Manufacturing of tribological hardfacings on PM and AM articles

A method for formation of hardfacings on an article, comprising the steps of:

• producing, by powder metallurgy or additive manufacturing, an article having a discontinuous surface;
• exposing said article to impact items and to tungsten carbide particles;
• said tungsten carbide particles being provided as at least one of tungsten carbide particles comprised in said impact items and tungsten particles provided directly in a process fluid as a dispersion;
• wherein at least 80% of said tungsten carbide particles have particle sizes within the range of 0.1-5 μm;
• wherein said impact items being solid bodies with an average diameter within the range of 0.1 to 10 mm;
• creating a velocity difference between said discontinuous surfaces of said article and said impact items, which causes impacts between said impact items and said discontinuous surfaces of said article, giving at least one of:
• polishing of said discontinuous surface,
• inducing compressive stress into said discontinuous surface, and
• densifying said discontinuous surface;
• and
• embedding tungsten carbide particles into said discontinuous surfaces of said article, hammering said tungsten carbide particles into said article by use of the energy of said impacts.