The covering of titanium implants by means gas-thermal spraying of hydroxyapatite powders is an actual scientific, technical and medical problem. Application of hydroxyapatite for these purposes is more preferable. However, the problem of its structural and cyclic strength under conditions of bioenvironment response determines of application areas of such coatings and reliability of them usage. Structure and phase composition of hydroxyapatite coating under plasma spraying on titanium substrates and their changing, caused as conditions of forming coating on its increasing, so and conditions of spraying an laminar and turbulent plasma streem were studied. Exact belief about the crystalline structure and phase composition of coating is obtained by methods electronic microscopy and X-ray analysis. Changing of coating structure after sintering in the vacuum and electron beam melting in the vacuum is discussed.

Phase transformations and/or decomposition of deposited compounds have an indisputable influence on materials properties of plasma sprayed deposits. Using water stabilized plasma, free-standing parts were manufactured from a mechanical mixture of zircon and alumina powders and annealed. The phase composition was determined by X-ray diffraction and the chemical composition was checked by x-ray microanalysis. ZrSiO 4 during plasma spraying decomposes into ZrO 2 and SiO 2 . In the as-sprayed condition, after a relatively fast quenching, the following phases can be found: a very fine eutectic mixture of tetragonal and monoclinic ZrO 2 , amorphous SiO 2 and a spinel phase of Al 2 O 3 . On annealing for 2 hours at 1300 and 1500 °C the spinel Al 2 O 3 transformed to corundum. At the same time, amorphous silica crystallized. Tetragonal ZrO 2 transformed to the monoclinic modification and together with SiO 2 formed again ZrSiO 4 . At the highest annealing temperature Al 2 O 3 and SiO 2 partialy reacted to form a small amount of mullite (3Al 2 O 3 .2SiO 2 ).

The phase composition of plasma sprayed (8wt%) YSZ was studied using neutron and X-ray scattering. Comparison shows that neutron scattering is superior for analysis of the phase composition as well as for the analysis of the yttria content of the tetragonal phase. The presence of large amounts of the cubic phase are probably often neglected in standard XRD analysis due to scattering-related limitations and the inherent difficulty of the analysis. The importance of this fact needs to be addressed in future studies. The amount of monoclinic, tetragonal, and cubic phases was determined for as-sprayed deposits and for samples annealed at various temperatures. The as-sprayed deposit was composed of metastable phases, and the phase composition on annealing did not change significantly until 1400 °C for one hour. This indicates the relative stability of the phase composition. The influence of the spray distance is not clear, but the resultant phase composition may be related to the deposition temperature.

Protective tubes ( Ø 90x1500 mm) were manufactured by spraying with a water stabilized plasma gun. Mixtures of zircon (ZrSiO 4 ) and alumina (Al 2 O 3 ) were used as feedstock powders. Products made of these powders exhibit very good properties during thermal cycling. Previous results of the phase composition and phase changes were obtained from as-sprayed and annealed samples using X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy. During plasma spraying zircon decomposed into ZrO 2 and SiO 2 , which on impact and after rapid quenching formed a very fine eutectic mixture of tetragonal or monoclinic ZrO 2 and amorphous SiO 2 . During this process alumina, in feedstock as α-phase (corundum), formed the spinel γ-phase. On annealing the y-phase transformed into the a-phase, whereas amorphous SiO 2 crystallized and reacted with tetragonal ZrO 2 to form ZrSiO 4 . Mullite (3Al 2 O 3 .2SiO 2 ) was found at the highest annealing temperature of 1500°C when alumina reacted with SiO 2 . High temperature XRD was used for direct observation of phase changes during heating and cooling between room temperature and 1500°C in powdered as-sprayed deposits. This method confirmed the phase changes observed at room temperature in annealed samples, in particular the partial transformation of tetragonal to monoclinic ZrO 2 .

