Infection caused by bacterial contamination is a critical problem challenging the successful use of medical implants in orthopaedic and dental applications. Consequently, medical implants with antibacterial abilities are in high demand. Tantalum and silver have been previously characterized to have excellent biocompatibility and antibacterial ability, but due to their significantly different properties, it is challenging to manufacture Ta-Ag components via thermal processing methods. Herein, by taking advantage of the unique characteristics of cold spray (CS) technology, an antibacterial Ta-Ag coating was successfully fabricated for the first time. In the CS process, blended Ta-Ag powders with different Ag concentrations were used to fabricate CS Ta-Ag coatings. Their antibacterial ability was preliminary tested and deposition behaviour was systematically investigated. The coating significantly reduced the metabolic activity of S. aureus bacteria, and a better deposition efficiency was obtained by blended Ta-Ag powder. It was found that soft Ag could aggregate in the coating and hard Ta particles were prone to rebound, which induced the peening effect for Ag and mass loss of Ta in the final coating Moreover, the clue of metallurgy bonding between Ta and Ag was detected in the region that experienced severe deformation despite their immiscibility.

This study demonstrates a two-step laser cladding process for copper substrates in which cold spraying is used as a powder preplacing method to overcome problems associated with the high laser reflectivity of copper as well as the effects of high-temperature oxidation. In the first step of the process, Inconel powders are cold sprayed onto pure copper, producing a layer with a thickness of about 250 μm and a porosity of 0.88%. This is followed by a 3.5 kW laser remelting treatment using a 1030 nm laser with a spot size of 2.5 mm. Examination and testing of the as-sprayed and remelted layers show how the laser treatment improves coating microstructure, hardness, density, and metallurgical bonding.

In this work, hot isostatic pressing (HIP) is used to reduce interior defects, adjust the microstructure, and improve the tensile properties of cold-sprayed Ti6Al4V. Optical microscope and X-ray tomography were used to characterize pore morphologies and porosity evolution. XCT reconstructions show that fully dense Ti6Al4V alloy with an equiaxed microstructure were achieved. Tensile testing shows that strength and ductility were improved as well because of enhanced diffusion and resultant metallurgical bonding.

In this work, the bonding mechanism between Cu particle and substrates of Mg, Cu and stainless Steel (SS) was investigated by the direct observation of bonding interface on detached particle and substrate crater. In the cases of Cu/Cu and Cu/SS, dimple-like fractures were found on the detached Cu particle and substrate crater for the first time. Accompanying with EDS line scan and mapping results, such dimple fractures can be considered as the signs of strong metallurgical bonding. However, the bonding interface in case of Cu/Mg is smooth without signs of metallurgical bonding. Finite element analysis results revealed a ring of high contact pressure zone on the surface of particle and substrate, which is exactly the place where metallurgical bonding was observed. It can suggest that the high contact pressure zone is the dominant factor for the formation of metallurgical bonding on the oxide-free interface. The evolution of maximum contact pressure in different cases shows that the substrate hardness plays an important role during the single particle bonding. The present study provides a profound insight into the bonding mechanism of a single cold sprayed particle, which can give the guidance to the full deposition of cold sprayed coating.

For fabrication of high strength carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforced Al matrix composites, the uniform dispersion, strong interface bonding and high structural integrity of CNTs have been regard as the three most important issues. In this work, two distinct approaches, namely high shear dispersion (HSD) and shift-speed ball milling (SSBM), were applied to disperse CNTs (1.5 wt.%) into pure Al powders. These two kinds of CNTs/Al composite powders as well as pure Al powders (as comparison) were deposited onto stainless steel plates under the same processing parameters. The deposition efficiency, microstructure, as well as the structural integrity of CNTs in the coatings produced from different starting powders were comparatively investigated. According to the XRD and Raman analysis, the brittle Al 4 C 3 phase was not formed in both CNTs/Al composite coatings. Some structural damages of CNTs were found in both composite coatings, especially the one fabricated from HSD composite powder. The dispersion of CNTs onto Al particle surfaces by HSD approach did not achieve significant strengthening effect on the composite coatings, but adversely affect the metallic bonding of the particles. The microhardness of CNTs/Al composite coating produced from SSBM powders reached to ~115 HV0.1, showing a significant improvement compared to the pure Al coating. The strengthening mechanisms of the cold sprayed CNTs/Al composite coatings were also investigated.

This paper aims at improving the adhesive strength of SS 316L coating by substrate preheating (400, 600 and 700°C). The relationships between the adhesive strength of coating/substrate interface and the substrate preheating temperature are discussed. It was found that stronger adhesion is able to occur despite the presence of a thick oxide film on the substrate surface. The preheated substrate surface undergoes a stronger plastic deformation that disrupts the oxide films for obtaining an intimate contact between particle and substrate material. In addition, the oxide films on the substrate surface can prevent the generation of material jet of the substrate. The effects of substrate preheating on the microstructure and hardness were also investigated.