Titanium porous transport layers (PTL) are important components in proton exchange membrane water electrolysis (PEMWE) cells. The performance enhancement and the reduction of manufacturing cost of PTLs are of importance for market expansion of PEMWE. Vacuum plasma spraying (VPS) was used to prepare PTL or modify PTL of sintered titanium powders and the PTLs by VPS showed a high performance. Regarding the cost efficiency, it is of great interest to produce PTLs using more economical spray processes than VPS. In this study, high velocity oxy-fuel spraying (HVOF) was used to produce highly porous titanium coatings for this purpose. The spray process was developed to achieve a high porosity of up to Φ = 30 % using three titanium powders with size distributions of fA = -90 +45 μm, fB = -63 +20 μm and fc = -45 +11 μm. The coating structures were examined on the cross sections of the titanium coatings with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). The porosity was determined using the image analysis system ImageJ. The deposition efficiency of the titanium powder fC = -45 +11 μm was determined. The results show that the coating structure significantly depends on the titanium powders. Highly porous titanium coatings of Φ = 24 - 40 % can be produced with the titanium powders of fB = -63 +20 μm and fc = -45 +11 μm. Titanium oxides are hardly visible on the cross-sections of the titanium coatings. A high deposition efficiency of approximately DP ≈ 70 % was measured for the titanium powder of fc = -45 +11 μm.

Hexavalent chromium has been widely used in the coating industry and more specifically in gas turbine hot end component protection. UK REACH (registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemicals) have given an end date of September 2024 for the use of hexavalent chromium and as such, the industry must adapt to these regulations. Indestructible Paint LTD have developed a new aluminium diffused slurry coating, CFIPAL, that does not contain hexavalent chromium like its predecessor, IP1041. Both CFIPAL and IP1041 were deposited onto Nimonic 75 alloy and underwent metallurgical and chemical analysis which included scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, electron backscatter diffraction, hardness testing, contact angle testing, surface roughness testing and finally, salt spray corrosion testing. The results indicated that CFIPAL is a suitable alternative for hexavalent chromium-containing coatings, such as IP1041.

Light alloys are being investigated as an alternative to ferrous-based engineering components. The manufacturing of such components requires a surface modification step necessary to eliminate the top surface's poor wear and corrosion response for improved functionality. Thermally sprayed cermet coatings offer improved surface resistance to wear and/or corrosion. This work presents a customized composition of WC-CoCr feedstock cut in fine and coarse powder size distribution (PSD) to fabricate different coatings on aluminium alloy and steel substrates using two high velocity spray techniques. The WC-CoCr coatings sprayed using the high velocity air-fuel (HVAF) technique at varied parameters consist of six different coatings (four thick, ~ 200 μm and two thin ones, 60-80 μm) to investigate the relationship between processing conditions, microstructure, and performance. Using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and electro-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) offered a comprehensive characterization of the respective coatings. Micro indentation, dry sliding wear, dry sand abrasion, and cavitation erosion tests conducted on the samples show the performance of the coatings based on the processing techniques and spray conditions. However, despite the similarities in the microstructural makeup of the coatings and the measured micro indentation hardness of the coatings (1000-1300 HV0.1), their respective specific wear rate (SWR) varied based on spray processing techniques and the substrate on which the coatings were deposited. Three of the HVAF coatings showed ~ 60 % more wear on the aluminium alloy substrate compared to the same coating deposited on a steel substrate. However, irrespective of the substrate used the HVAF coatings showed better wear resistance than the HVOF coating. The dry sand abrasion wear results of the two thick HVAF coatings show them superior to the HVOF coating in the three-body wear experiment conducted. The cavitation erosion resistance of the coatings varied based on the processing conditions and the driving mechanisms but the best two were the AF-2 and AF-6 samples.

