Guang-Rong Li

Relationship Between Lamellar Structure and Elastic Modulus of Thermally Sprayed Thermal Barrier Coatings with Intra-splat Cracks

The elastic modulus of plasma-sprayed top coating plays an important role in thermal cyclic lifetime of thermally sprayed thermal barrier coatings (TBCs), since the thermal stress is determined by the substrate/coating thermal mismatch and the elastic modulus of top coating. Consequently, much attention had been paid to understanding the relationship between elastic modulus and lamellar structure of top coating. However, neglecting the intra-splat cracks connected with inter-splat pores often leads to poor prediction in in-plane modulus. In this study, a modified model taking account of intra-splat cracks and other main structural characteristics of plasma-sprayed yttria-stabilized zirconia coating was proposed. Based on establishing the relationship between elastic modulus and structural parameters of basic unit, effects of structural parameters on the elastic modulus of coatings were discussed. The predicted results are well consistent with experimental data on coating elastic modulus in both out-plane direction and in-plane direction. This study would benefit the further comprehensive understanding of failure mechanism of TBCs in thermal cyclic condition.

Comprehensive damage evaluation of localized spallation of thermal barrier coatings

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) enable the hot section part to work at high temperatures owing to their thermal barrier effect on the base metal components. However, localized spallation in the ceramic top-coat might occur after long duration of thermal exposure or thermal cycling. To comprehensively understand the damage of the top-coat on the overall hot section part, effects of diameter and tilt angle of the spallation on the temperature redistribution of the substrate and the top-coat were investigated. The results show that the spallation diameter and tilt angle both have a significant effect on the temperature redistribution of the top-coat and the substrate. In the case of the substrate, the maximum temperature increment is located at the spallation center. Meanwhile, the surface (depth) maximum temperature increment, having nothing to do with the tilt angle, increases with the increase of the spallation diameter. In contrast, in the case of the top-coat, the maximum temperature increment was located at the sharp corner of the spallation area, and the surface (depth) maximum temperature increment increases with the increase of both the spallation diameter and the tilt angle. Based on the temperature redistribution of the substrate and the top-coat affected by the partial spallation, it is possible to evaluate the damage effect of spalled areas on the thermal capability of TBCs.

Multiscale Pores in TBCs for Lower Thermal Conductivity

The morphology and pattern (including orientation and aspect ratio) of pores in thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) significantly affect their thermal insulation performance. In this work, finite element analysis was used to comprehensively understand the thermal insulation effect of pores and correlate the effective thermal conductivity with the structure. The results indicated that intersplat pores, and in particular their aspect ratio, dominantly affect the heat transfer in the top coat. The effective thermal conductivity decreased as a function of aspect ratio, since a larger aspect ratio often corresponds to a greater proportion of effective length of the pores. However, in conventional plasma-sprayed TBCs, intersplat pores often fail to maximize thermal insulation due to their distinct lower aspect ratios. Therefore, considering this effect of aspect ratio, a new structure design with multiscale pores is proposed and a corresponding structural model developed to correlate the thermal properties with this pore-rich structure. The predictions of the model are well consistent with experimental data. This study provides comprehensive understanding of the effect of pores on the thermal insulation performance, shedding light on the possibility of structural tailoring to obtain advanced TBCs with lower thermal conductivity.