Abstract
The purpose of this work is a general assessment of the evolution of the porosity of a thermal barrier coating (PSZ : Partially Stabilized Zirconia with 7% wt yttria) used as an SOFC electrolyte sprayed by a High Power Plasma system Plazjet using commercial powders. The properties of these coatings are investigated using a microstructural and a physical approach. The different steps concern : - the optimisation of the spraying parameters of the Plazjet gun, in order to obtain either very dense, or porous top coat microstructure. We focused on parameters such as the gun (external, or step) or the morphology of the powder. The use of a strict methodology to analyze the results. Characteristics obtained by various measures, qualitative and quantitative, are compared and discussed.