Recently, laser deposition technologies have made significant advancements in their ability to manufacture high temperature metals and ceramics. One of these technologies, known as Direct Energy Deposition (DED), has the potential to deposit a wide range of materials from polymers to refractory materials, ceramics and functionally graded materials. This study evaluates major microstructural characteristics of WC-Co additively manufactured by DED technology. This material is commonly used for deposition of protective coatings due to its high hardness and excellent wear resistance. To this end, hardness and wear resistance of the DED processed samples were also investigated in this study. WC-Co coatings are generally deposited using various thermal spray technologies. However, it is speculated that DED deposited WC-Co could provide superior properties such as higher hardness and wear resistance. A DED manufactured WC-Co sample was examined by Optical Microscopy (OM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). Those studies could provide information about important microstructural features, chemical compositions and phase distribution. All the tests were also repeated on High-Velocity Oxygen Fuel (HVOF) deposited WC-Co with the same composition. Both DED and HVOF produced WC-Co coatings experience decomposition of the carbides into compound phases; however, the DED deposited sample displays unique dendritic and eutectic structures that improve the hardness and wear properties compared to the homogenous HVOF coating. In addition, DED produced samples show higher hardness and relatively better wear resistance compared to the HVOF deposited ones. The obtained results could establish a relationship between microstructural characteristics with hardness and wear properties of both samples.

To achieve higher engine combustion efficiency while reducing emissions, it is necessary to address the challenges posed by elevated operating temperatures. High Entropy Alloys (HEAs) have emerged as promising materials for this purpose, offering exceptional properties at high temperatures, including synergistic effects and excellent resistance to oxidation and corrosion. In this study, a FeCoNiCrAl HEA was investigated as a bond coat material due to its excellent balance of strength and ductility, coupled with outstanding oxidation resistance. It was deposited using HVAF M3 and i7 guns equipped with different nozzles/powder injectors and pressures. Notably, this research marks the first study of the i7 gun globally for the HEA bond coat, coupled with the optimization of HVAF parameters for both i7 and M3 guns. Characterization of both powder and as-sprayed samples was carried out using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) techniques. The results revealed the formation of a dense and homogeneous microstructure. Additionally, isothermal oxidation tests were conducted to analyze the behavior of the thermally grown oxide. After 50 hours at 1000 °C, a dense, uniform, and thin alumina TGO layer was observed to have formed. These tests revealed that FeCoNiCrAl HEA exhibits significant potential to enhance oxidation resistance at high temperatures.

A micro-plasma system was investigated for its capability in additive manufacturing (AM). Micro-plasma AM system has the advantage of lower cost and higher deposition rate over the laser-based AM systems, and generates leaner and cleaner weld deposit than other arc-based AM systems. However, the microplasma system is complex and involves a large number of process variables. In this study, the effects of two arc and wire feed modes on dimensional consistency and hardness were firstly examined. Subsequently, one set of the specimens was further subjected to oxidation tests and the results were compared to that from conventional wrought Inconel 718. It was found that all four processes could produce crack free samples without measurable distortion. Some surface discoloration was observed, ranging from light straw to a purple tint. After heat treatment, the hardness of the samples varies from 403 to 440 HV, with the transverse surface showing slightly lower hardness values. The oxidation tests at 900 °C yielded similar weight change for AM Inconel 718 and its counterpart wrought alloy; however, the rate constant for wrought alloy was slightly higher. Microstructural analysis with SEM and EDS revealed a dendritic structure in the AM Inconel 718 and the presence of Nb-rich compounds in the interdendritic region. The polycrystal grain structure was not delineated in AM material as that in wrought 718. With the increase of exposure time, the oxide layer continues to increase at a higher rate, along with a sublayer of Ni 3 Nb above the metal substrate. In addition, after 200 hours, the wrought alloy developed porous chromia, while AM material exhibited uneven oxide thickness. In consideration of all aspects of the evaluation carried out thus far, it is concluded that the AM material produced by micro-plasma process is equivalent to wrought material in mechanical properties and oxidation performance.

Carbides are interesting materials for many wear resistant and high temperature applications, however, the production of coatings with these materials represents a significant challenge as they tend to oxidise or decompose into gaseous phases when they are exposed to extreme thermal spray conditions. An innovative method merging suspension and solution precursors was developed to allow the production of carbide composite coatings. Suspensions of carbides and borides were modified with the addition of oxide precursors to obtain composite coatings by high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) thermal spray. The transformation of these oxides precursors and their subsequent melting during spraying contribute to protect the carbides from oxidising conditions, avoid their degradation during the spray process and support the development of dense coatings, as it was demonstrated by dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction analysis. The relationships between processing and microstructure were studied in terms of porosity phase distribution and mechanical properties, proving that this novel approach could be applied to obtain coatings of materials that are prone to decompose during thermal spraying.

