Mechanically Deposited Wear‐Resistant Amorphous Zr ₅₅ Cu ₃₀ Al ₁₀ Ni ₅ Coatings

Zr 55 Cu 30 Al 10 Ni 5 amorphous coatings were deposited onto AISI 1010 carbon steel substrates via high‐energy ball milling of as‐spun metallic glass ribbons. Their tribological performance under dry sliding was evaluated using a reciprocating pin‐on‐plate setup and compared with both the crystalline alloy and the bare carbon steel. The crystalline Zr 55 Cu 30 Al 10 Ni 5 (430 HV 0.3 ) alloy exhibited the lowest coefficient of friction (COF ≈ 0.28), whereas the amorphous coating achieved superior hardness (550 HV 0.3 ), three times higher than the substrate (162 HV 0.3 ), with a COF of ≈0.39. The amorphous coating showed a specific wear rate (≈10 −4 mm 3 N −1 m −1 ), an order of magnitude lower than the carbon steel (≈10 −3 mm 3 N −1 m −1 ). Wear mechanisms differed: the amorphous coating underwent mainly adhesive and delamination wear with minor abrasive and oxidative contributions, while the crystalline alloy experienced mixed abrasive‐adhesive wear with mild oxidation. These results highlight the promise of mechanically deposited Zr‐based amorphous coatings as effective wear‐resistant surfaces for steel substrates.