During plasma spraying in-flight particle characteristics are influenced by the many operating parameters associated with the deposition process. The distinctive temperature and velocity signals given by particles as they exit the plasma torch can be used to develop processing maps for defining the optimal operating envelope. Knowing the temperature and velocity history of the particles, the evolution of the microstructure, the amount of porosity and the phase composition can potentially be predicted. In this paper, the relationship of system parameters (stand-off distance, torch power, plasma gas composition and process gas flow) was correlated to in-flight particle characteristics of yttria stabilized zirconia and compared to the resulting coating features such as thickness, microstructure, porosity and phase composition. The appearance of the coating (i.e., color) was also compared after the deposition process. Yttria stabilized zirconia was deposited on grit blasted samples using an F4 (Sulzer Metco) plasma torch. Before depositing each sample on the substrate, the particle properties were measured at the desired stand off distance perpendicular to the particle jet covering an area of 18x18 mm 2 using the Tecnar DPV2000 inflight particle analyzer. The coatings were cross-sectioned for microstructure analysis, thickness measurements and deposition efficiency. Free standing films were used for mercury intrusion porosimetry. Grey levels of the coatings were obtained by optical microscopy and subsequent digital image recording. X-ray-diffraction analysis was also used to obtain the phase composition. Results showed that different particle temperature and velocity conditions lead to specific porosity and varying colors of the deposit. The color of the deposit was correlated directly to the amount of monoclinic phase in the as-deposit material.

La0.58Sr0.4Co0.2Fe0.8O3-δ (LSCF), deposited on a metallic porous support by means of plasma spray-physical vapor deposition (PS-PVD) is a promising candidate for oxygen-permeation membranes. However, after O2 permeation tests, membranes show vertical cracks leading to leakage during these tests. In this work, a feature leading to crack formation has been identified. More specifically; Membrane residual stress changes during thermal loading have been found to be related to a phase transformation in the support. In order to improve the performance of the membranes, the metallic support has been optimized by applying an appropriate heat treatment. Additionally, it has been found that coatings deposited at lower oxygen partial pressures consist of 70% cubic and 26% rhombohedral perovskite phases. This increases the non-stoichiometry, which drives the formation of non-perovskite phases during annealing, affecting the membrane stability and the ionic conductivity. The amount of oxygen added during spraying can be used to suppress the cubic to tetragonal phase transformation.

Hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings were deposited onto titanium alloy substrate using the microplasma spray (MPS) technique. The fractional-factorial experiment design method was employed to study the relationships between MPS parameters (amperage, plasma gas flow rate, spray distance and powder rate) and characteristics of HA coatings (microstructure, morphology, content of crystalline and amorphous phases, texture). Influence of coating thickness and the deposited coating heat treatment were evaluated also. The results show some peculiarities of HA coating formation in conditions of microplasma spraying process.

Mullite and mullite/ZrO 2 bi-layer systems are being considered as environment barrier coatings (EBCs) for protection of Si-based (Si 3 N 4 , SiC) substrates against water vapor corrosion for application in forthcoming turbine engines. An approach to reduce the thermal expansion mismatch between mullite and ZrO 2 layers in those coatings would be to tailor intermediate mullite/Y-ZrO 2 composite layers. The feasibility of these composite layers is studied in a comparative manner by plasma spraying both single mullite and bi-layer coatings of mullite and of mullite/ Y-ZrO 2 (75/25 vol %.) over Hexoloy SiC substrates. All feedstock materials are equally prepared using spray drying methods as the mix powders are not commercially available. Singular spraying conditions are used to assure enhanced crystallization of the mullite phase. Coatings are aged for 100 h at 1300 °C in a controlled water vapor environment. The effect of water corrosion on the exposed coatings is comparatively investigated, determining changes in crystalline phase by X-ray diffraction (XRD), the crystallization of amorphous phases is highlighted by the use of differential thermal analysis (DTA) tools and the microstructure of the polished coatings is analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Changes in phase composition of titania (TiO 2 ) coatings were studied with respect to in-flight particle characteristics during atmospheric plasma spraying. A CCD camera was used to record the average temperature and velocity of TiO 2 particles within the plasma jet for six combinations of spraying parameters selected according to Taguchi design of experiments. Phase composition of the coatings was assessed by means of X-ray diffractometry and numerically specified using Rietveld analysis. Changes in composition between the powders and coatings were observed with respect to the in-flight properties of the titania particles during spraying. In general, it was shown that the amount of impurity phases (hematite, quartz) present in the powder decreased after deposition and that in-flight temperature has only a moderate effect on the phase composition of TiO 2 coatings. For comparison purposes, additional coatings were deposited by cold spraying and phase composition changes were assessed.

