This paper describes the basic design and operation of a low-pressure plasma spraying (LPPS) system in use at Sandia National Laboratories. To demonstrate the versatility of the system, Sandia engineers, working in collaboration with the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, produced thin (< 100 μm), dense yttria-stabilized zirconia coatings using three deposition mechanisms: liquid droplet, vapor, and mixed mode (vapor and droplet). Despite slight differences in equipment configuration, the work duplicates many of the results obtained in previous investigations, confirming the advantages of LPPS over other thin film deposition techniques.

Use of graded coatings is a well-known strategy for creating materials with continuously changing physical properties. The stiffness (modulus of elasticity) and density of flyer plates used in light gas gun testing directly influences the shape of the shock wave produced by the flyer plate. Many strategies exist for creating flyer plates that produce variable shock profiles, including stacked foils and powder compaction. We have investigated graded thermal spray coatings as an alternative method for creating flyer plates that produce variable shock profiles. An initial proof of concept demonstration has been completed by air plasma spraying a graded coating of Cu & Al onto a copper substrate. This composite flyer plate was tested in a light gas gun to demonstrate that a non-linear shock profile can be created. The plasma spray strategies used to create a group of similar graded density impactors are discussed. Initial light gas gun testing shows that graded density impactors can be created using thermal spray coatings.