Thermal cycling failure of new LaMgAl11O19/YSZ double ceramic top coat thermal barrier coating systems

New LaMgAl₁₁O₁₉ (LaMA)/YSZ double ceramic top coat thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) with the potential application in advanced gas-turbines and diesel engines to realize improved efficiency and durability were prepared by plasma spraying, and their thermal cycling failure were investigated. The microstructure evolutions as well as the crystal chemistry characteristics of LaMA coating which seemed to have strong influences on the thermal cycling failure of LaMA and the new double ceramic top coat TBCs based on LaMA/YSZ system were studied. For double ceramic top coat TBC system, interface modification of LaMA/YSZ by preparing thin composite coatings seemed to be more preferred due to the formations of multiple cracks during thermal cycling making the TBC to be more strain tolerant and as well as resulting in an improved thermal cycling property. The effects of the TGO stresses on the failure behavior of the TBCs were discussed through fluorescence piezo-spectroscopy analysis.     

Study of microstructure and thermal shock behavior of two types of thermal barrier coatings

Gas turbines provide one of the most severe environments challenging material systems nowadays. Only an appropriate coating system can supply protection particularly for turbine blades. This study was made by comparison of properties of two different types of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) in order to improve the surface characteristics of high temperature components. These TBCs consisted of a duplex TBC and a five layered functionally graded TBC. In duplex TBCs, 0.35 mm thick yittria partially stabilized zirconia top coat (YSZ) was deposited by air plasma spraying and ～0.15 mm thick NiCrAlY bond coat was deposited by high velocity oxyfuel spraying. ～0.5 mm thick functionally graded TBC was sprayed by varying the feeding ratio of YSZ/NiCrAlY powders. Both coatings were deposited on IN 738LC alloy as a substrate. Microstructural characterization was performed by SEM and optical microscopy whereas phase analysis and chemical composition changes of the coatings and oxides formed during the tests were studied by XRD and EDX. The performance of the coatings fabricated with the optimum processing conditions was evaluated as a function of intense thermal cycling test at 1100 °C. During thermal shock test, FGM coating failed after 150 and duplex coating failed after 85 cycles. The adhesion strength of the coatings to the substrate was also measured. Finally, it is found that FGM coating has a larger lifetime than the duplex TBC, especially with regard to the adhesion strength of the coatings.     

Failure of physical vapor deposition/plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coatings during thermal cycling

ZrO₂-7 wt.% Y₂O₃ plasma-sprayed (PS) coatings were applied on high-temperature Ni-based alloys precoated by physical vapor deposition with a thin, dense, stabilized zirconia coating (PVD bond coat). The PS coatings were applied by atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) and inert gas plasma spraying (IPS) at 2 bar for different substrate temperatures. The thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were tested by furnace isothermal cycling and flame thermal cycling at maximum temperatures between 1000 and 1150 °C. The temperature gradients within the duplex PVD/PS thermal barrier coatings during the thermal cycling process were modeled using an unsteady heat transfer program. This modeling enables calculation of the transient thermal strains and stresses, which contributes to a better understanding of the failure mechanisms of the TBC during thermal cycling. The adherence and failure modes of these coating systems were experimentally studied during the high-temperature testing. The TBC failure mechanism during thermal cycling is discussed in light of coating transient stresses and substrate oxidation.     

Intermetallic Al-, Fe-, Co- and Ni-Based Thermal Barrier Coatings Prepared by Cold Spray for Applications on Low Heat Rejection Diesel Engines

Conventional thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems consist of a duplex structure with a metallic bond coat and a ceramic heat insulating topcoat. They possess the desired low thermal conductivity, but at the same time they are very brittle and sensitive to thermal shock and thermal cycling due to the inherently low coefficient of thermal expansion. Recent research activities are focused on the developing of multilayer TBC structures obtained using cold spraying and following annealing. Aluminum intermetallics have demonstrated thermal and mechanical properties that allow them to be used as the alternative TBC materials, while the intermetallic layers can be additionally optimized to achieve superior thermal physical properties. One example is the six layer TBC structure in which cold sprayed Al-based intermetallics are synthesized by annealing in nitrogen atmosphere. These multilayer coating systems demonstrated an improved thermal fatigue capability as compared to conventional ceramic TBC. The microstructures and properties of the coatings were characterized by SEM, EDS and mechanical tests to define the TBC material properties and intermetallic formation mechanisms.     

