The ingestion of siliceous particulate debris into the gas turbine engines during operation caused the deposition of so-called CMAS (calcium-magnesium-alumino-silicate) on the hotter thermal barrier coating (TBC) surfaces. The penetration of these particles into the TBC at temperatures above 1200°C caused the loss of strain tolerance and premature failure of the TBCs. To mimic real-world conditions, a commercially available CMAS precursor dust powder was sprayed onto 8YSZ coatings using an atmospheric plasma spraying process. The substrate temperature was maintained at an average of 1100°C and 525°C during spraying. The effect of the spraying parameters on the deposition, microstructure, and composition of the CMAS coatings was investigated. In addition, to understand the CMAS build-up on the high-temperature surfaces, the CMAS splat formation behavior was also analyzed on the polished samples at temperatures ~1100°C. SEM/EDS analyzes were performed to identify and quantify the elements of the CMAS deposits. It was found that the surface temperature, deposition time, and different nozzles could play a significant role in having different phases of CMAS deposits.

The need for effective electrical insulation coupled with good thermal conductivity in power electronics has led to an exploration of suitable solutions for components like Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistors (IGBTs). Considering its material properties, AlN emerges as a promising candidate for this application due to its high thermal conductivity, good electrical insulation and ample dielectric strength. However, aluminium nitride (AlN) has a low deposition efficiency when applied by atmospheric plasma spraying (APS). In contrast to AlN, alumina has a very good deposition efficiency during thermal spraying. Feedstock development was conducted to enhance the coating deposition for AlN. Therefore, a parameter study was carried out with AlN feedstock material to form a protective alumina shell around the AlN particles. Subsequently, the heat-treated powder was applied on an aluminium substrate by APS. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis displayed that, the heat-treated feedstock material contained AlN and α-Al 2 O 3 phases. It was observed from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis that the AlN particles formed an oxide shell which led to an enhanced deposition efficiency with a high amount of AlN in the coating. The coatings were also investigated by XRD and SEM to prove the presence of AlN and alumina. For the first time, oxide shelled AlN was successfully applied by thermal spraying with sufficient coating deposition and enhanced AlN-content in the coating.

One of the promising thermal barrier coatings (TBC) options for use above 1250 °C has been La 2 Ce 2 O 7 (LC). This work explored the role of dual layered ceramic coatings in the top layer of the TBC system that has been prepared using atmospheric plasma spraying (APS). Above the NiCrAlY bond coat, 8 mol.% yttria stabilized zirconia (8YSZ) coating has been deposited with optimized APS parameters. Over the top layer (8YSZ), another layer that comprises composite with LC and 8 wt.% of 8YSZ (spray dried) has been deposited. Investigations into the hot-corrosion behavior of 8YSZ-LC based TBC subjected to Na 2 SO 4 +V 2 O 5 salt at 950 °C for 4 hours. A porous layer made mostly of LaVO 4 , CeO 2 , CeO 1.66 and YVO 4 was developed on the LC+8wt.% YSZ layer after being subjected to a hot corrosion test in Na 2 SO 4 +V 2 O 5 salt. Dissociation of LC and 8YSZ leads to the formation of new phases, such as CeO 1.66 , CeO 2 , LaVO 4 and YVO 4 as the corrosion by-products in the extreme environment. The findings indicated that delamination has occurred due to the phase transformation, cavities and cracks in the 8YSZ-LC based TBCs. The molten salt's hot corrosion mechanisms of the 8YSZ-LC based TBC are discussed in detail. Further, the potential use of 8YSZ-LC based dual coatings and scope for the future work have been derived from the current study.

Gas-fuel HVOF for thermal spraying of WC-CoCr powder is widely known and well described in literature. Focus are the various influencing factors like fuel-to-oxygen ratio, standoff-distance and powder feed rate on the coating characteristics like hardness and porosity. However, the total gas flow is usually not being described in this context despite its wide influence on particle characteristics and therefore on coating properties. In this study, the characteristic influence of the total gas flow on roughness, hardness and porosity is described as well as its effect on the particle characteristics. The study performed was based on technical standard values for thermally spraying WC-Co-Cr via gas-fuel HVOF (DJ2700 hybrid) and additional trials for increased and decreased total gas flow. It was possible to determine that with higher gas flow the deposition rate increases while the roughness and porosity decrease. However, these results cannot be viewed in isolation as other factors, such as the fuel-to-oxygen ratio, are affecting the particle and coating characteristics at the same time. Therefore, the total gas flow is also considered in combination with other factors.

