The effect of hardware on operating parameters and the resultant coating are qualitatively known; however, the quantitative effects have not been well defined. This study quantitatively characterizes particle temperature and velocity for the Sulzer-Metco 6P oxy-acetylene torch with 3 different nozzles and 3 air caps and also, the Alamo PG-550 then relates those data to particle diagnostics, deposition efficiency and coating microstructure. Both torches were evaluated using statistically designed experiments where the process inputs of oxy-fuel ratio, total combustible gas flow, and standoff distance were varied. Both torches can access similar regions of particle temperature - particle velocity space. Increasing total combustible gas flow increased particle velocity with little effect on particle temperature. Increasing oxy-fuel ratio decreased particle temperature with little effect on particle velocity. Higher particle velocity and particle temperature conditions yielded denser, less porous coatings. Flame cooling air caps increase the particle speed while decreasing particle temperature. Nozzles which inject powder directly into the flame jets significantly increase particle temperature as compared to nozzles which do not. Deposition efficiency is shown to not only be affected by particle temperature and particle velocity where hotter and faster usually increase efficiency, but is also dependent on the distribution of particles within the plume.

The effect of torch hardware, operating parameters, and powder type on substrate surface heat flux was quantitatively investigated using calorimeters. The Sulzer-Metco 6P oxyacetylene torch with two nozzles and two air caps and the Alamo PG-550 torch were studied using designed experiments to show the effects of total combustible gas flow, oxy-fuel ratio, air flow, and standoff distance on surface heat flux. Air caps which directed cooling air toward the flame produced lower heat flux than air caps providing gun cooling. For the 6P torch, nozzle geometry did not have a significant effect on heat flux. With low air flow rates, both torches exhibited similar heat fluxes. At high air flows, the surface heat flux of the PG-550 was larger than that of the 6P.

Cold spray, a new member of the thermal spray process family, can be used to prepare dense, thick metal coatings. It has tremendous potential as a spray forming process. However, it is well known that significant cold work occurs during the cold spray deposition process. This cold work results in hard coatings but relatively brittle bulk deposits. We have investigated the mechanical properties of cold sprayed aluminum and the effect of annealing on those properties. Cold spray coatings approximately one centimeter thick were prepared using three different feedstock powders: Valimet H-10, Valimet H-20, and Broadman Flomaster. ASTM E8 tensile specimens were machined from these coatings and tested using standard tensile testing procedures. Each material was tested in two conditions: as-sprayed and after a 300°C, 22 h air anneal. The as-sprayed material showed high ultimate strength and low ductility, < 1% elongation. The annealed samples showed a reduction in ultimate strength but a dramatic increase in ductility, up to 10% elongation. The annealed samples exhibited mechanical properties similar to wrought 1100 H14 aluminum. Microstructural examination and fractography clearly showed a change in fracture mechanism between the as-sprayed and annealed material. These results indicate good potential for cold spray as a bulk forming process.

Cold spray is a new coating technique that does not involve significant heating of the sprayed material. Thus, it can be used to deposit thermally sensitive materials. Due to the fact that complex processes, such as combustion and ionization of the process gas are avoided, cold spray becomes very amenable to analytical modeling. To deposit with high efficiency, and to yield low porosity and high bond strength coatings, developers of the cold spray process have tried to maximize the impact velocity. Earlier studies have clearly shown that low molecular weight gases, long nozzles, high gas temperatures and pressures yield high impact velocities. Use of smaller particles of low-density materials also can increase the impact velocity. However, there is a limit to the gains that can be obtained with smaller particles due to the deceleration of the particles in the near stagnant region in front of the substrate. This study analytically estimates the optimum particle size in terms of other input values. To investigate the conventional wisdom that a higher impact velocity results in a better coating, a small experimental program was initiated. Experimental results clearly demonstrate the advantages of high impact velocities. These results confirm that the deposition efficiency, bond strength, porosity and surface roughness are all improved as the impact velocity increases. Limited experimental data also demonstrate that some coating properties depend not only on the particle impact velocity but also the particle impact temperature. The bond strength showed a dramatic increase when the particle impact temperature was increased. Small improvements were also observed for the deposition efficiency and the porosity.