Adhesion improvements of Thermal Barrier Coatings with HVOF thermally sprayed bond coats

Thermal barrier coatings (TBC) are an effective engineering solution for the improvement of in service performance of gas turbines and diesel engine components. The quality and further performance of TBC, likewise all thermally sprayed coatings or any other kind of coating, is strongly dependent on the adhesion between the coating and the substrate as well as the adhesion (or cohesion) between the metallic bond coat and the ceramic top coat layer. The debonding of the ceramic layer or of the bond coat layer will lead to the collapse of the overall thermal barrier system. Though several possible problems can occur in coating application as residual stresses, local or net defects (like pores and cracks), one could say that a satisfactory adhesion is the first and intrinsic need for a good coating. The coating adhesion is also dependent on the pair substrate-coating materials, substrate cleaning and blasting, coating application process, coating application parameters and environmental conditions. In this work, the general characteristics and adhesion properties of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) having bond coats applied using High Velocity Oxygen Fuel (HVOF) thermal spraying and plasma sprayed ceramic top coats are studied. By using HVOF technique to apply the bond coats, high adherence and high corrosion resistance are expected. Furthermore, due to the characteristics of the spraying process, compressive stresses should be induced to the substrate. The compressive stresses are opposed to the tensile stresses that are typical of coatings applied by plasma spraying and eventually cause delamination of the coating in operational conditions. The evaluation of properties includes the studies of morphology, microstructure, microhardness and adhesive/cohesive resistance. From the obtained results it can be said that the main failure location is in the bond coat/ceramic interface corresponding to the lowest adhesion values.     

Failure Mechanism for Thermal Fatigue of Thermal Barrier Coating Systems

Thick thermal barrier coatings (TBCs), consisting of a CoNiCrAlY bond coat and yttria-partially stabilized zirconia top coat with different porosity values, were produced by air plasma spray (APS). The thermal fatigue resistance limit of the TBCs was tested by furnace cycling tests (FCT) according to the specifications of an original equipment manufacturer (OEM). The morphology, residual stresses, and micromechanical properties (microhardness, indentation fracture toughness) of the TBC systems before and after FCT were analyzed. The thermal fatigue resistance increases with the amount of porosity in the top coat. The compressive in-plane stresses increase in the TBC systems after thermal cycling; nevertheless the increasing rate has a trend contrary to the porosity level of top coat. The data suggest that the spallation happens at the TGO/top coat interface. The failure mechanism of thick TBCs was found to be similar to that of conventional thin TBC systems made by APS.     

High temperature properties of thermal barrier coatings obtained by detonation spraying

NiCrAlY/YPSZ and NiCrAlY/NiAl/YPSZ thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were successfully deposited by detonation spraying. The results indicated that the detonation sprayed TBCs included a uniform ceramic coat containing a few microcracks and a bond coat with a rough surface. The lamellar structure and the presence of cracks and impurities could reduce the thermal conductivity of the ceramic coat. Oxidation kinetics at 1000–1150 °C of detonation sprayed TBCs have been measured and discussed. The role of a Ni–Al intermediate layer in improving the oxidation resistance of duplex TBCs has also been studied.     

THE INFLUENCE OF Mo DIFFUSION ON THE THERMAL BEHAVIOR OF TBCs ON Ni_3Al BASED ALLOY IC-6

Conventional two-layered structure thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were prepared onto γ'-Ni3Al based alloy IC-6 by electron beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD). Isothermal oxidation and thermal cycling tests were carried out to investigate the effect of Mo content at the interface between bond coat and ceramic top coat caused by diffusion. It has been found that the alloy coated with TBCs presented the lowest oxidation weight gain value for the reason that the ceramic top coat in TBC system can effectively stop Mo oxides evaporating. The life time of TBCs has close relation with Mo content at the interface between the bond coat and top coat. Spaliation of ceramic top coat occurred during thermal cyclic testing when Mo atoms accumulated at the interface up to certain amount to decline the combination between the bond coat and top coat.     

