A laboratory apparatus for testing variously shaped specimens and full-scale parts for gas-abrasive wear under a variety of external factors (temperature, superheated steam, saline medium) is described. The wear resistance of compressor blades of ÉI-961 steel, uncoated and coated with a Ti+TiN protective layer, is shown to depend on temperature and the involvement of a corrosive factor. © 1998 Plenum Publishing Corporation.