Manufacturing of MnCo 2 O 4 spinel coatings by solution precursor plasma spraying (SPPS) was studied in order to produce thin ceramic coating on a ferritic stainless steel interconnect for SOFC’s. The main purpose to use MnCo 2 O 4 coating in SOFC devices is to prevent the migration of harmful CrO 3 and Cr 2 (OH) 2 compounds to the triple phase barriers (TPB) of the cathode. In this study Mn(NO 3 ) 2 •4H 2 O and Co(NO 3 ) 2 •6H 2 O were diluted to deionized water and mixture of deionized water and ethanol at 3 M mixture rate. The solutions were sprayed on 0.5 mm thick Crofer 22 APU substrate by Sulzer Metco F4-MB plasma gun with a modified solution feeder. Microstructural characterizations for the as-sprayed coatings were done by using a field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) with SE-mode. Elemental analyses were done with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and an X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used for crystallographic studies. The coating with full equivalence of the crystallographic structure of MnCo 2 O 4 spinel was sprayed using argon-helium plasma and water based solution. Plasma gas with hydrogen as a secondary or ternary gas and ethanol based solutions caused the formation of the mixed phases of CoO and MnCo 2 O 4 . Although the microstructures of sprayed coatings were still quite porous, the influence of relevant gun and solution parameters were found in order to improve coating denseness in further studies.

Environmental degradation of thermal barrier coatings (TBC) by molten deposits such as calcium magnesium alumino-silicates (CMAS) is one of the most vital factors resulting in the failure of thermal barrier coatings, while turbine engine inlet temperatures are kept increasing for higher fuel efficiency. A new phase composite ceramic had been developed and evaluated for the topcoat of a durable thermal barrier coating (TBC) system with low thermal conductivity property and improved erosion resistance. The present work is to continue the effort to exploring the behavior of CMAS resistance of the phase composite TBC at high temperatures. The effects of CMAS attack and thermal exposure on the TBC degradation were investigated in experimental runs. In addition, a YAG-modified layer over the top of the TBC was applied with the attempt to improve CMAS resistance of the TBC system. The evaluation of CMAS resistance was focused on the most important characteristics of coating microstructure, CMAS penetration, and failure mode and test condition factors. The mechanisms for the CMAS infiltration and the TBC damages were discussed based on the analyses of the CMAS corroded samples in details.

In this study, agglomerated nanocrystalline ZrO 2 --Y 2 O 3 powder was calcinated from 900 to 1300 °C for 2 h. The calcinated nanopowder was used as feedstock and deposited by air plasma spraying on a NiCoCr bond coat applied to a nickel substrate via low pressure plasma spraying. For comparison, conventional ZrO 2 -Y 2 O 3 topcoats were also produced. Nanostructured and conventional thermal barrier coatings were calcinated from 1050 to 1250 °C for 2-20 h. Experimental results indicate that monoclinic tetragonal phases in the agglomerated nanopowder were transformed into cubic phase after calcination. The cubic phase content increased with increasing calcination temperature. High temperature calcination can make the yttria segregated at grain boundaries dissolve in zirconia. Different from the phase constituent of the as-sprayed conventional TBC, which consisted of diffusionless transformed tetragonal, the as-sprayed nanostructured TBC consisted of cubic phase containing high yttria. No phase transformations were observed in either TBC after calcination.

In this work, silicon carbide coatings were fabricated by plasma spray-vapor deposition in order to study the effect of plasma gas mixtures on coating microstructure and phase composition. Coatings deposited by Ar-H 2 plasma gas were found to contain a composite phase of SiC and Si. Moreover, the content of Si increased with increasing H 2 content in the gas. The deposition of Si is possibly due to the reaction of C and hydrogen species in the plasma jet, which would explain why pure SiC coatings were obtained when Ar-N 2 gas was used.