Behavior of plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coatings during thermal cycling and the effect of a preoxidized NiCrAlY bond coat

The failure mechanisms of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) subjected to a thermal load are still not entirely understood. Thermal stresses and/or oxidation cause the coating to fail and hence must be minimized. During the present investigation, TBCs up to 1.0 mm were sprayed and withstood high thermal stresses during thermal testing. Owing to the substantial thickness, the temperature at the top coat/bond coat interface was relatively low, resulting in a low oxidation rate. Furthermore, bond coats were preoxidized before applying a top coat. The bond strength and the behavior during three different thermal loads of the preoxidized TBCs were compared with a standard duplex TBC. Finite-element model (FEM) calculations that took account of bond coat preoxidation and interface roughness were made to calculate the stresses occurring during thermal shock. It is concluded that the thick TBCs applied during this research exhibit excellent thermal shock resistance and that a preoxidizing treatment of the bond coat increases the lifetime during thermal loading, where oxidation is the main cause of failure. The FEM analysis gives a first impression of the stress conditions on the interface undulations during thermal loading, but further development is required.     

Structure and durability evaluation of YSZ + Al2O3 composite TBCs with APS and HVOF bond coats under thermal cycling conditions

Plasma sprayed thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are applied to gas turbine components for providing thermal insulation and oxidation resistance. The TBC systems currently in use on superalloy substates typically consists of a metallic MCrAlY based bond coat and an insulating Y₂O₃ partially stabilized ZrO₂ as a ceramic top coat (ZrO₂ 7–8 wt.% Y₂O₃). The oxidation of bond coat underlying yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is a significant factor in controlling the failure of TBCs. The oxidation of bond coat induces to the formation of a thermally grown oxide (TGO) layer at the bond coat/YSZ interface. The thickening of the TGO layer increases the stresses and leads to the spallation of TBCs. If the TGO were composed of a continuous scale of Al₂O₃, it would act as a diffusion barrier to suppress the formation of other detrimental mixed oxides during the extended thermal exposure in service, thus helping to protect the substrate from further oxidation and improving the durability. The TBC layers are usually coated onto the superalloy substrate using the APS (Atmospheric plasma spray) process because of economic and practical considerations. As well as, HVOF (High velocity oxygen fuel) bond coat provides a good microstructure and better adhesion compared with the APS process. Therefore, there is a need to understand the cycling oxidation characteristic and failure mode in TBC systems having bond coat prepared using different processes. In the present investigation, the growth of TGO layers was studied to evaluate the cyclic oxidation behavior of YSZ/Al₂O₃ composite TBC systems with APS-NiCrAlY and HVOF-NiCrAlY bond coats. Interface morphology is significantly effective factor in occurrence of the oxide layer. Oxide layer thickening rate is slower in APS bond coated TBCs than HVOF bond coated systems under thermal cycle conditions at 1200 °C. The YSZ/Al₂O₃ particle composite systems with APS bond coat have a higher thermal cycle life time than with the HVOF bond coating.     

Thermal Fatigue Behavior of Thick and Porous Thermal Barrier Coatings Systems

High-temperature thermal fatigue causes the failure of thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems. This paper addresses the development of thick TBCs, focusing on the microstructure and the porosity of the yttria partially stabilized zirconia (YPSZ) coating, regarding its resistance to thermal fatigue. Thick TBCs, with different porosity levels, were produced by means of a CoNiCrAlY bond coat and YPSZ top coat, both had been sprayed by air plasma spray. The thermal fatigue resistance of new TBC systems and the evolution of the coatings before and after thermal cycling was then evaluated. The limit of thermal fatigue resistance increases depending on the amount of porosity in the top coat. Raman analysis shows that the compressive in-plane stress increases in the TBC systems after thermal cycling, nevertheless the increasing rate has a trend which is contrary to the porosity level of top coat. 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.     

Recent Developments in the Field of Thermal Barrier Coatings

Conventional thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems consist of a duplex structure with a metallic bondcoat and a ceramic, heat-isolative topcoat. Several recent research activities are concentrating on developing improved bondcoat or topcoat materials; for the topcoat especially, those with reduced thermal conductivity are investigated. Using advanced topcoat materials, the ceramic coating can be further divided into layers with different functions. One example is the double-layer system in which conventional yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is used as bottom and new materials such as pyrochlores or perovskites are used as topcoat layers. These systems demonstrated an improved temperature capability compared to standard YSZ. In addition, new functions are introduced within the TBCs. These can be sensorial properties that can be used for an improved temperature control or even for monitoring remaining lifetime. Further increased application temperatures will also lead to efforts for a further improvement of the reflectivity of the coatings to reduce the radiative heat transfer through the TBC.     

