Comparison Between High-Velocity Suspension Flame Spraying and Suspension Plasma Spraying of Alumina

Two different spray processes??suspension plasma spraying (SPS) and high-velocity suspension flame spraying (HVSFS)??are under focus in the field of suspension spraying. Both techniques are suitable for manufacturing finely structured coatings. The differences in the particle velocity and temperature of these two processes cause varying coating characteristics. The high particle velocity of the HVSFS process leads to more dense coatings with low porosity values. Coatings with a higher and also homogeneous porosity, which can be generated by SPS, have also high potential, for example, for thermal barrier coatings. In this study, both the processes??SPS and HVSFS??were compared using alumina as feedstock material mixed with different solvents. Besides the characterization of the microstructure and phase composition of the applied coatings, the focus of this study was the investigation of the melting behavior of the particles in-flight and of single splat characteristics.     

Influence of Plasma Instabilities in Ceramic Suspension Plasma Spraying

Direct current Suspension Plasma Spraying (SPS) allows depositing finely structured coatings. This article presents an analysis of the influence of plasma instabilities on the yttria-stabilized suspension drops fragmentation. A particular attention is paid to the treatment of suspension jet or drops according to the importance of voltage fluctuations (linked to those of the arc root) and depending on the different spray parameters such as the plasma forming gas mixture composition and mass flow rate and the suspension momentum. By observing the suspension drops injection with a fast shutter camera and a laser flash sheet triggered by a defined transient voltage level of the plasma torch, the influence of plasma fluctuations on jet or drops fragmentation is studied through the deviation and dispersion trajectories of droplets within the plasma jet. This article is an invited paper selected from presentations at the 2007 International Thermal Spray Conference and has been expanded from the original presentation. It is simultaneously published in Global Coating Solutions, Proceedings of the 2007 International Thermal Spray Conference, Beijing, China, May 14-16, 2007, Basil R. Marple, Margaret M. Hyland, Yuk-Chiu Lau, Chang-Jiu Li, Rogerio S. Lima, and Ghislain Montavon, Ed., ASM International, Materials Park, OH, 2007.     

Numerical Study of Suspension Plasma Spraying

A numerical study of suspension plasma spraying is presented in the current work. The liquid suspension jet is replaced with a train of droplets containing the suspension particles injected into the plasma flow. Atomization, evaporation, and melting of different components are considered for droplets and particles as they travel toward the substrate. Effect of different parameters on particle conditions during flight and upon impact on the substrate is investigated. Initially, influence of the torch operating conditions such as inlet flow rate and power is studied. Additionally, effect of injector parameters like injection location, flow rate, and angle is examined. The model used in the current study takes high-temperature gradients and non-continuum effects into account. Moreover, the important effect of change in physical properties of suspension droplets as a result of evaporation is included in the model. These mainly include variations in heat transfer properties and viscosity. Utilizing this improved model, several test cases have been considered to better evaluate the effect of different parameters on the quality of particles during flight and upon impact on the substrate.     

悬浮液等离子喷涂与常规等离子喷涂纳米结构陶瓷涂层的研究

以蛇纹石,矿物质羟基硅酸镁Mg6(Si4O10)(OH)8,为主成分的自修复剂对金属磨损表面的修复作用,在我国已得到较为广泛关注和认同。文中以在内燃机车柴油机缸套内表面生成的自修复层为例,通过SEM,XRD,XPS,AES,Laser Raman,HRTEM,STEM和纳米硬度计等表面分析和测量手段,深入观察和分析了磨损表面自修复层的生成机理。结果表明:蛇纹石的高化学活性使氧原子、氧离子和自由水从表面向内部强扩散,铁基金属的合金成分渗碳体(Fe3C)被氧化。这是有别于高温内氧化的一种特殊的内氧化过程,对磨损表面生成自修复层有决定性的作用。进而,摩擦副的相对往复运动诱发内氧化组织的形变细化和形变强化,形成性能优异的自修复保护层。     

An Integrated Investigation Approach for Coating Temperature Measurement and Control During Plasma Spraying

An integrated investigation approach for temperature measurement and control of plasma sprayed coating is presented in this paper. It is based on infrared (IR) pyrometry combined with specific robot scanning trajectories. The temperature evolution was continuously detected and recorded during preheating, spraying, and cooling stages. Then the two specific factors, periodic average temperature and periodic standard deviation, were adopted to evaluate the temperature variation and the fluctuation of the thermal cycle relevant to one spraying period. These two factors were successful in describing the temperature variation during experimental processing sets. Moreover, the influence of processing parameters of Z-type robot spray trajectory, including spray distance, scanning velocity, and scanning step on coating temperature is experimentally researched and explained reasonably by comparing the two factors.     