Due to their promising photocatalytic properties under visible light irradiation, thermally sprayed ZnO-TiO 2 coatings are of interest as substitute for TiO 2 for various industrial applications, like hydrogen production via water splitting or the reduction of organic pollutants in water. Suspension spraying is an effective method to produce coatings in the binary ZnO-TiO 2 system to form Zn 2 TiO 4 in-situ during the spraying process. Aqueous suspensions containing fine dispersed ZnO and TiO 2 particles are mixed at tailored composition and sprayed using the SHVOF and SPS spraying processes. Coatings with homogeneous distribution of elements and different surface structures and phase compositions are obtained. The phase composition is analyzed via XRD. UV-Vis spectroscopy measurements and photocatalytic tests of Rhodamin B degradation are performed. The potential to use appropriate binary suspension feedstock to produce ZnO-TiO 2 -Zn 2 TiO 4 coatings with different microstructures and photocatalytic properties is presented.

Nowadays, Cr 3 C 2 -based cermet coatings by HVOF process are widely recognized for their corrosion and erosion resistance, particularly at high temperatures. These coatings also offer the advantage of being lightweight and exhibiting superior wear, corrosion and cavitation resistance in room-temperature applications. Their lightweight nature and high temperature capability make them an attractive alternative to WC-based alloy coatings and hard Cr plating coatings. The objective of this study is to develop optimal Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr coatings by comparing different feedstock materials, including feedstock with nanocrystalline and/or submicron sized Cr 3 C 2 phases. The focus of the investigation is on understanding the impact of feedstock features such as particle size, morphology, and carbide sizes, as well as sliding abrasive wear conditions (specifically SiC grit size and working load), on the coating properties and sliding wear performance. The results of the study indicate that the sliding wear resistance of the Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr coatings is highly influenced by the features of the Cr 3 C 2 carbides. The presence of nano, submicron and few microns sized carbides in the coatings improves their density and hardness, leading to a significant reduction in wear rates under test conditions. Furthermore, the size of the abrasive SiC grit on the counter surface plays a significant role in determining the sliding wear behavior of these coatings. Based on the analysis of the test data, the mechanisms behind the performance of the Cr3C2-NiCr coatings have been investigated and used to interpret their sliding wear behaviors. A high microhardness in the coating is considered a reliable indicator of high quality, full density, and satisfactory wear resistance. This study has identified and recommended optimized materials for improved coating properties based on the key findings. These findings contribute to the understanding of the relationship between feedstock features, sliding abrasive wear conditions, and the wear rates of HVOF-sprayed Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr coatings.

Hybrid plasma spraying can be utilized to deposit novel coating microstructures by combining the simultaneous injection of a dry coarse powder and a liquid feedstock into the plasma jet. Using this approach, the coating microstructure contains both coarse powder-made splats and a dispersion of fine liquid-made splats. Furthermore, the so-called external feeding hybrid method allows the incorporation of fine particles of materials susceptible to decomposition at high temperatures thanks to the by-passing of the hot plasma jet and deposition of the temperature-sensitive material directly onto the coated surface from a suspension. In this study, microstructures of ceramic coatings with embedded self-fluxing sulfides were studied and the wear resistance of the system was evaluated using the dry sliding pin-on-disc method.

For the last few years, the HVAF process has been established as a commercially used process and has gained an increasing share in the market of thermal spraying. The main thermal spray materials being used for HVAF spraying have been those based on the tungsten carbide family. Economical aspects and European regulations on chemicals management REACH (Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals) have motivated the demand for thinner WC based coatings, which are still dense and wear resistant. This demand has progressively increased, and the trend shows a further growth in the need for thermal spray feedstock for HVAF sprayed net shape coatings. The challenge for powder producers lies in providing suitable spray powders, with high and consistent quality as well as in considerable volume, to be able to make reliable recommendations to the users of HVAF technology. A deeper understanding of powder requirements for net shape coatings, matching the needs with new powder solutions, and appreciation of the differences in behavior or performance depending on powder type are essential to address the above challenges and constitutes the theme of this paper.

