Steel Flakes on Mechanical Behviour of Enamel Coatings

Vitreous enamel is an inorganic material for corrosion protection and aesthetics. Of great interest is the application of enamel on aluminum alloys, considering the excellent properties. From a mechanical point of view high susceptibility to tensile stress characterize enamel coatings. The influence of the addition of stainless steel flakes on mechanical behavior was investigated. The enamel layers were applied to AA5005 aluminum alloy. Two layers were applied via screen printing with a firing treatment at 570 °C. The abrasion and the mechanical behaviors were evaluated. The positive influence of the steel flakes was observed limiting the crack growth