Study of Flying Particles in Plasma Spraying

In this article, the trajectories of ceramic and metal particles in plasma spray are calculated by solving related momentum and energy equations. Meanwhile, the spatial distributions, temperatures, velocities, as well as diameters of the particles are measured by employing an online, in-flight particle sensor (DPV2000). The experimental and computational results are in good agreement. It has been found that the particle flying trajectories are dependent on material types and particle diameters, and in a plane vertical to the spraying axis, there is a certain corresponding relationship between the particle diameter and the particle velocity, as well as particle temperature.     

Suspension Plasma Spraying: Process Characteristics and Applications

Suspension plasma spraying (SPS) offers the manufacture of unique microstructures which are not possible with conventional powdery feedstock. Due to the considerably smaller size of the droplets and also the further fragmentation of these in the plasma jet, the attainable microstructural features like splat and pore sizes can be downsized to the nanometer range. Our present understanding of the deposition process including injection, suspension plasma plume interaction, and deposition will be outlined. The drawn conclusions are based on analysis of the coating microstructures in combination with particle temperature and velocity measurements as well as enthalpy probe investigations. The last measurements with the water cooled stagnation probe gives valuable information on the interaction of the carrier fluid with the plasma plume. Meanwhile, different areas of application of SPS coatings are known. In this paper, the focus will be on coatings for energy systems. Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) for modern gas turbines are one important application field. SPS coatings offer the manufacture of strain-tolerant, segmented TBCs with low thermal conductivity. In addition, highly reflective coatings, which reduce the thermal load of the parts from radiation, can be produced. Further applications of SPS coatings as cathode layers in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and for photovoltaic (PV) applications will be presented.     

Suspension Plasma Spraying of YPSZ Coatings: Suspension Atomization and Injection

Among processes evaluated to produce some parts of or the whole solid-oxide fuel cell, Suspension Plasma Spraying (SPS) is of prime interest. Aqueous suspensions of yttria partially stabilized zirconia atomized into a spray by an internal-mixing co-axial twin-fluid atomizer were injected into a DC plasma jet. The dispersion and stability of the suspensions were enhanced by adjusting the amount of dispersant (ammonium salt of polyacrylic acid, PAA). A polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was further added to the suspension to tailor its viscosity. The PVA also improved the dispersion and stability of the suspensions. The atomization of optimized formulations is described implementing Weber and Ohnesorge dimensionless numbers as well as gas-to-liquid mass ratio (ALR) value. Drop size distributions changed from monomodal distributions at low We to multimodal distributions when We number increases. The viscosity of the suspensions has a clear influence on the drop size distribution and suspension spray pattern. The secondary fragmentation of the drops due to the plasma jet was evidenced and the final size of the sheared drops was shown to depend on the characteristics of the suspension. Rather dense zirconia coatings have been prepared, which is a promising way to produce electrolyte.     

In-Flight Temperature and Velocity of Powder Particles of Plasma-Sprayed TiO2

This paper relates to the in-flight temperature and velocity of TiO₂ particles, an integral part of the systematic research on atmospheric plasma spraying of the material. Initial powder feedstock (32-45 μm, 100% rutile phase) was introduced into the plasma jet. Six parameters were selected to represent the versatility of the plasma system and their respective influences were determined according to basic one-at-a-time and advanced Taguchi design of experiments combined with the analysis of variance analytical tool. It was found that the measured temperatures varied from 2121 to 2830 K (33% variation), while the velocities of the particles were altered from 127 to 243 m/s (91% variation). Gun net power was detected as the most influential factor with respect to the velocity of the TiO₂ particles (an increase of 8.4 m/s per 1-kW increase in net power). Spray distance was determined to have a major impact on the in-flight temperature (a decrease of 10 mm in spray distance corresponds to a drop of 36 K). A significant decrease in both characteristics was detected for an increasing amount of powder entering the plasma jet: A drop of 7.1 K and 1.4 m/s was recorded per every +1 g/min of TiO₂ powder.     