TGO Growth and Crack Propagation in a Thermal Barrier Coating

In thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems, a continuous alumina layer developed at the ceramic topcoat/bond coat interface helps to protect the metallic bond coat from further oxidation and improve the durability of the TBC system under service conditions. However, other oxides such as spinel and nickel oxide, formed in the oxidizing environment, are believed to be detrimental to TBC durability during service at high temperatures. It was shown that in an air-plasma-sprayed (APS) TBC system, postspraying heat treatments in low-pressure oxygen environments could suppress the formation of the detrimental oxides by promoting the formation of an alumina layer at the ceramic topcoat/bond coat interface, leading to an improved TBC durability. This work presents the influence of postspraying heat treatments in low-pressure oxygen environments on the oxidation behavior and durability of a thermally sprayed TBC system with high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF)-produced Co-32Ni-21Cr-8Al-0.5Y (wt.%) bond coat. Oxidation behavior of the TBCs is evaluated by examining their microstructural evolution, growth kinetics of the thermally grown oxide (TGO) layers, and crack propagation during low-frequency thermal cycling at 1050 °C. The relationship between the TGO growth and crack propagation will also be discussed.     

Ceramic Top Coats of Plasma-Sprayed Thermal Barrier Coatings: Materials,Processes, and Properties

The ceramic top coat has a major influence on the performance of the thermal barrier coating systems (TBCs). Yttria-partially-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) is the top coat material frequently used, and the major deposition processes of the YSZ top coat are atmospheric plasma spraying and electron beam physical vapor deposition. Recently, also new thermal spray processes such as suspension plasma spraying or plasma spray-physical vapor deposition have been intensively investigated for TBC top coat deposition. These new processes and particularly the different coating microstructures that can be deposited with them will be reviewed in this article. Furthermore, the properties and the intrinsic–extrinsic degradation mechanisms of the YSZ will be discussed. Following the TBC deposition processes and standard YSZ material, alternative ceramic materials such as perovskites and hexaaluminates will be summarized, while properties of pyrochlores with regard to their crystal structure will be discussed more in detail. The merits of the pyrochlores such as good CMAS resistance as well as their weaknesses, e.g., low fracture toughness, processability issues, will be outlined.     

Plasma spraying of functionally graded yttria stabilized zirconia/NiCoCrAlY coating system using composite powders

Pre-alloyed and plasma spheroidized composite powders were used as the feedstock in the plasma spraying of functionally graded yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ)/NiCoCrAlY coatings. The ball milling parameters of the composite powders and the plasma spraying parameters for preparing functionally graded materials (FMGs) coatings were optimized to obtain the best performance for the thermal barrier coatings (TBCs). Microstructure, physical, mechanical, and thermal properties of YSZ/NiCoCrAlY FGMs coatings were investigated and compared with those of traditional duplex coatings. Results showed that the advantages of using pre-alloyed composite powders in plasma spraying were to ensure chemical homogeneity and promote uniform density along the graded layers. Microstructure observation showed the gradient distribution of YSZ and NiCoCrAlY phases in the coating, and no clear interface was found between two adjacent different layers. Oxidation occurred during plasma spray and the resultant aluminum oxide combines with YSZ in a wide range of proportions. The bond strength of functionally graded coatings was about twice as high as that of the duplex coatings because of the significant reduction of the residual stresses in the coatings. The thermal cycling resistance of functionally graded coating was much better than that of duplex coating.     

Bilayer Suspension Plasma-Sprayed Thermal Barrier Coatings with Enhanced Thermal Cyclic Lifetime: Experiments and Modeling

Suspension plasma spraying (SPS) has been shown as a promising process to produce porous columnar strain tolerant coatings for thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) in gas turbine engines. However, the highly porous structure is vulnerable to crack propagation, especially near the topcoat-bondcoat interface where high stresses are generated due to thermal cycling. A topcoat layer with high toughness near the topcoat-bondcoat interface could be beneficial to enhance thermal cyclic lifetime of SPS TBCs. In this work, a bilayer coating system consisting of first a dense layer near the topcoat-bondcoat interface followed by a porous columnar layer was fabricated by SPS using Yttria-stabilised zirconia suspension. The objective of this work was to investigate if the bilayer topcoat architecture could enhance the thermal cyclic lifetime of SPS TBCs through experiments and to understand the effect of the column gaps/vertical cracks and the dense layer on the generated stresses in the TBC during thermal cyclic loading through finite element modeling. The experimental results show that the bilayer TBC had significantly higher lifetime than the single-layer TBC. The modeling results show that the dense layer and vertical cracks are beneficial as they reduce the thermally induced stresses which thus increase the lifetime.     

