Many properties (thermal, electrical, mechanical) of thermal sprayed coatings are strongly linked to the real contacts between the “piled-up” splats. The quality of this contact depends on droplet parameters at impact (size, temperature, velocity) and substrate parameters (temperature, topography). Two different techniques have been developed in order to study the plasma sprayed particle behaviour at impact. The first one allows direct observation under direct current (dc) plasma spray conditions, while the latter one, based on the millimetre sized free falling drop, enables the visualization of flattening phenomena, but at larger scale. These two techniques bring complementary approaches and results. The latter show that flattening time and cooling rate of the lamellae (metallic and ceramic) are improved with the stainless steel substrate surface modification at the nanoscale when corresponding to a positive skewness parameter obtained by preheating it over the transition temperature. Experiments of wettability show that the presence of nanopeaks increases the contact angle of the liquid on the substrates and reduces thermal contact resistance at interface. It has also been shown that, when adsorbates and condensates are not eliminated from the surface, even with a positive skewness, the thermal contact resistance is increased.

In plasma spraying, the individual droplet behavior at impact is the fundamental element to understand the resulting coating microstructure. A new experimental set-up, developed in SPCTS laboratory (Limoges, F) with two fast shutter cameras (exposure time : 100 ns…1ms) allows visualisation at impact of a single particle plasma sprayed with a direct current (d.c) torch. A fast two color pyrometer enables to monitor particle temperature just prior to its impact, its flattening and its thermal history. Working in parallel with a free falling drop experiment, enables to obtain larger (about three orders of magnitude) time and dimension scale (realized in Advanced Joining Process Laboratory, Toyohashi, J). Each technique gives interesting and complementary results thanks to pyrometric signals and images. Results obtained with plasma sprayed particles allow studying the matter ejections generated on impact splashing .while both techniques allow following the flattening splashing. Calculation and comparison of quenching rates for millimetre sized drops on a stainless steel substrate give indications concerning the disk shaped splat formation.

This paper is devoted to an experimental investigation of the different splashing phenomena (impact and flattening) when a plasma sprayed single particle impacts on a flat smooth substrate. This research is carried out using an imaging technique with a fast CCD camera aimed either parallel to the substrate for impact splashing or almost orthogonal to it for flattening splashing. The correlation of the image with the results of a set up allowing to determine particle in flight parameters just prior to their impact allows a better understanding of the splashing processes.