A cost effective manufacturing process for molds which are used to produce components of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) is proposed. A wire arc spray process has been employed to reinforce a thin electroformed nickel shell by a several millimeter thick layer of thermally sprayed deposit, forming a vacuum tight mold system in a time saving and cost effective way. To achieve a low thermal expansion equivalent to CFRP, Fe 64 Ni 36 is used as spray material. Here, the main challenge is the successful control of distortion which occurs due to residual stresses. In this paper, the influence of process parameters on shell temperature and distortion distribution is discussed. Key parameters influencing the heat flow into the substrate leading to distortion like continuous cooling, atomizing gas and spray distance are addressed. Temperature measurements were performed using infrared pyrometry as well as by use of thermocouples. Distortion measurements were carried out by use of optical measurement devices recording 3D surface coordinates before and after the thermal spray process. Further, mechanical and thermophysical properties of the as-sprayed composite are part of the investigations to evaluate how the Fe 64 Ni 36 bulk material properties can be achieved. Differences between air atomized and inert gas atomized coatings are presented in detail.

In this study, boron-rich iron-nickel coatings were deposited on stainless steel by air-plasma spraying. Coating microstructure was characterized by SEM, EDS, and XRD analysis and adhesion strength, tensile properties, and residual stress were measured. The shielding effectiveness of the coating samples, including their ability to absorb thermal neutrons and attenuate γ rays, was investigated as well. The results show that the coating samples possess the microstructure and properties necessary for possible use in radiation shielding systems.

Casting molds in the aluminium industry show a short lifespan due to the high corrosiveness of aluminium melts and alternating thermal and mechanical loads. By using new materials, in example pseudoalloys containing tungsten, the lifetime of casting molds can be elongated up to hundredfold. Today, casting molds made of steel are state of the art. In spite of the advantages of pseudoalloys, high manufacturing cost and the increasing commodity price of tungsten prohibit the use of molds consisting of these progressive materials. By coating the standard steel molds with a FeNiW-layer, the excellent thermal and corrosive resistance of the pseudoalloy surface can be combined with minimal manufacturing costs. For present work steel substrates had been coated with FeNiW-pseudoalloys. Therefore, arc spraying and different deposit-welding methods (Laser, Plasma, TIG) had been compared. By modifying the machine parameter set, a smooth transition between substrate and coating was realized. Thermal and chemical resistance of the samples will be tested. In this paper first results are presented.

Invar alloy (Fe – 36%Ni) is used in industrial applications which require high dimensional stability because of its exceptionally low thermal expansion coefficient. Purpose of this work is to enhance the performance of molds for the production of carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) components. Four different kinds of commercial powders were coated on an Invar substrate: Al 2 O 3 - 12TiO 2 , Cr 2 O 3 and ZrO 2 - 8Y 2 O 3 by Air Plasma Spray (APS) and WC - CoCr by High Velocity Oxygen Fuel (HVOF). Metallographic microscopy observation and SEM analysis were carried out and microhardness and fracture toughness were evaluated by means of the micro - indentation method. Friction behaviour and wear resistance were evaluated in dry sliding conditions with Pin On Disk apparatus for not coated Invar substrate and for the different coated substrates. Chromium oxide and tungsten carbide coatings exhibited higher mechanical characteristics respect to the other coatings: chromium oxide had the higher hardness value and tungsten carbide the higher fracture toughness. Tungsten carbide coating had the lower average coefficient of friction and together the chromium oxide the lower wear mass loss and wear rate. Among APS ceramic coatings, Cr 2 O 3 exhibited the best mechanical and tribological behavior while the HVOF cermet coating exhibited the best behavior among all the coatings.

Cored wires expand the spectrum of coating materials, that can be processed from wire feedstock. In particular they allow to provide a custom-made alloy composition. For many industrial applications a low thermal expansion coefficient is desirable to adapt the expansion behavior to specific needs. Bulk material alloys within the system Fe-Ni-Co show thermal expansion coefficients below 5 10 –6 K –1 at temperatures below 600 °C. Thermal spraying is a suitable technology to manufacture coatings, that provide a gradient of the thermal expansion behavior, or free standing bodies for components with low shape changes due to thermal interference. Detailed research has to be done on the influence of the alloy composition regarding the specific metallurgical requirements on wire feedstock material for arc spraying. Fe-Ni(-Co) coatings are produced from cored wires by arc spraying. Guidelines for the choice of the optimum process parameters with respect to coating properties and economical effects are worked out. The coatings are characterized with concern to porosity, oxide content, surface roughness, deposition efficiency, power consumption and deposition rate. The coefficient of thermal expansion is determined by dilatometry.

An integrated approach was developed for investigation of thermal spray coatings with the amorphous-crystalline structure. The new approach combines methods of metallography, differential thermal and X-ray phase analysis, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microanalysis. This makes it possible to reveal structural, phase and chemical heterogeneity, determine the degree of amorphization of coatings, temperature and heat of crystallization of the amorphous phase during heating. The new integrated approach was used to study amorphous-crystalline coatings of the Ni-P, Fe-Ni-B and Fe-B systems produced by thermal spraying.

In thermal spraying, Fe-based alloys are often applied for relatively thick and inexpensive coatings. The main advantage of the Fe-based alloy coatings is their high ductility as compared to ceramic and hardmetal coatings. Other advantages such as high toughness, easy machineability and satisfactory corrosion resistance are characteristic of Fe-based alloys. The wear resistance is not outstanding, but nevertheless acceptable for a large number of applications. A further improvement of the wear resistance can be achieved by reinforcing the Fe-based alloy coatings, e.g. by addition of nitrogen to the spraying powder.