The aim of the study presented in this paper was to develop the next generation of production ready air plasma sprayed thermal barrier coating with a low conductivity and long lifetime. In order to achieve these goals; a number of coating architectures were produced using commercially available plasma spray guns. Modifications were made to powder chemistry including; high purity powders for sintering resistance, Dysprosia stabilised Zirconia powders and powders containing porosity formers. Agglomerated & Sintered (A&S) and Hollow Oven Spherical Powder (HOSP) morphologies were used to attain beneficial microstructures. Finally, dual layer coatings were produced using the different powder morphologies. Evaluation of the thermal conductivity of the coating systems from room temperature to 1200°C was conducted using laser flash technique. Tests were done on as-sprayed samples and samples heat treated for 100 hours at 1150°C in order to evaluate the first stage sintering resistance of the coating systems. Thermal conductivity results were correlated to coating microstructure using image analysis of porosity and crack content. The results show the influence of beneficial porosity on reducing the thermal conductivity of the produced coatings.

Thermal barrier coatings were produced using both Ar and N 2 as the primary plasma gas. Various aspects of the process and the coatings were investigated. It was found that higher in-flight particle temperatures could be produced using N 2 , but particle velocities were lower. Deposition efficiencies could be increased by a factor of two by using N 2 as compared to Ar. Coatings having similar values of porosity, hardness, Young’s modulus and thermal diffusivity could be produced using the two primary gases. The coatings exhibited similar changes (increased hardness, stiffness and thermal diffusivity) when heat-treated at 1400°C. The results point to the potential advantage, in terms of reduced powder consumption and increased production rate, of using N 2 as compared to Ar as the primary plasma gas for TBC deposition.

Abradable seals have been used in jet engines since the late 1960's. Today abradable seals are seeing applications not only in low pressure and high pressure sections of the compressor but also in the high pressure turbine module of jet engines and are gaining ever more attention in industrial gas turbines. Thermal spraying is a relative simple and cost effective means to apply abradable seals. These work by minimizing gaps between rotating and stationary components by allowing the rotating parts to cut into the stationary ones. The types of coatings employed are zirconia based abradable material systems with polymer and, in some cases, hexagonal boron nitride additions. The coatings are designed to work at service temperatures of up to 1200 °C. The objective of this paper is to review various types of commercial and experimental ceramic abradable systems and to assess their performance profiles. The paper will review yttria stabilized zirconia based systems with modified polymer additions and with variable particle sizes of the ceramic phase. Alternative stabilizers and their influence on key coating properties such as thermal shock resistance and abradability will be studied. The paper will also review the influence of plasma spray parameters on coating properties and study the general influence of coating porosity on coating erosion properties and abradability.

Factors affecting the appearance of 7~8 wt.% yttria stabilized zirconia thermal barrier coatings were investigated. The coating appearance can be separated into two aspects, darkening and coloring. Coating darkening is related to the retaining of off-stoichiometric zirconium oxide (ZrO 2 -x) or yttrium oxide (Y 2 O 3 -x). These off-stoichiometric oxides are stable at temperatures between 2300 °C and 2700 °C. Rapid cooling of these oxides leads to the retaining of them in the as-sprayed coatings. A heat treatment in air at temperatures higher than 500 °C transforms these off-stoichiometric oxides to stoichiometric oxides and therefore eliminates the coating darkening effect. Coloring of TBCs is attributed to the existence of impurity oxides. Coatings made from the ultra high purity powder, Z204NS, do not exhibit coloring phenomenon before or after heat treatment. As-sprayed coatings made from premium purity (M204NS) or regular purity (A204NS-1) powders exhibit metastable coloring effect. A 1-hour heat treatment at 500 °C can eliminate the metastable colors and turn the coating color back to the color of the starting powder.