Experimental and numerical life prediction of thermally cycled thermal barrier coatings

This article addresses the predominant degradation modes and life prediction of a plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coating (TBC). The studied TBC system consists of an air-plasma-sprayed bond coat and an air-plasma-sprayed, yttria partially stabilized zirconia top layer on a conventional Hastelloy X substrate. Thermal shock tests of as-sprayed TBC and pre-oxidized TBC specimens were conducted under different burner flame conditions at Volvo Aero Corporation (Trollhättan, Sweden). Finite element models were used to simulate the thermal shock tests. Transient temperature distributions and thermal mismatch stresses in different layers of the coatings during thermal cycling were calculated. The roughness of the interface between the ceramic top coat and the bond coat was modeled through an ideally sinusoidal wavy surface. Bond coat oxidation was simulated through adding an aluminum oxide layer between the ceramic top coat and the bond coat. The calculated stresses indicated that interfacial delamination cracks, initiated in the ceramic top coat at the peak of the asperity of the interface, together with surface cracking, are the main reasons for coating failure. A phenomenological life prediction model for the coating was proposed. This model is accurate within a factor of 3.     

Thermal barrier coating experience in gas turbine engines at Pratt & Whitney

Pratt & Whitney has accumulated more than three decades of experience with thermal barrier coatings (TBCs). These coatings were originally developed to reduce surface temperatures of combustors of JT8D gas turbine engines to increase the thermal fatigue life of the components. Continual improvements in de-sign, processing, and properties of TBCs have extended their applications to other turbine components, such as vanes, vane platforms, and blades, with attendant increases in performance and component du-rability. Plasma-spray-based generation I (Gen I) combustor TBCs with 7 wt % yttria partially stabilized zirconia deposited by air plasma spray (APS) on an APS NiCoCrAlY bond coat continues to perform ex-tremely well in all product line engines. Durability of this TBC has been further improved in Gen II TBCs for vanes by incorporating low-pressure chamber plasma-sprayed NiCoCrAl Y as a bond coat. The modi-fication has improved TBC durability by a factor of 2.5 and altered the failure mode from a “black fail-ure” within the bond coat to a “white failure” within the ceramic. Further improvements have been accomplished by instituting a more strain-tolerant ceramic top layer with electron beam/physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD) processing. This Gen III TBC has demonstrated exceptional performance on rotating airfoils in high-thrust-rated engines, improving blade durability by three times through elimination of blade creep, fracture, and rumpling of metallic coatings used for oxi-dation protection of the airfoil surfaces. A TBC durability model for plasma-sprayed as well as EB-PVD systems is proposed that involves the accumulation of compressive stresses during cyclic thermal expo-sure. The model attempts to correlate failure of the various TBCs with elements of their structure and its degradation with thermocyclic exposure.     

New material concepts for the next generation of plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coatings

In application as a thermal barrier coating (TBC), partially stabilized zirconia (Zr) approaches some limits of performance. To further enhance the efficiency of gas turbines, higher temperature capability and a longer lifetime of the coating are needed for the next generation of TBCs. This paper presents the development of new materials and concepts for application as TBC. Materials whose compositions have the pyrochlore structure or doped Zr are presented in contrast with new concepts like nanolayers between the top and bond coat, metal-glass composites, and double-layer structures. In the last concept, the new compositions are used in a combination with Zr, as a double, multi, or graded layer coating. In this case, the benefits of Zr will be combined with the promising properties of the new top coating. In the case of metal-glass composites, the paper will be focused on the influences of different plasma spraying processes on the microstructure. The performance of all these different coating systems has been evaluated by burner rig tests. The results will be presented and discussed.     

Fracture mechanics analysis of microcracks in thermally cycled thermal barrier coatings

The effects from thermal shock loading on pre-existing microcracks within thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) have been investigated through a finite element based fracture mechanical analysis. The TBC system consists of a metallic bond coat and a ceramic top coat. The rough interface between the top and bond coats holds an alumina oxide layer. Stress concentrations at the interface due to the interface roughness, as well as the effect of residual stresses, were accounted for. At the eventual closure between the crack surfaces, Coulomb friction was assumed. To judge the risk of fracture from edge cracks and centrally placed cracks, the stress intensity factors were continuously monitored during the simulation of thermal shock loading of the TBC. It was found that fracture from edge cracks is more likely than from centrally placed cracks. It was also concluded that the propagation of an edge crack is already initiated during the first load cycle, whereas the crack tip position of a central crack determines whether propagation will occur.