Electroplated nickel can be used to fabricate miniature components such as gears, linkages, and other two-dimensional mechanical structures. This process produces excellent parts, but it is slow and somewhat expensive. Because cold spray produces low oxide-content, high-density deposits at a high rate, cold spray processing might be a viable alternative to electroplated nickel components. In addition, cold gas-dynamic spray can process materials, such as stainless steel and aluminum, which can not be electroplated. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the mechanical properties of cold spray nickel in the as-sprayed and heat treated conditions, then compare them to those of bulk nickel and electroplated nickel. Characterization of freestanding structures is subjective since the final product of any thermal spray process produces a material unlike any other material formed by conventional techniques. Specifically, this investigation determines the mechanical characteristics of nickel, through metallographic imaging and tension testing. Metallographic imaging showed that as-sprayed nickel has slightly more voids than the heat-treated structures. Tension tests of the as-sprayed nickel showed little plastic behavior, while a heat treatment gives much more ductility without compromising ultimate strength.

This is the first paper of a two part series based on an integrated study carried out at Sandia National Laboratories and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The aim of the study is to develop a more fundamental understanding of plasma-particle interactions, droplet-substrate interactions, deposit formation dynamics and microstructural development as well as final deposit properties. The purpose is to create models that can be used to link processing to performance. Process maps have been developed for air plasma spray of molybdenum. Experimental work was done to investigate the importance of such spray parameters as gun current, auxiliary gas flow, and powder carrier gas flow. In-flight particle diameters, temperatures, and velocities were measured in various areas of the spray plume. Samples were produced for analysis of microstructures and properties. An empirical model was developed, relating the input parameters to the in-flight particle characteristics. Multi-dimensional numerical simulations of the plasma gas flow field and in-flight particles under different operating conditions were also performed. In addition to the parameters which were experimentally investigated, the effect of particle injection velocity was also considered. The simulation results were found to be in good general agreement with the experimental data.

This is the second paper of a two part series based on an integrated study carried out at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and Sandia National Laboratories. The goal of the study is the fundamental understanding of the plasma-particle interaction, droplet/substrate interaction, deposit formation dynamics and microstructure development as well as the deposit properties. The outcome is science-based relationships, which can be used to link processing to performance. Molybdenum splats and coatings produced at three plasma conditions and three substrate temperatures were characterized. It was found that there is a strong mechanical /thermal interaction between droplet and substrate, which builds up the coating/substrate adhesion. Hardness, thermal conductivity increase, oxygen content and porosity decreases with increase of particle velocity. Increasing deposition temperature resulted in dramatic improvement in coating thermal conductivity and hardness as well as increase in coating oxygen content. Indentation reveals improved fracture resistance for the coatings prepared at higher deposition temperature. Residual stress was significantly affected by deposition temperature, although not to a great extent by particle conditions within the investigated parameter range. Coatings prepared at high deposition temperature with high-energy particles suffered considerably less damage in a wear test. The mechanism behind these changes is discussed within the context relational maps which is under development.

The conditions of particle injection into the side of plasma jets play an important role in determining the microstructure and properties of sprayed deposits. However, few investigations have been carried out on this topic. The current work presents the results of an experimental and computational study of the influence of injector geometry and gas mass flow rate on particle dynamics at injector exit and in the plasma jet. Two injector geometries were tested: a straight tube and a curved tube with various radii of curvature. Zirconia powders with different particle size range and morphology were used. A possible size segregation effect in the injector was analyzed from the space distribution of particles collected on a stick tape. The spray pattern in the plasma jet was monitored from the thermal radiation emitted by particles. An analysis of the particle behavior in the injector and mixing of the carrier-gas flow with the plasma jet was carried out using a 3-D computational fluids dynamics code.

