Abrasive wear resistance of white cast iron can be improved by adding transition metals due to carbide formation and matrix stabilization. However, it must also be affected by carbon content which has received little attention from researchers. Therefore, this study would investigate the influence of (1.4 and 2.8 wt.%) C on three body abrasive wear characteristics of 28Cr-3Ni cast alloys. High Cr-based multi-component white cast irons (Hi–Cr MWCIs) were used as comparison materials to estimate the life-service of each material. The abrasion test was performed using a rubber wheel abrasion machine test with two different sizes of silica sands (1100HV1).As results, the microstructure consists of martensite (the main matrix) and M7C3 carbide. Additionally, M2C carbide was also precipitated on the microstructure of Hi–Cr MWCIs. Meanwhile, Ni or Co was embedded in the matrix area of materials microstructure. In the case of 28Cr-3Ni, the higher amount of C has a higher carbide volume fraction and hardness leading to be better abrasive wear resistance at high loads. However, the reverse trend occurred at low loads with different sizes of abrasive particles. By comparing to Hi–Cr MWCIs, its abrasive wear resistance is lower owing to the fewer carbide types. In the case of Hi–Cr MWCIs, the higher Cr addition significantly consumes C content during the solidification process resulting to lower hardness and wear resistance. Therefore, it can be concluded that the three abrasive wear performance of materials is strongly influenced by C content, applied load, and abrasive particle size.

Both erosive and abrasive wear are common in mechanical systems and moving components in industrial production. Once they occur in machine parts, the task of breakdown maintenance should be carried out, leading to high production costs. Previous research has shown that high-chromium cast iron (HCCI), a commonly used wear-resistant material, experiences repeated particle impacts that break up the chromium carbides (M₇C₃) on its surface, resulting in the formation of fine fracture carbides. It has been reported that erosion wear occurs progressively due to the shedding of protrusions caused by the plastic deformation of the material’s matrix. Thus, the erosion wear characteristics of a material are strongly affected by carbides, which come in various shapes and can affect resistance. This research examined the orientation of carbides on the microstructure and their effects on erosion and abrasion properties. The wear tests showed that 27 wt.% chromium content high-alloy cast irons showed the best wear resistance properties due to the coarse strips of M₇C₃ carbides that effectively suppressed wear propagation. Additionally, the M₂C carbides crystallized around the M₇C₃ carbides which support the M₇C₃ carbide to reduce plastic deformation and carbide peel-out. Consequently, the wear resistance properties of this material are significantly improved.