The influence of secondary hydrogen and current on the deposition efficiency (DE) and microstructure properties of yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) coatings was evaluated. In order to better understand the influence of the spray process on coating consistency, an YSZ powder, -125+44 µm, was sprayed with nitrogen/hydrogen parameters and a 9MB gun. DE and coating porosity produced using two different spray gun conditions yielding the same input power were compared. Amperage was allowed to vary between 500 A and 560 A and hydrogen was adjusted in order to maintain constant power, while nitrogen flow was kept at a fixed level. Several power conditions, ranging from 32 to 39 kW, were tested. Different injection geometries, i.e., radial with and without a backward component, were also compared. The latter was found to produce higher in-flight temperatures due to a longer residence time of the powder particles in the hotter portion of the plasma. Porosity was based on cross-sectional photomicrographs. In-flight particle temperature and velocity measurements were also carried out with the DPV-2000 for each condition. Test results showed that DE and coating density could vary significantly when a different hydrogen flow rate was used in order to maintain constant input power. On the other hand, DE was found to correlate very well with the temperature of the in-flight particles. Therefore, to obtain more consistent and reproducible DE and microstructures, it is preferable to maintain constant the in-flight particle temperature instead of keeping the input power constant by adjusting the secondary hydrogen flow rate for obtaining more consistent and reproducible DE and microstructures.

Two 7-8 wt% yttria-stabilized zirconia powders of similar size and chemistry but having different microstructure properties and manufacturing routes were studied. One significant difference was the density and internal porosity of the starting powders. Deposition efficiency (DE) of the low density (LD) powder was found to be higher and less sensitive to changes in the spray process parameters than the high density (HD) powder. Probing the in-flight particle characteristics with the DPV- 2000 made it possible to link the observed DE values with the in-flight particle temperature. For each powder, DE was found to depend mainly on a single variable, the in-flight particle temperature. DE was found to vary strongly with particle temperature for temperatures under 2700°C, whereas the dependence with particle temperature was much less important above 2700°C. Variations in DE seemed to evolve according to variations of the melted fraction of the sprayed material. Since the LD powder was found to achieve higher particle temperatures at given spray conditions, DE was found to be higher for the LD material and the range of variations in DE was found to be much less than that observed with the HD material. Examination of the coating microstructures revealed that a coating produced with the LD powder had slightly higher porosity than that produced with the HD powder at similar inflight parameters. Spraying at higher in-flight particle temperature or velocity, which resulted in higher and more robust DE values, tended to yield coatings with lower porosity, resulting in coating density exceeding the tolerance range specified by some end-users. Increasing the powder feed rate and using conditions that produced a higher in-flight particle temperature were found to increase the porosity up to an acceptable level without significantly degrading DE. Therefore, a solution was found that not only reduced the sensitivity of DE to changes in the spraying conditions but also increased the rate of production by reducing the time required to spray the part.

Atmospheric plasma sprayed thermal barrier coatings have been used for years in manufacturing as well as revision and repair. This paper provides an overview of recent advancements in TBC technology and discusses the factors with the greatest impact on coating life, reliability, and performance. Paper includes a German-language abstract.

Tungsten carbide-cobalt coatings are extensively used to protect surfaces from wear in many types of applications, such as compressor piston rods, pump plungers, shaft sleeves on centrifugal pumps and fans, and midspans of compressor blades in gas turbines. The wear behavior in any application is strongly influenced by the basic physical and mechanical properties of such coatings. Fracture toughness as a mechanical property indicates the resistance to fracture in the presence of a sharp crack, and thus provides a measure of the intrinsic strength of the cemented carbides coatings. In this study, Vickers indentation tests have been used to quantify the in-plane fracture behavior of various WC-based coatings deposited by the High Velocity Oxy-Fuel (HVOF) spray process. The indentation cracks are analyzed in terms of standardized relations that utilize radial-median crack geometries. It is shown that the fracture properties of HVOF WC-Co coatings are anisotropic, and depend strongly on the microstructure and composition of the coatings. The crack propagation is determined by the porosity, binder mean free path, and the shape, size, and distribution of the reinforcing carbide particles. The erosion resistances of the coatings have also been discussed as a function of the fracture properties and mechanisms. It is shown, in this study, that the Vickers indentation method is a useful and convenient technique for determining the in-plane fracture toughness of HVOF sprayed WC-based coatings.