Conducted are investigations of powders for plasma spray of wear resistant coatings. Studied are shape, relief and particle size of NiCr-Fe+50(80)%Cr 3 C 2 , NiCr-Fe+50(80)%SiC powders using scanning electron microscopy. Investigations is supplemented by the results of X-ray structural studies. Investigations serve to develop coatings with the improved oil trap capability, increased hardness and wear resistance, sprayed by a plasma jet. The developed coatings will be used to restore and strengthen machines components

Non-oxide ceramics, such as silicon nitride, have a unique combination of high strength, toughness, wear resistance, thermal and chemical stability. However, the use of these materials as thick protective coatings on engineering components has been severely restricted by their decomposition behavior. Silicon nitride, for instance, does not melt but decomposes at ~1900oC and so thermal spraying of pure silicon nitride powder is impracticable. A limited amount of research has been carried out on depositing silicon nitride in various metallic or ceramic matrix materials but none have produced adequate coating microstructures or coating properties. This paper concerns the design of oxide matrix systems for silicon nitride composite coatings. A quantitative model is developed for the viscous flow of two-phase feedstock particles on impact with the substrate and is applied to the deposition of silicon nitride – ceramic matrix coatings. A number of matrix systems are investigated including a series of yttria-alumina and yttria-alumina -silica compositions. The research shows that the oxide matrices successfully protect the silicon nitride from decomposition but that the matrix composition and particle loading have a critical influence on splat flow and coating quality.

Metal Matrix Composites (MMCs) are seeing increased use in tribological applications where hardness, toughness and wear resistance are required. Already such qualities have been included within composite coatings by methods such as electrochemical deposition. In this study the feasibility of including diamond as the hard phase in MMC’s using thermal spraying processes has been investigated. In this work the application specifically targeted is that of hard facing for sub sea drill bits, where the coatings experience a harsh environment of high stress abrasion, erosion and corrosion. The coatings were investigated in terms of their microstructure (light microscope, SEM), their elemental composition using EDX and XRD to identify retention of diamond and phases in the coatings, their hardness and abrasion resistance. Preliminary results show that it is possible to produce a hard facing diamond composite coating with good distribution of the diamond phase and little degradation of the diamond during the spraying and that diamond MMCs (DMMC) have potential for improving durability in drill bits. Diamond/metal powder mixture is sprayed onto the surface using an oxyacetylene torch.

NiAl-Al 2 O 3 intermetallics based composite coatings were prepared by cold spraying of Ni/Al-Al 2 O 3 composite powders followed by post-spraying annealing treatment. The phase transformation mechanism from Ni/Al mechanical alloy to intermetallics was explored to aim at controlling the microstructure of the composite coating. Results showed that, with the porous Ni/Al and Ni/Al-Al 2 O 3 green compacts, self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) reaction was ignited at a temperature of 500-600°C. However, SHS reaction was not able to be ignited for the cold-sprayed dense Ni/Al alloy coating with or without substrate. SHS reaction was even not ignited for the Ni/Al-40vol.%Al 2 O 3 composite coating, although the thermal conductivity of the coating was significantly decreased by the addition of Al 2 O 3 ceramic particles. The phase transformation from Ni/Al mechanical alloy to NiAl intermetallics during post-spraying annealing can be evidently attributed to diffusion mechanism.

The present work deals with numerical simulations based on a computational heat transfer model for spherical composite particles typically used under plasma conditions. Results describe heat transfer in mono and two layers steel/alumina particles immersed in an uniform infinite plasma. Time dependent behaviours interacting with phase change occurrence and taking into account the contact quality between the two layers are considered.

In this study, suspension plasma spraying is used to deposit pseudo eutectic alumina-yttria stabilized zirconia as a potential thermal barrier coating. Process variables including feed rate, powder size, and plasma gas composition were altered to determine the influence of spray parameters on the formation of phases in the composite coating. The most significant variable was found to be the auxiliary gas. The gas influences the formation of phases primarily through its effect on in-flight particle velocity.

Thermally sprayed titanium suboxide (TiOx) coatings are widely used in industrial applications due to their good tribological properties and their electrical conductivity. These properties are mainly dependent on the amount of oxygen in the crystal lattice. Oxygen defects lead to the formation of so-called Magnéli phases. The range of applications is limited by the fact that TiOx tends to reoxidize in many service conditions, especially at elevated temperatures. Also, the extreme conditions in the flame or torch used in the thermal spray process lead to undefined phase changes and defects. In the TiO 2 -Cr 2 O 3 system, Magnéli phases are also formed, but it is assumed that the properties do not change due to oxidation during spraying and subsequent use. This work shows the possibilities of the new coating materials. Powders with different TiO 2 and Cr 2 O 3 contents and prepared by different technologies were used for the investigation of coating properties. Experimental powders with defined phase compositions were prepared. The powders were thermally sprayed and the coatings investigated in terms of phase composition, microstructure, hardness, and abrasion wear resistance.