Hybrid plasma spraying has been proved to provide novel coating microstructures as a result of the simultaneous injection of a dry coarse powder and a liquid feedstock into the plasma jet. Such microstructure contains both large splats originating from the conventional dry powder and finely dispersed miniature splats deposited from the liquid. This approach enables preparation of coatings from virtually all materials which are conventionally processed using plasma spraying. However, incorporation of materials susceptible to decomposition at high temperatures is still challenging even using this concept due to the high thermal energy provided to all feedstocks to be deposited. Hereby, we propose an innovative approach of incorporation of thermally-sensitive materials into a coating sprayed using a high-enthalpy plasma torch. As a case study, Al 2 O 3 was sprayed from dry coarse powder and MoS 2 was sprayed from the suspension which was deposited directly onto the substrates, i.e., by-passing the hot plasma jet. The retention of the added material in the coating was evaluated using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction.

Composite coatings using mixed alloy matrices reinforced with carbon-based solid lubricants as feedstock materials were prepared by atmospheric plasma spraying. The aim of the present study was to investigate the tribological characteristics of such coatings exploring potential benefits of CNTs as nano-additive to reduce friction and wear, improving lubrication conditions during operation in tribosystems, such as piston ring – cylinder liner systems. The chemical composition of feedstock materials and the thermal spray parameters during coatings deposition are correlated to friction coefficient and wear rate using pin-on-disk measurements. The developed coatings hybrid behaviour is studied. Co-based cermet as well as metal alloy anti-wear performance along with the promoted lubrication conditions during operation is revealed. The dependence of the developed coatings quality and performance on the characteristics of the feedstock powder is thoroughly discussed.

Thermally sprayed WC/CoCr coatings are the most established coatings in the valve industry. However, due to the high wear resistance and as-sprayed surface roughness, the surface post processing costs are very high. Near-net-shaped fine powder coatings have the possibility to reduce the costs effectively. Due to the high specific surface to volume ratio of the powders, undesired phase transformations can occur during the spraying process. To avoid such phase transformations, the novel thermal spraying process Ultra-HVOF (UHVOF) is used in this study. An extensive parameter study is carried out on the influences of the process parameters on microhardness, porosity, as-sprayed surface roughness, phase composition and wear resistance. With suitable process parameters, near-netshaped and almost pore-free coatings can be applied. Compared to a conventional HVOF sprayed WC/CoCr coating, a wear reduction by a factor of three can be achieved in a pin-on-disktest against Al 2 O 3 at a load of F = 15 N. Due to the pore-free and highly wear-resistant coatings, significantly thinner coatings can be used for the protection against corrosion and wear in valves. In addition, the required surface quality of the near-net-shape coatings can be achieved by polishing only. Thus, the novel UHVOF coatings represent a cost-effective alternative to conventionally used valve coatings.

The enhancement of the surface characteristics and corrosion resistance of cobalt alloys is under continuous examination for its biomedical applications. In this work, the investigation of corrosion performance of cobalt alloy coated with HA and HA/ZnO reinforced powders using plasma spray technique revealed that on the continuous increase of ZnO reinforcement the corrosion resistance improved progressively. The increment in surface hardness and drop in surface roughness was examined with the rise in ZnO content. Each coated sample exhibits a hydrophilic property. According to SEM and EDX investigations, homogeneous distribution of HA/ZnO coatings and intact reinforcement of ZnO in pure HA powder was noticed. All of the coated specimens maintain their morphological integrity, ensuring excellent protection of the prepared samples. The obtained outcomes denote HA/ZnO reinforced coatings on CoCr alloy as a suitable combination of enhanced surface properties and excellent corrosion resistance for future bone implant practices.

Hardmetal coating compositions containing both WC and Cr 3 C 2 are less intensively studied than WC-Co(Cr) and Cr 3 C 2 -NiCr. In particular, compositions with Cr 3 C 2 as the main phase are relatively new in the market. In this contribution, two commercial agglomerated and sintered feedstock powders with similar compositions (42Cr 3 C 2 -42WC-16Ni and 45Cr 3 C 2 - 37WC-18NiCoCr) were studied. Both powders differ in their porosity and the melting behavior, as was found by DSC experiments. Coatings were deposited with a liquid-fueled HVOF process (JP 5220). Optimization of the spray conditions was evaluated with five different spray parameter sets. Coating microstructures and phase compositions, as well as microhardness HV 0.3 and abrasion wear resistance were less influenced by the spray parameter sets. At the same time, significant differences in deposition efficiency between the two compositions were observed, which might be related to the differences in the melting behavior of the compositions and the powder porosity. However, coating microhardness and abrasion wear resistance were similar for each of the spray parameter sets. Coating microstructure and phase composition were studied with a focus on the interaction between Cr 3 C 2 and WC and will be discussed in detail.