This paper compares the coating characteristics of two HVOF processes: air-cooled converging-nozzle Diamond Jet (DJ) spraying and Hybrid 2600 air/water-cooled converging/diverging technology. WC-Co coatings were deposited on steel substrates using different combinations of spray parameters, gas flow ratios, and cooling gas types. The coatings were then examined and tested to determine the extent to which microstructure, hardness, surface roughness, wear resistance, and deposition efficiency can be controlled. In addition to investigating process relationships, the paper also addresses the issues of practicality and cost.

A new low-cost chromium carbide-nickel chrome powder has been developed. Potential applications for these powders include hard-chrome replacement, boiler tubes and turbine engine components. The erosive and abrasive wear properties of the deposited coatings have been found comparable to commercially available nickel-chromium based carbide materials. A significant advantage of these powders is higher deposition efficiency and carbon retention when coatings are deposited using HVOF thermal spray equipment. Results indicate deposition efficiencies up to 50% higher than commercially available carbide powders in the market today. Higher deposition efficiency effectively reduces the application costs allowing these materials to be competitive in a wider range of applications. Powder characteristics and the application costs data are included in this paper. Also discussed are microstructure-property relationships of the various coatings. Data including abrasive slurry wear, hardness, high- and low-angle erosion and superfinished surface finish is reported. Comparisons have been made to commercially available chemical clad and blended CrC-NiCr powders.

Very many gap-sealing products are now available for use in the compressor section of gas turbines. This paper attempts to give an overview of these and where they are best used. Data is presented for abradability, erosion resistance and application technique. By explaining how abradables function tribologically it is hoped that selection will be simpler for designers. New products are introduced as well as the way forward described. It is shown how with time the diversity of application techniques has decreased with thermal spraying becoming the preferred technique, and that abradables are now available to run against titanium blading up to 600°C.

HVOF-sprayed stainless steel coatings are potential candidates for protection against water corrosion. However, the process parameter "window" leading to acceptable corrosion behavior has yet to be determined. With potentiodynamic tests, this paper examines the corrosion behavior of metallic, thermally sprayed coatings under carefully controlled conditions in order to gain an insight into their performance "in service". The influence of the variations in the fuel:oxygen ratio, in the total gas volume and in the spraying distance, on the corrosion process of HVOF-sprayed stainless steel coatings on steel substrates with a low carbon content is determined by means of potentiodynamic measurements. The results are correlated with a characterization of the microstructure to understand the influence and role of oxide content, porosity, and coating morphology. Some comparisons with VPS coatings are also made. Paper includes a German-language abstract.

This paper describes the development of novel engineered surfaces based on thermal spray coatings for sliding wear resistance under conditions of high loading and starved lubrication. As specific examples, piston ring elements for internal combustion engines and radial bearings for medium-lubricated pumps are discussed. The properties of two coatings, SUME SOL 220 and SUME SOL 320, are compared with existing materials and coatings. It was found that SUME SOL 220 exhibited excellent sliding wear resistance under boundary (oil) lubrication. As a consequence, they are considered as attractive candidates for piston ring applications in heavy duty engines. For more corrosive applications, such as encountered in sea water environments, the SUME SOL 320 coating exhibited superior combinations of sliding wear and corrosion resistance. Paper includes a German-language abstract.

Air separation plants employ centrifugal compressors where air and electrical energy are the only raw materials used in the production process. In order to optimize compressor performance and efficiency, abradable coatings, originally developed for gas turbines, have been designed into turbocompressors. This paper describes the optimization and performance improvements achievable using aluminium silicon-boron nitride materials.