High entropy alloys (HEAs) constitute a new class of advanced metallic alloys that exhibit exceptional properties due to their unique microstructural characteristics. HEAs contain multiple (five or more) elements in equimolar or nearly equimolar fractions compared to traditional alloy counterparts. Due to their potential benefits, HEAs can be fabricated with thermal spray manufacturing technologies to provide protective coatings for extreme environments. In this study, the AlCoCrFeMoW and AlCoCrFeMoV coatings were successfully developed using flame spraying. The effect of W and V on the HEA coatings were investigated using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy, and micro-hardness testing. Furthermore, performance of the coating under abrasive loading was investigated as per ASTM Standard G65. Microstructural studies showed different oxides with solid-solution phases for all the HEA coatings. Hardness results were higher for the AlCoCrFeMoV coatings followed by AlCoCrFeMoW and AlCoCrFeMo coatings. Lower wear rates were achieved for the AlCoCrFeMoV coatings compared to AlCoCrFeMoW and AlCoCrFeMo coatings. The evolution of multiple oxide phases and underlying microstructural features improved the resistance to abrasive damage for the AlCoCrFeMoV coatings compared to other HEA coatings. These results suggest that the flame-sprayed HEA coatings can be potential candidates for different tribological interfaces while concurrently opening new avenues for HEA coating utilization.

Reducing CO 2 emissions from power generation plants is intimately related to enhancing their thermal efficiency, which can be achieved by increasing the temperature/pressure of steam. However, any increase in steam temperature is inevitably accompanied by accelerated oxidation of boiler components. The use of renewable fuels such as biomass increases the problem by introducing a number of corrosive compounds into the boiler environment, resulting in more rapid degradation of components. Although thermal sprayed coatings are technocommercially attractive solutions for augmenting the durability of degradation-prone boiler components and are already used, further improvements in their performance are continuously sought. High-velocity air fuel (HVAF) coatings are promising in this context. In the present work, isothermal oxidation behavior of a candidate HVAF-sprayed Ni21Cr was studied in N 2 + 5% O 2 + 20% H 2 O at 600°C for 168h. The oxide scale growth mechanisms were studied by BIB/SEM/EDX to evaluate the effectiveness of the coatings. It was found that the water vapor effect is insignificant due to the Cr reservoir in the Ni21Cr coating, which yielded enhanced oxidation protection by forming nano-scale Cr 2 O 3 .

Ferritic steels are commissioned as one of the preferred structure materials for the boilers of nuclear and thermal power plants. The mechanical characterization and microstructural evolution of shielded metal arc welded dissimilar joint between ferritic SA213T91 (T91) and ferritic SA213T22 (T22) steels has been investigated by virtue of microstructures, micro-hardness, XRD and SEM/EDS analysis. Comparative performance of distinctive zones in the weldment i.e. heat affected zone, base metal and weld pool has been explored. The T91 HAZ and T22 HAZ zones of the weldment are observed to have high micro-hardness by virtue of martensitic morphology along with the presence of delta ferrite in T91 HAZ and carbide as well as intermetallics in T22 HAZ.

Measuring the cohesive strength of thermally sprayed coatings is relatively difficult matter, which can be accessed in many directions. This issue is nowadays solved by use of Scratch test method. This method is not completely sufficient for the cohesive strength testing because the coating is under load of combined stresses during the Scratch test. The reason to develop this method was need for exact measurement of tensile cohesion toughness of thermally sprayed coatings, which could provide results as close to a classic tensile test as possible. Another reason for development of this method was the impossibility of direct comparison with results obtained by other methods. Tested coatings were prepared using HP / HVOF (Stellite 6, NiCrBSi, CrC-NiCr and Hastelloy C-276). These coatings were selected as commonly used in commercial sector and on because of rising customer demand for ability to provide such coating characteristics. The tested coatings were evaluated in terms of cohesive strength (method based on tensile strength test). Final fractures were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy and EDS analysis. As expected higher cohesive strength showed metallic coatings with top results of coating Stellite 6. Carbide coatings showed approximately third of the cohesion strength in comparison with metal based coating.