Particle Temperature Fluctuations in Plasma Spraying

In direct current (d.c.) plasma spray torches, the dynamic behavior of the arc attachment at the anode nozzle results in arc voltage fluctuations and correspondingly power fluctuations. The resulting plasma jet instabilities affect the treatment (heat and momentum) of particles injected in the plasma flow and, thus, the coating quality. However, it is not clear if the experimentally observed fluctuations of particle temperatures are a major phenomena and if their frequencies are always in unison with those of voltage. In this study, two online techniques are used to investigate, respectively, the time variation of particle temperatures and its correlation with voltage variations; the first technique makes it possible to analyze plasma voltage instabilities and the second one to investigate those of particle temperatures. Both allow determining the frequencies and amplitude variations of voltage and particle temperature. Experiments were carried out with three plasma torches (F4-type and two 3MB-type) using, respectively, argon-hydrogen (F4-type and 3MB) and nitrogen-hydrogen (3MB) mixtures (all with restrike mode for the voltage fluctuations) as plasma-forming gases. A good correlation between arc voltage and particle temperature fluctuations is observed when the plasma torch is operated with argon-hydrogen mixtures and high mass flow rate. However, it is not the case when the torch is operated with nitrogen-hydrogen mixtures even if the amplitudes of voltage fluctuations are two to three times higher than those obtained with Ar-H₂.     

Silver-Doped Hydroxyapatite Coatings Deposited by Suspension Plasma Spraying

Pure hydroxyapatite suspension was produced by wet chemical synthesis. Using a hybrid water-stabilized torch, a series of HA coatings were produced on SS304 and Ti6Al4V substrates and their properties were characterized by SEM, EDX and XRD techniques. After deposition, the amorphous phase content reached 6-10% and the coatings retained 75-82% of crystalline HA phase. Their thickness reached 145 μm. To understand the wear behavior of the coatings, pin-on-disc tribology evaluation was performed. Additionally, a set of HA coatings was prepared with pure metallic Ag content. This formed by in situ chemical decomposition of AgNO₃ added into the HA suspension. The Ag was dispersed evenly within the coatings in the form of submicron-sized particles situated predominantly along the HA splats boundaries with a total Ag content of 8 wt.%. Given the antibacterial properties of Ag, such result presents a promising step forward in the hard tissue replacement research.     

B清除大气等离子喷涂CuNi熔滴氧化物效应

提出了粉末中添加B的成分设计,实现通过B牺牲氧化而保护合金元素不氧化从而发展高温CuNi熔滴自清洁氧化物效应.采用CuNi2B与CuNi4B 2种粉末,通过大气等离子喷涂工艺制备涂层,通过SEM、EDS、XRD和ICP-OES等方法研究了B含量与喷涂距离对CuNi涂层组织结构与性能的影响.结果 表明,熔滴可加热至190...     

高效能超音速等离子喷涂粒子特性及涂层特点

超音速等离子喷涂技术是热喷涂技术的关键技术之一.从基础及应用的角度,研究了高效能超音速等离子(HEPJet)喷涂粒子的特性,探讨了高效能超音速等离子在制备Ni/Al等金属及其合金涂层、WC-Co金属陶瓷涂层、ZrO2等氧化物陶瓷涂层上的特点.结果表明,高效能超音速等离子喷涂系统具有焰流温度高、射流速度快等特点;制备的涂层粒子变形充分,涂层均匀,孔隙率低,结合强度高,涂层质量好;可将适用于喷涂的所有粉末材料制备成高质量涂层.     

Novel Online Diagnostic Analysis for In-Flight Particle Properties in Cold Spraying

In cold spraying, powder particles are accelerated by preheated supersonic gas stream to high velocities and sprayed on a substrate. The particle velocities depend on the equipment design and process parameters, e.g., on the type of the process gas and its pressure and temperature. These, in turn, affect the coating structure and the properties. The particle velocities in cold spraying are high, and the particle temperatures are low, which can, therefore, be a challenge for the diagnostic methods. A novel optical online diagnostic system, HiWatch HR, will open new possibilities for measuring particle in-flight properties in cold spray processes. The system employs an imaging measurement technique called S-PTV (sizing-particle tracking velocimetry), first introduced in this research. This technique enables an accurate particle size measurement also for small diameter particles with a large powder volume. The aim of this study was to evaluate the velocities of metallic particles sprayed with HPCS and LPCS systems and with varying process parameters. The measured in-flight particle properties were further linked to the resulting coating properties. Furthermore, the camera was able to provide information about variations during the spraying, e.g., fluctuating powder feeding, which is important from the process control and quality control point of view.     

