Nanocrystalline NiCrC alloy powders with a qualified particle size distribution for thermal spraying were synthesized us-ing the cryogenic ball milling (cryomilling) method.The morphology,microstructure,size distribution,and phase transformation of the powders were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM),laser scattering for particle size analysis,X-ray diffraction (XRD),and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).After cryomilling for 20 h,the average grain size of the as-milled powders ap-proached a constant value of 30 nm by XRD measurement.The average particle size slightly increased from 17.5 to 20.3 μm during the 20-h milling.About 90vo1% of the powders satisfied the requirement for thermal spraying with the particle dimension of 10-50 grn,and most of the powders exhibited spherical morphology,which were expected to have good fluidity during thermal spraying.The Cr2O3 phase formed during the cryomilling process as revealed in the XRD spectra,which was expected to enhance the thermal stability of the as-milled powders during the followed thermal spraying or other heat treatment.