In our previous work, the potential of the suspension-HVOF spraying (S-HVOF) to produce dense-structured WC-12Co coatings has been shown. This contribution proposes a comparative study of the corrosion properties of the S-HVOF WC-12Co coatings and conventional sprayed HVOF coatings. The corrosion properties were evaluated at room temperature in NaCl electrolytes with different pH values and in a pH neutral 0.5 M Na 2 SO 4 solution. By varying the pH value, the corrosion mechanism of the cemented carbide coatings should be assessed more precisely, since the two components, WC and Co, show strongly different pH dependencies. The electrochemical properties of the sprayed coatings were investigated using open circuit potential measurements, linear sweep voltammetry and potentiodynamic polarization methods. Before and after corrosion tests, microstructural evaluations of the coatings were performed. Moreover, element analyses of the eluates have been performed to determine soluble corrosion products. The S-HVOF coatings show a similarly good corrosion resistance as the conventional HVOF WC-Co coatings. Generally, the coating properties, i.e. microstructure and phase compositions, as well as the electrolyte significantly influence the corrosion performance of the sprayed coatings.

Thermal spray WC-NiCr coatings generally requires grinding processing to meet the surface finish requirements. The cost associated with grinding can potentially be reduced through the deposition of finer (– 30 + 5 μm) feedstock rather than the more conventional commercial (– 45 + 15 or – 53 + 20 μm) feedstock. Additionally, such a fine powder is likely to require lower energy spray parameters, resulting in less heat input to the substrate, which could be beneficial in application on heat sensitive substrates. However, the spray parameters need to be optimised to mitigate increased degradation of coatings due to unacceptable brittleness caused by decarburisation and oxidation, and to produce defect-free dense coatings. In the present work, a theoretical model to optimise spray parameters was developed, which suggested an oxygen-to-fuel ratio slightly more than 3.3 and a shorter barrel to avoid decarburisation in coatings. In total four parameter sets suggested by the theoretical model were selected to spray the fine-cut powder using a 100 mm long barrel. Scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, microhardness, and 3Dprofilometer were used to analyse the produced coatings. The coatings deposited using optimised parameters exhibited the best performance in terms of low porosity, inter-splat cracks, brittleness, and roughness. Coating deposited at lower kerosine and oxygen flow rates, with reduced stand-off distance, was denser, crack-free, and ductile. Hence, the fine-cut powder can be used to produce a finer as-sprayed finish, thereby demonstrating the potential in reducing grinding efforts. Additionally, successful deposition of coatings using low energy parameters, making this an attractive option for thermally sensitive substrates.

Thermal spraying enables a fast and effective way to additively deposit various ceramics as electric insulators, which are used in conditions where polymers are not suitable. Alumina (Al 2 O 3 ) is among the most widely employed materials in the coating industry because it exhibits good dielectric properties, high hardness, and high melting point, while still being cost-effective. Various parameters (e.g., feedstock type, plasma gas mixture, plasma power) significantly influence the resulting coating in terms of microstructure, porosity, crystallinity, and degree of unmolten and molten particles. As a consequence, these parameters need to be investigated to estimate their impact on the electrical insulating properties of thermally sprayed alumina. This study focuses on the development of a novel electric insulation coating from Al 2 O 3 feedstock powders deposited via atmospheric plasma spray (APS). The microstructure, porosity, and corresponding crystallographic phases have been analyzed with optical microscopy, XRD, and SEM images. To achieve an understanding of the parameters influencing the electrical insulation performance of the manufactured coatings, an in-depth analysis of the fundamental dielectric parameters (e.g., DC resistance, breakdown strength, dielectric loss tangent, and permittivity) is presented.

