Cold Sprayed Tungsten Armor for Tokamak First Wall

This study investigates the potential of cold-sprayed tungsten coatings for use in nuclear fusion reactors. Three commercially available tungsten powders were selected from which six series of feedstock were prepared. The feedstocks were deposited on aluminum, steel, and stainless steel substrates using high-pressure nitrogen cold spraying. The coatings produced were characterized based on SEM, EDX, and XRD analysis and were found to be free of oxides with levels of tungsten that were previously unachieved. The results indicate that cold spraying is a viable technology for applying tungsten-base coatings to critical components in nuclear fusion equipment.