Enhancing Wear Resistance of Ni@WC‐Reinforced Laser Cladding Coatings on 304 Stainless Steel Through the Substrate–Coating Synergistic Effect

304 austenitic stainless steel exhibits inadequate hardness and wear resistance, which restricts its application in extreme tribological environments. In this work, Ni@WC‐reinforced composite coatings with Ni@WC contents of 25, 50, and 75 wt% were fabricated on 304 stainless steel substrates via laser cladding. The influence of Ni@WC content on the microstructure, microhardness, and tribological performance was systematically investigated. Results indicate that Ni@WC additions significantly refine the grain structure. With increasing Ni@WC content, the microstructure transitions from coarse equiaxed austenitic microstructure to uniformly refined dendrites, eventually forming a brittle interconnected network. The microhardness of the composite coatings exhibits a monotonic upward trend with increasing Ni@WC content. The 50 wt% Ni@WC coating achieves optimal wear resistance, reducing the wear rate to 0.32 × 10 −4 mm 3 /(N m) and decreasing mass loss by 69.6% relative to the substrate. Correspondingly, the dominant wear mechanism shifts from severe adhesive wear of the substrate to a mild abrasive and oxidative wear regime. The superior performance is synergistically attributed to grain refinement, dispersion strengthening, and the Orowan looping mechanism. This study establishes a theoretical foundation for the design of high‐performance wear‐resistant coatings on 304 stainless steel surfaces.