Three-Dimensional Modeling of Suspension Plasma Spraying with Arc Voltage Fluctuations

In this study, a three-dimensional DC plasma torch is modeled using Joule effect method to simulate the plasma jet and its voltage fluctuations. The plasma gas is a mixture of argon/hydrogen, and the arc voltage fluctuation is used as an input data in the model. Reynolds stress model is used for time-dependent simulation of the oscillating flow of the plasma gas interacting with the ambient air. The results are used to investigate the plasma oscillation effects on the trajectory, temperature, and velocity of suspension droplets. Suspensions are formed of ethanol and yttria-stabilized zirconia submicron particles and modeled as multicomponent droplets. To track the droplets/particles, a two-way coupled Eulerian–Lagrangian method is employed. In addition, in order to simulate the droplet breakup, Kelvin–Helmholtz/Rayleigh–Taylor (KH–RT) breakup model is used. After the completion of suspension breakup and evaporation, the sprayed particles are tracked to obtain the in-flight particle conditions including trajectory, size, velocity, and temperature. The arc voltage fluctuations were found to cause more than two times wider particle trajectories resulting in wider particle temperature, velocity, and size distributions compared with the case of constant voltage.     

Manufacturing Process of Nanostructured Alumina Coatings by Suspension Plasma Spraying

This paper describes the formation process of nanostructured alumina coatings and the injection system obtained by suspension plasma spraying (SPS), an alternative to the atmospheric plasma spraying technique in which the material feedstock is a suspension of the nanopowder to be sprayed. The nanoscale alumina powders (d ≈ 20 nm) were dispersed in distilled water or ethanol and injected by a peristaltic pump into plasma under atmospheric conditions. Optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and x-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses were performed to study the microstructure of the nanostructured alumina coatings. The results showed that the nanoscale alumina powders in suspension were very easily adsorbed at the inner surface of injection, which caused the needle to jam. The rotation of the pump had a great effect on the suspension injection in the plasma. The very small resistance of the thin plasma boundary layer near the substrate can drastically decrease the impacting velocity of nanosize droplets. The concentration of suspension also has a significant influence on the distribution of the size of the droplet, the enthalpy needed for spraying suspension, and the roughness of the coating surface. The phase structures of alumina suspension coatings strongly depend on the plasma spraying distance. A significant nanostructured fine alumina coating was obtained in some areas when ethanol was used as a solvent. The microstructures of the coating were observed as a function of the solvent and the spraying parameters.     

The Influence of Spray Parameters on the Characteristics of Hydroxyapatite In-Flight Particles,Splats and Coatings by Micro-plasma Spraying

Hydroxyapatite (HA) is one of the most important bioceramic materials used in medical implants. The structure of HA coatings is closely related to their manufacturing process. In the present study, HA coatings were deposited on Ti-6Al-4V substrate by micro-plasma spraying. Results show that three distinct HA coatings could be obtained by changing the spraying power from 0.5 to 1.0 kW and spraying stand-off distance from 60 to 110 mm: (1) high crystallinity (93.3%) coatings with porous structure, (2) high crystallinity coatings (86%) with columnar structure, (3) higher amorphous calcium phosphate (ACP, 50%) coatings with dense structure. The in-flight particles melting state and splat topography was analyzed to better understand the formation mechanism of three distinct HA coatings. Results show that HA coatings sprayed at low spraying power and short stand-off distance exhibit high crystallinity and porosity is attributed to the presence of partially melted particles. High crystallinity HA coatings with (002) crystallographic texture could be deposited due to the complete melting of the in-flight particles and low cooling rate of the disk shape splats under higher spraying power and shorter SOD. However, splashed shape splats with relative high cooling can be provided by increasing SOD, which leads to the formation of ACP.     

Synthesis of Tribologically Favorable Coatings for Hot Extrusion Tools by Suspension Plasma Spraying

Up to now, no coating systems have been marketed in the field of direct hot extrusion, which provide both surface protection of the parts in contact with the billet (i.e., container and die) as well as a significant reduction of the frictional losses induced by the billet passing over the container walls. To dispense with the use of lubricants and to enhance the usable forming capacity and therefore the efficiency of the process, different oxide ceramics were prepared in one suspension and plasma sprayed to produce coatings. The aim was to reach a sufficient level of feedstock mixing to obtain deterministic solid solutions of the oxide phases in coatings resulting in a reduction of their coefficient of friction under dry sliding conditions. To achieve this objective, the high specific surface area of nanosized feedstock with primary particle sizes below 100?nm was used. By means of x-ray diffraction it could be proven, that the desired phases could be synthesized to varying ratios regarding the different coating systems considered here. Besides the experimental work, the fundamentals of the mixing process of different oxides are discussed with regard to the crystallographic aspects.