The CoCrAlSiY alloy powder with Si mass concentrations of 0, 2% and 5% was prepared in this work. The oxidation kinetics curves of all three kinds of powders after 300 h oxidation at 1000 °C were plotted. In addition, the phase constitution of alloy powder and the distribution of β phase were analyzed by SEM and EDS. Furthermore, the effect of Si-addition on the melting temperature and oxidation resistance of the alloy powder were investigated by DSC-TG from the room temperature to 1400 °C. And the element concentrations at the grain boundary of alloy powder with Si addition of 2% were also analyzed. The results show that the melting temperature of alloy powder decreases as increasing Si content, which indicates that adding Si element could influence on the selective oxidation of Al and Cr elements in the alloy system, and improve the oxidation resistance of CoCrAlY powder. In addition, the weight gain of powder with Si addition of 2% is lowest. And Si element has a enrich tendency in the grain boundary. Therefore, the higher Si content would have a negative effect on the high temperature oxidation resistance of powder.

Plasma spraying ZrB 2 ceramic coating is considered as potential candidate method of Thermal Protective System. While the application of plasma sprayed ZrB 2 coating is restricted due to its oxidation. Therefore, it is important to study the oxidation behavior of the ZrB 2 material. In this research, oxidation behavior of the ZrB 2 ceramic, which achieve different density by using SPS and pressureless sintering, is studied to explain the oxidation behavior of plasma spraying ZrB 2 ceramic coating. The oxidation behavior of ZrB 2 ceramics is investigated using SEM, XRD and EDS. The ZrB 2 –based ceramic coating is gravely oxidized at 600°C, but the block ZrB 2 –based ceramics also possess excellent oxidation resistance above 1000°C. The density of ZrB 2 ceramics significantly increase when changing the sintering method from pressureless sintering to SPS. The high density has beneficial effect to improve the oxidation resistance of ZrB 2 ceramic, for there are few open pores channel in high density ceramics. The oxygen cannot diffuse to the inner through pores, as a result, the high density ceramics can only be oxidized from outside to inside progressively, unlike low density ceramics, whose surface and inner is oxidized simultaneously.

In this work, a mechanically clad NiCr powder feedstock was deposited on alumina substrates by atmospheric plasma arc spraying. The resultant splats were analyzed for features such as interfacial bonding, splat classification and, critically, Cr distribution. Using a slice-and-view sectioning technique in a dual-beam FIB-SEM system, a representative splat exhibiting discrete Ni and Cr regions was physically deconstructed then reconstructed with visualization software to analyze individual layers with the splat. Although the powder feedstock contained Ni particles clad with clusters of Cr, the splats solidified into distinct layers of Ni and Cr with no signs of interaction between them. A model formulated based on this observation shows that the distribution of Cr cladding on the Ni particulates influences the amount and location of Cr around the solidified Ni splats.

Recently a Ti–TiAl 3 metal–intermetallic laminate (MIL) composite attracts growing attention because they have potential application in honeycomb or sandwich components of airplanes and as biomaterial with good bio-compatibility. Of the available processing techniques, diffusion bonding of elemental titanium and aluminum foils is an effective low-temperature method to synthesize the composite, allowing growth of the intermetallic layer. However, application of assembling and multi-pass cold rolling operations leads to fact that this technology is complex and expensive. The use of Cold Spray technology instead of aluminum foils utilization and multi-pass cold rolling to produce the Ti–TiAl 3 MIL composites is believed to be more effective. However, reaction diffusion kinetics of Ti-Al particulate composite differs from that of classical MIL composite and needs to be studied. The task of this paper is to define microstructural changes of Tl-TiAl 3 composite coating during cold spraying and reaction sintering. The optical microscopy, SEM, EDS, X-ray and microhardness examinations are presented and discussed.