It is widely held that most of the oxidation in thermally sprayed coatings occurs on the surface of the droplet after it has flattened. The evidence in this paper suggests that, for the conditions studied here, oxidation of the top surface of flattened droplets is not the dominant oxidation mechanism. In this study, a mild steel wire (AISI 1025) was sprayed using a high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) torch onto copper and aluminum substrates. Ion milling and Auger spectroscopy were used to examine the distribution of oxides within individual splats. Conventional metallographic analysis was also used to study oxide distributions within coatings that were sprayed under the same conditions. An analytical model for oxidation of the exposed surface of a splat is presented. Based on literature data, the model assumes that diffusion of iron through a solid FeO layer is the rate limiting factor in forming the oxide on the top surface of a splat. An FeO layer only a few thousandths of a micron thick is predicted to form on the splat surface as it cools. However, the experimental evidence shows that the oxide layers are typically 100x thicker than the predicted value. These thick, oxide layers are not always observed on the top surface of a splat. Indeed, in some instances the oxide layer is on the bottom, and the metal is on the top. The observed oxide distributions are more consistently explained if most of the oxide formed before the droplets impact the substrate.

The partially stabilized zirconia powders used to plasma spray thermal barrier coatings typically exhibit broad particle-size distributions. There are conflicting reports in the literature about the extent of injection-induced particle-sizing effects in air plasma-sprayed materials. If significant spatial separation of finer and coarser particles in the jet occurs, then one would expect it to play an important role in determining the microstructure and properties of deposits made from powders containing a wide range of particle sizes. This paper presents the results of a study in which a commercially available zirconia powder was fractionated into fine, medium, and coarse cuts and sprayed at the same torch conditions used for the ensemble powder. Diagnostic measurements of particle surface temperature, velocity, and number-density distributions in the plume for each size-cut and for the ensemble powder are reported. Deposits produced by traversing the torch back and forth to produce a raised bead were examined metallographically to study their shape and location with respect to the torch centerline and to look at their internal microstructure. The results show that, for the torch conditions used in this study, the fine, medium, and coarse size-cuts all followed the same mean trajectory. No measurable particle segregation effects were observed. Considerable differences in coating microstructure were observed. These differences can be explained by the different particle properties measured in the plume.

MoSi 2 provides good high temperature oxidation and corrosion resistance. However, the lower silicides such as MosSis do not provide such resistance. In this study, atmosphereic plasma sprayed (APS) MoSi 2 particle temperatures and velocities were measured under various torch conditions chosen to span the majority of typically utilized spray parameters. Empirical models of particle temperature and velocity were computed from the data. Three spray conditions were chosen to produce high, medium and low particle temperatures and velocities. Coatings produced under these spray conditions were characterized by profile tracing, quantitative x-ray diffraction, and SEM analysis. The Mo 5 Si 3 level in the coatings ranged from 5% to 8% while the Mo 5 Si 3 level in the starting powder was 0.6%. Particle size, particle trajectory, and torch parameters were found to be important factors in the Si loss process when APS depositing MoSi 2 .

The fluid and particle dynamics of a High-Velocity Oxygen-Fuel Thermal Spray torch are analyzed using computational and experimental techniques. Three-dimensional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) results are presented for a curved aircap used for coating interior surfaces such as engine cylinder bores. The device analyzed is similar to the Metco Diamond Jet Rotating Wire (DJRW) torch. The feed gases are injected through an axisymmetric nozzle into the curved aircap. Premixed propylene and oxygen are introduced from an annulus in the nozzle, while cooling air is injected between the nozzle and the interior wall of the aircap. The combustion process is modeled using a single-step finite- rate chemistry model with a total of 9 gas species which includes dissociation of combustion products. A continually-fed steel wire passes through the center of the nozzle and melting occurs at a conical tip near the exit of the aircap. Wire melting is simulated computationally by injecting liquid steel particles into the flow field near the tip of the wire. Experimental particle velocity measurements during wire feed were also taken using a Laser Two-Focus (L2F) velocimeter system. Flow fields inside and outside the aircap are presented and particle velocity predictions are compared with experimental measurements outside of the aircap.