Thermal spraying is a complex physical process consisting of three main sub-systems: flame/plume generation, powder/flame/plume interaction and coating build-up. While mathematical and CFD models provide valuable insight about the individual modules of a thermal spray process, it is very difficult to gain overall insight of the whole process and dependencies between different inputs and outputs using mathematical and CFD analysis, due to very complex and interconnected nature of the thermal spray process. In this work, a sophisticated experiment has been conducted to collect enough data for the sake of developing data-driven model of a plasma spray process. Metco 204 powder feedstock material and F4 gun have been used. An optimized number of data samples has been chosen by applying common industrial input parameters in the experiment. The developed neural network model is able to predict the coating quality parameters with acceptable average accuracy of above 90% on test data by considering all relevant measurement error deviations of the process analysis methods. A sophisticated user-interface has been developed to enable the use of the model for coating parameter development as well as the designing recipe for target coating characteristics. The developed model can be used for different purposes: parameter development, off-line coating quality control, and eventually adaptive coating control.

Thermally sprayed WC-based hardmetal coatings offer high hardness, good sliding wear and abrasion performance and find large applications in mechanical engineering, valve construction, or offshore applications. WC-Co coatings are mainly produced by high-velocity oxy-fuel spraying (HVOF) from conventional spray feedstock powders. In our previous work, the potential of the suspension-HVOF spraying (S-HVOF) to produce dense-structured WC-12Co coatings has been shown. Significant work was devoted to the development of appropriate aqueous hardmetal suspensions starting from commercially available fine WC and Co raw powders feedstock. This contribution proposes a step forward in the development of the S-HVOF WC-12Co coatings and evaluation of their microstructural and tribological properties. Suspension spraying trials were carried out using gas-fuelled HVOF TopGun system. For comparison purposes, liquid-fuelled HVOF K2 was employed to spray WC-12Co coatings starting from commercial available spray powder. Microstructural characterization, X-Ray diffraction and microhardness of the coatings were evaluated. Oscillating sliding wear tests were conducted against sintered Al 2 O 3 and WC-6Co balls. The sliding wear performances of the WC-Co sprayed coatings were discussed in term of the microstructure, phase composition and coating-ball test couples.

High amorphous phase formation tendency, a desirable microstructure and phase composition and silicon evaporation are the challenges of spraying Yb 2 Si 2 O 7 environmental barrier coatings (EBCs). This research addresses these issues by depositing as-sprayed high crystalline Yb 2 Si 2 O 7 using atmospheric plasma spray (APS) without any auxiliary heat-treating during spraying, vacuum chamber, or subsequent furnace heat treatment, leading to considerable cost, time, and energy savings. Yb 2 Si 2 O 7 powder was sprayed on SiC substrates with three different plasma powers of (90, 72 and 53 kW) and exceptional high crystallinity levels of up to ~91% and deposition efficiency of up to 85% were achieved. The silicon mass evaporation during spraying was controlled with a short stand-ff distance of 50 mm, and an optimum fraction of Yb 2 SiO 5 secondary phases (<20 wt.%) was evenly distributed in the final deposits. The desirable microstructure, including a dense structure with uniform distribution of small porosities, was observed. The undesirable vertical crack formation and any interconnected discontinuities were prevented. Reducing the plasma power from 90 kW to 53 kW, while conducive for mitigating the silicon mass loss, was detrimental for microstructure by increasing the fraction of porosities and partially melted or unmelted fragments. The gradual decrease of the coating temperature after deposition alleviated microcracking but has an insignificant effect on the crystallinity level. Coatings annealed close to their operating temperature at 1300 °C for 24 hours demonstrated sintering and a crack healing effect, closing the tiny microcracks through the thickness. An improved coating composition was detected after annealing by the transformation of Yb 2 SiO 5 to Yb 2 Si 2 O 7 (up to ~10 wt.%).

Hybrid aerosol deposition (HAD) is a new coating method to deposit homogeneous nano-structured ceramic coatings. An accurate evaluation of the fabricated coating properties is required. In this study, α-Al 2 O 3 fine powder was sprayed by HAD. The obtained coatings were dense and uniform with a nanocrystalline structure. An X-ray diffraction measurement revealed that the fabricated HAD Al 2 O 3 coatings mainly consisted of α-Al 2 O 3 phase. The hardness and Young's modulus of the HAD Al 2 O 3 coatings were evaluated by a micro-Vickers method and a nanoindentation method using the Weibull distribution. The hardness of HAD Al 2 O 3 coatings measured by micro-Vickers was ~1400 HV (~15 GPa). The variation of mechanical properties of HAD coatings measured by the nanoindentation method was extremely small compared to those of plasma-sprayed coatings, which also indicates that HAD coatings contain less pores and cracks than plasma-sprayed coatings.