In order to clarify the bonding mechanism and to control the quality of cold-sprayed coatings, it is necessary to accurately measure the in-flight velocity and impact velocity of a projectile. In this study, the in-flight velocity of an aluminum alloy (A2017) 1 mm sphere shot from a small two-stage light gas gun was measured as being 1 km/s using a laser-cut velocity measurement technique. So as to estimate the impact velocity of the projectile, the projectile was caused to impact targets made of aluminum (A1050), copper (C1012), mild steel (SPCC), and stainless steel (SUS304). After the impact tests, the impact crater shapes of the targets was measured using scanning electron microscopy(SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and laser microscopy. The impact velocity of a projectile was estimated from obtained crater depth of the targets. In addition, microstructures of the interface between projectile and target were analyzed by EDS, electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).

This paper presents a study on Cu-Ag-Zn abradable seal coatings prepared by cold spraying. The micro-morphologies of the coatings were analyzed using scanning electron microscopy and electron dispersion scanning. The hardness of the coatings was analyzed. Thermal shock tests were conducted to evaluate the combination strength between the coating and the substrate. The friction and wear properties of the coatings were also tested. Two methods, annealing the coatings in vacuum and heating the feed powders in cold spraying, were tried to improve the combination strength and quality of the coating. The results showed that Cu-Ag-Zn coatings made by cold spraying with powder heating exhibited better combination strength and anti-friction properties compared to coatings annealed in vacuum and the original samples. The paper also proposed a combination mechanism for the Cu-Ag-Zn coatings.

LCO (La 2 Ce 2 O 7 ), a solid solution of La 2 O 3 in CeO 2 , is a promising top coating in TBCs. However, it is generally necessary to use LCO as a top coat on YSZ coating to construct a multilayer TBC due to poor mechanical properties of LCO. Therefore, the thermal and chemical stability of LCO/YSZ at high temperature environment become important issue. In this paper, the 50LCO-50YSZ composite coating was deposited using blend powders of YSZ and LCO. The LCO powders used have a nominal particle size range from 10 to 44μm. The LCO/YSZ deposits were exposed at 1300 ¢XC for different durations. The microstructure evolution at the LCO/YSZ interface was investigated by quasi-in-situ SEM and EDS examination. At an exposure temperature of 1300°C, it was observed that some LCO splats in contact with YSZ splats experienced the grain morphology change from columnar one to quasi-axial grains with interface healing and however some grains tended to disappear with thermal exposure. Results indicated that LCO-YSZ composite coating is not phase stable at 1300 °C. Diffusion of La element from LCO splat towards the adjacent YSZ splat occurred during sintering, leading to the formation of La 2 Zr 2 O 7 within YSZ splat.

La 2 Ce 2 O 7 (LCO) is one of the promising candidates of high temperature thermal barrier coating materials. However, during plasma spraying, the evaporation of both CeO 2 and La 2 O 3 in high temperature plasma jet leads to deviation of coating composition from the starting powder particle. Such change results in significant inhomogeneity of compositions within a coating which influences the performance of resultant coating. In this study, an agglomerated La 2 Ce 2 O 7 powder with Ce / La ratio of 1.5 and in a size range of 5-60 μm was used to deposit the splats and coatings under different plasma spray conditions. The compositions of La 2 Ce 2 O 7 splats in different sizes were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrum (EDS), and splat dimensions were characterized by 3D laser microscopy. The relationship between droplet size and splat composition was examined. Results showed that the Ce / La ratio in splats changes significantly with the splats diameter in a range from 1.5 to 0.7. There is a big difference in the composition of APS coatings deposited by coarse and fine powders. The mechanism causing splat composition change was examined based on the selective elemental loss during plasma heating of LCO particles in APS, aiming to control LCO coating composition.

The physical characteristics and volume growth of TGOs in TBC systems lead to TBC failure. It is proved that enriching the BC/TC interface with α-Al 2 O 3 is beneficial to an extended operational time by prolonging the steady-state growth stage of the TGO. The corresponding phase reactions in TBC systems with heightened Al activity, however, are not studied yet. In this work, the stage formation of TGO layers of TBC systems with PVD-Al interlayers is described. The study uses thermal cyclic loading with dwell time at maximum high temperature of 1,150 °C. The crack formation in the ceramic top coat and the TGOs thickness at the interface are investigated by SEM/EDS after 1, 6, 12, 24, 40 and 80 thermal cycles. The results plot the interface change and crack formation as a function of the thermal cycle number. The corresponding failure mode is discussed.