An experimental set-up has been developed, at the SPCTS Laboratory, to produce fully melted, millimeter-sized, ceramic or metallic drops with impact velocities up to 10 m/s. Such impact velocities allow reaching impact Weber numbers, close to those of the plasma spray process (We = 2300). A fast camera (4000 image/s) combined to a fast pyrometer (4000 Hz), allows following the drop flattening. For studding the flattening at the micrometer scale, a DC plasma torch is used to melt micrometer sized alumina particles (around 45 μm). The experimental set-up is composed of a fast (50 ns) two-color pyrometer and two fast CCD cameras (one orthogonal and other tangential to the substrate). The flattening of millimeter and micrometer sized particles is compared. First are studied impacts of alumina drops (millimeter sized) with impact velocities up to 10 m/s. Then are considered micrometer sized alumina particles (about 45 μm in diameter) sprayed with a DC plasma torch. A correlation has been found between both flattening scales and, in spite of the lower impact velocity at the millimeter scale, ejections are also found at the micrometer scales. This work shows that to compare phenomena at the two different scales it is mandatory to have Weber numbers as close as possible in both cases.

The aim of this work is to investigate the effect of substrate surface chemistry (e.g., oxidation and atom diffusion) on the flattening of a single millimeter-sized alumina drop. To that end, a new technique to produce such drops with different impact velocities has been developed. It consists of a rotating crucible heated by a transferred plasma arc and a piston that controls substrate velocity and, as a result, the impact velocity of the drop. A fast camera working in concert with a fast pyrometer precisely records drop flattening and cooling. This system makes it possible to study interface phenomena, such as desorption and wettability, as well as the effects, at impact, of the kinetic energy or Weber number of the flattening drop.

A variety of metallic powder particles were thermally sprayed onto the mirror polished metallic substrate surface and the effect of both substrate temperature and ambient pressure on the flattening behavior of the particle was systematically investigated. In the flattening behavior of the sprayed particle onto the substrate surface, critical conditions were recognized both in the substrate temperature and ambient pressure. That is, the flattening behavior changed transitionally on that critical temperature and pressure range, respectively. A transition temperature, Tt, and transition pressure, Pt, were defined and introduced, respectively for those critical conditions. The fact that the dependence both of transition temperature and transition pressure on the sprayed particle material had similar tendency indicated that the wetting of the substrate by the molten particles seemed to be domination in the flattening. Three dimensional transition curvature by combining both transition temperature and transition pressure dependence was proposed as a practical and effective controlling principle of the thermal spray process.

Three-dimensional molecular dynamics simulation was conducted to clarify at an atomic level the flattening process of a high-temperature droplet impacting a substrate at high speed. The droplet and the substrate were assumed to consist of pure aluminum, and the Morse potential was postulated between a pair of aluminum atoms. In this report, the influences of the impact parameters, such as the droplet velocity and the droplet diameter on its flattening behavior were analyzed. As a result, following representative conclusions were obtained: (1) the flattening ratio increases in proportion to the droplet velocity and the droplet diameter; (2) the flattening ratio for nanosized droplet can be rearranged by the same dimensionless parameters of the proper physical properties, such as the viscosity and the surface tension, as those used in the macroscopic flattening process.

The effect of nano and microstructured powders in cored wires on formation and properties of Fe-TiB 2 composite coatings by high velocity arc spraying (HVAS) was investigated. Six cored wires filled with different average ceramic particle sizes (20-40 nm, 2 µm, and 420 µm) and fine powder contents (0, 8, 16, 20, 24, 32wt.%) were sprayed. The flattening behavior of sprayed particles was characterized and compared by using optical microscopy (OM) and 3D Surface Profiler. The microstructure of the coatings and phase compositions were characterized by means of Laser Confocal Scan Microscopy, SEM, EDAX and XRD. Hardness and wear properties were evaluated. The results showed that the splat shape of the cermets has a transitional tendency to change from a distorted heavy splash to a disk with little splash with (i) increasing the percentage of fine ceramic particles and (ii) decreasing coatings porosity. Fe –2 µm 32% TiB 2 coatings reveals a dispersion of fine ceramic particles and less scattering of hardness, which improved the wear resistance and changed the abrasion mode.

Copper splats are deposited on the flat stainless steel surface at the ambient and preheated conditions. The splashing occurs as the splats are deposited at an ambient atmosphere. The characteristics of the splashing occurring at different splat regions during spreading of the droplet are examined. The splashing can be classified into two types according to the splashing mechanisms. At the surrounding region of the splat larger than flattening ratio about 1.5 to 2, the radial splashing takes place by jetting-away of splat materials, which leads to the formation of a splat with a reduced diameter. At the central area of the reduced splat, the upward splashing occurs through the blowing up of the top surface layer which results from the high pressure of gas bubbles. At the preheated condition which can remove surface adsorbates, no evident splashing occurs under the normal spray conditions. Two types of splashing can be explained by the gases evolved through evaporation of the adsorbates resulting from the heating of the high temperature droplet. The spreading of the droplet involved in the wave urging flow is presented.

