The paper looks at the results of TSPC research to develop coating technology for threaded surfaces in pump and compressor pipes (PCP) used in the oil and gas industry.

Abradable seals have been used in jet engines since the late 1960's. Today they are seeing applications in low pressure and high pressure sections of compressors as well as the high pressure turbine module of jet engines. Clearance control systems using abradable coatings are also gaining ever more attention in industrial and steam turbine applications. Thermal spraying is a relatively simple and cost effective means to apply abradable seals. Abradable coatings work by minimizing gaps between rotating and stationary components by allowing the rotating parts to cut into the stationary ones. Typically plasma and combustion spray processes are used for applying abradable coatings. The types of coatings employed in the HP turbine are zirconia based abradable material systems with polymer and, in some cases, solid lubricant additions such as hexagonal boron nitride. The coatings are designed to work at service temperatures of up to 1200°C. Types of matrix materials used in the low and high pressure sections of the compressor are aluminum-silicon, nickel and MCrAlY based systems. These compressor type systems typically also contain fugitive phases of polymer and/or solid lubricants such as hexagonal boron nitride or graphite. Operating temperature, depending on the material of choice, can be up to 750°C. Regardless of the specific application, fugitive phases and porosity are needed for abradable coatings. Polymers are used to create and control porosity in plasma sprayed coatings, a critical design requirement in adjusting abradability and erosion properties of thermal spray coatings. Combustion spray coatings generate porosity through the lower deposition velocities and temperatures compared to plasma and typically do not need polymer phases. Solid lubricants are added to help weaken the structure of thermal spray coatings and reduce frictional heating and material transfer to the blade.

In modern jet engines, the efficiency of the compressor stages is highly dependent on the clearance between blade tip and casing. In order to improve efficiency of gas turbines (i.e. areo engines as well as land based gas turbines), the gap between the rotating turbine blades and casing has to be minimized. Any increase in the gap results in power loss. Abradable coatings permit a minimization of the clearance and control of the over-tip leakage by allowing the blade tips to cut into the coating. Thermal sprayed abradable coatings aim at a well balanced profile of properties relevant for the application as abradable seals. Amongst others these include: abradability, ageing resistance, corrosion and oxidation resistance, surface finish and bond strength to substrate materials. In this work, abradable coatings consisting of a multiphase material, comprising a metal matrix in addition to a solid lubricant as well as a defined level of porosity, were developed using the Triplex Pro 200 (Sulzer Metco, Wohlen, Switzerland) in order to increase the reproducibility and deposition efficiency. Additionally the influence of the process parameters on coating characteristics such as porosity, hardness and, resulting from this, coating erosion properties and abradability was investigated.

In modern jet engines, the efficiency of the compressor stages is highly dependent upon the clearance between housing and rotating compressor blades. To control the over-tip leakage, abradable coating systems are applied on the housing. In the high pressure compressor they typically consist of a thermal sprayed multiphase material, comprising a metal matrix combined with a dislocator and/or a solid lubricant as well as a defined level of porosity. In this study, novel material systems have been sprayed via the plasma and flame spray process and compared to reference materials. Resulting microstructures have been analyzed as well as important coating characteristics evaluated, including coating hardness and erosion resistance. Furthermore rig tests were performed to analyse the coatings abradability behaviour under different operation conditions of the compressor.

Pb-Sn alloys tend to form string-like abrasion products during compressor operations, and the products cause malfunctions at the down streams of the seals and may affect the operation efficiency of the compressors. In this article, a thermal spraying method is developed for forming an abradable labyrinth seal of powdered abradable alloys to cope with the problems for improving the product quality and the operation life of the compressors. The article evaluates the abradable properties of the thermal sprayed coating labyrinth seals of the RIK-type compressors that have higher rotational speed than the other type. Various abradable properties of the sprayed coating are tested by the following test methods: microstructure observation, bond strength, machinability, bending ductility, and corrosion resistance. The article reports the results obtained from these test methods and compares them with those of the cast alloy.

Very many gap-sealing products are now available for use in the compressor section of gas turbines. This paper attempts to give an overview of these and where they are best used. Data is presented for abradability, erosion resistance and application technique. By explaining how abradables function tribologically it is hoped that selection will be simpler for designers. New products are introduced as well as the way forward described. It is shown how with time the diversity of application techniques has decreased with thermal spraying becoming the preferred technique, and that abradables are now available to run against titanium blading up to 600°C.

This paper examines the potential of thermal spray coatings for manufacturing and repairing twin-screw rotors. The coatings evaluated were produced by atmospheric plasma spraying (APS). Tests show that 7% yttria stabilized zirconia (ZrO 2 7Y 2 O 3 ) coatings provide sufficient run-in characteristics and corrosion resistance. The coatings, along with a NiCrAl bond coat, were applied to various substrate materials.

Air separation plants employ centrifugal compressors where air and electrical energy are the only raw materials used in the production process. In order to optimize compressor performance and efficiency, abradable coatings, originally developed for gas turbines, have been designed into turbocompressors. This paper describes the optimization and performance improvements achievable using aluminium silicon-boron nitride materials.