It is known that particles injected in a plasma stream follow differing trajectories which in turn leads to different thermal and kinetic history dependent on the location of particle in the plume. The variation in particle characteristics (temperature and velocity) across the plume has been the focus of research over the years. The corresponding variation in impacting particles, particularly in terms of their splat characteristics have not been explored as systematically. This is important for a complete understanding of the coating build-up phenomena and the variations in coating properties. This paper presents the results of a study in which the spatial variation in particle properties is mapped to the spatial variation in splat properties. This has been accomplished using a procedure to collect splats using a shutter mechanism that allows us to expose the substrate for approximately 50 milliseconds. Splats of Alumina and a Ni- Cr-B-Si-Mo have been collected on polished substrates maintained at 250ºC and studied. Micrographs reveal differing splat morphologies across the spray plume – from missing-cores in one part to complete disc-shaped splats in the other. Extent of flattening and fragmentation have been quantified and found to vary within the ‘splat map’. Correlation between the location of particle in the plume and the resulting splat has been constructed using this data. Abstract only; no full-text paper available.

The particle parameters including particle size, velocity and temperature influence significantly splat formation process in thermal spraying. The flattening degree of subsequent splat determines the coating structure and properties. Both theoretical analysis and simulation of splatting process indicate that the flattening degree depends on Reynolds number (Re) of spray particles. The experimental correlations suggest that the theoretical models overestimate the flattening degree. In the present study, with careful control of particle size and measurement of particle velocity and temperature, the relationship between the flattening degree and particle Reynolds number is examined experimentally. Copper powders of small size range are used to ensure valid of mean particle size. Plasma spraying is carried out under different conditions to change particle velocity and temperature. The particle velocity and temperature are measured using DPV- 2000. Splats were deposited on preheated polished stainless substrate surface. The diameter of individual splat was measured. The flattening degree was estimated using average diameter of splats and spray particles for individual spray condition. Using the exponential formula of Re with a power of 0.2, it was found that experimental correlation yielded a coefficient about half of that given by Madjeski’s model.

A thermal spray coating is formed through successive impact, flattening, rapid cooling and solidification processes of a stream of spray droplets. Splashing may occur during droplet flattening process. Recent studies suggested that splashing can be suppressed when a molten droplet impacts on a preheated flat substrate. In this study, the splatting behavior in plasma spray is examined using molten spray droplets of different Reynolds number. Splats are deposited on preheated flat stainless steel surface. The morphology of splats is examined using optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. To adjust Reynolds number of spray droplets, copper droplets are produced using both Ar-H 2 and Ar-He-H 2 plasma jets under different operating conditions. As a result, the Reynolds number of spray droplets have been varied from about 18,000 to 90,000. It has been found that Reynolds number will influence splashing phenomena during splatting and consequent splat morphology. At low Reynolds number, splats present a regular disc morphology. However, when Reynolds number was increased up to about 5x104, the severe splashing around periphery of splat droplet was clearly observed despite the preheating of substrate. Based on the morphology of splats, a model for the spreading of molten droplet is proposed to explain the effect of Reynolds number on the flattening behavior of molten spray droplet.

In the collision of a liquid droplet onto a flat surface, a splashing parameter (K=We 0.5 Re 0.25 ) has been used to evaluate the flattening behavior, and a critical value of K (K C ) was introduced as a criterion for splashing. In order to evaluate K of thermal sprayed particle, in-flight measurement for the velocity and temperature of the particle was conducted in this study. As a flattening pattern of the thermal sprayed particle changed significantly with a substrate temperature, the transition temperature (T t ) was also measured by changing the substrate temperature. Both K and T t showed a tendency of monotonous decreasing with increasing the spray distance and a strong linearity was recognized in a K-T t relationship. This straight line corresponds to a critical value for the splashing. However, as the influence of substrate temperature on the flattening is essentially independent of K, a new criterion for the splashing in the flattening of the particle was proposed in the study. That is, a splashing parameter on flattening was proposed, which considers the ratio of the flattening velocity to the impact velocity of the particle.

In the present paper mathematical model of the deformation behavior of a liquid spherical particle upon its impingement onto a solid surface, including flattening and simultaneous solidification is developed. Particle-substrate interactions are investigated for typical thermal spray process. Numerical simulation for the complete Navier-Stokes equations is based on the finite-difference method on rectangular mesh in cylindrical coordinates. The energy equation is solved for both particle and substrate regions using the adjoint conditions for the temperature. In this paper main attention is paid to investigation of the temperature in contact of the particle with substrate. In connection with the oxide films effect on the surface substrate taking onto account thermal resistance of oxide is simulated. Heat transfer process in particle and substrate has been modeled by 2-D problem of heat conduction with influencing hydrodynamic processes into molten particle. Particle solidification and the movement of the solidification front have been described by means of one-dimensional Stefan problem. Numerical results for the heat transfer process and the effect of some important processing parameters such as particle diameter, viscosity, oxide films and temperature of plasma on the flattening and solidification of a single liquid particle have been discussed. Numerical algorithms were realized in the form of applied programs complex.

Thermal spray is a melt-spray process in which material is melted and accelerated to high velocities, impinges upon a substrate, and rapidly solidifies to form a coating. Modeling the deposition dynamics of droplets is a key step towards understanding the evolution of a coating microstructure, since a coating is built up from the successive accumulation of many deformed, solidified droplets. This paper discusses some special effects testing of a particle model being developed by the authors to simulate the mechanics and thermodynamics associated with the simultaneous flattening and solidification of a fully liquid or partially solidified droplet. Rigorous validation of the numerical algorithm must necessarily be performed via this separate effects testing.