Jean-Gabriel Legoux

Effect of Particle Morphology and Size Distribution on Cold-Sprayed Pure Titanium Coatings

The effects of commercially pure titanium particle morphology (spherical, sponge, and irregular) and size distributions (mean particle sizes of 20-49 μm) on the cold spray process and resulting coating properties were investigated. Numerous powder and coating characterizations were performed including: powder oxygen and nitrogen contents, powder flowability, powder compressibility, coating microhardness, coating porosity, LOM/SEM analyses, and XRD. Compared to spherical powders, the sponge and irregular CP-Ti powders had higher oxygen content, poorer powder flowability, higher compression ratio, lower powder packing factor, and higher average particle impact velocities. XRD results showed no new phases present when comparing the various feedstock powders to corresponding coatings. A higher particle temperature was also obtained with larger particle size for all feedstock powder morphologies processed with the same set of spray parameters. A spherical powder with 29 μm mean particle size was found to have the lowest porosity coating and best cold sprayability. The relationships of several as-cold sprayed coating characteristics to the ratio of particle impact and critical velocities were also discussed.

Evaluation of four high velocity thermal spray guns using WC-10% Co-4% Cr cermets

Four high velocity thermal spray guns were evaluated in the production of 10% Co-4% Cr tungsten carbide (WC) cermets. Three high velocity oxygen fuel guns (JP-5000, JP-5000ST, and Diamond Jet [DJ]-2700) and one plasma gun (Axial III) were used to spray the same angular, agglomerated, and crushed WC-10Co-4Cr powder. The DPV-2000 was used to monitor the in-flight velocity and temperature of the WC cermet-sprayed particles. From those values, spray conditions were selected to produce coatings that were evaluated in terms of porosity, hardness, and deposition efficiency. Results show that the plasma Axial III provides the highest particle temperature, between 2000 °C and 2600 °C, depending on the spray conditions. The JP-5000 imparts the highest velocity to the particles, between 550 and 700 m/s, depending on the spray conditions. The ST version of the JP-5000 provides the same velocity as the standard version but with lower particle temperature. The DJ-2700 sprays particles with temperature and velocity between those of the JP-5000 and the Axial III. Minimum porosity values of 2.1%, 3.7%, and 5.3%, respectively, were obtained for the JP-5000, the DJ-2700, and the Axial III guns. The porosity and carbide degradation are found to depend mostly on the particle velocity and temperature, respectively. The values for the Vickers microhardness number (200g) ranged from 950 to 1250. Measurements of the deposition efficiency indicated a variation between 10% and 80%, depending on the spray conditions and the gun used.

Polarization resistance of stainless steel-coated rebars

Stainless steel (316L) coated coupons and rebars were prepared using the twin-wire electric arc (TWEA) and high pressure/high velocity oxygen-fuel (HP/HVOF) processes. Metallographic examination was performed to characterize the coating density and the oxide content. The corrosion performance of the coatings was evaluated using linear polarization, AC impedance, and salt spray techniques. It appears that the coating prepared using the HP/HVOF process is far superior in terms of polarization resistance performance than that prepared using the TWEA process. The former process produces a dense, low-oxide-content coating while the latter produces relatively porous coatings.

Erosion resistance of arc-sprayed coatings to iron ore at 25 and 315 °C

Iron ore pellets are sintered and reduced in large continuous industrial oil-fired furnaces. From the furnace, powerful fans extract large volumes of hot gas. Being exposed to gas-borne iron ore particles and temperatures ranging between 125 and 328 °C, fan components are rapidly eroded. Extensive part repair or replacement is required for maintaining a profitable operation. The arc spraying technique has been suggested for repair provided it could produce erosion-resistant coatings. Conventional and cored wires (1.6 mm diameter) were arc sprayed using various spray parameters to produce 250 to 300 µm thick coatings. Arc-sprayed coatings and reference specimens were erosion tested at 25 and 315 °C and impact angles of 25 and 90° in a laboratory gas-blast erosion rig. This device was designed to impact materials with coarse (32 to 300 µm) iron ore particles at a speed of 100 m/s. The coating volume loss due to erosion was measured with a laser profilometer built by National Research Council Canada several years ago.Few arc-sprayed coatings exhibited erosion resistance comparable with structural steel at low impact angles. Erosion of arc-sprayed coatings and reference specimens dramatically increases at 315 °C for both 25° and 90° impact angles. Erosion-enhanced oxidation was found to be responsible for the increase in volume loss above room temperature. Though arc spraying can be appropriate for on-site repair, the development of more erosion-resistant coatings is required for intermediate temperatures.

Third Body Behavior During Dry Sliding of Cold-Sprayed Al-Al2O3 Composites: In Situ Tribometry and Microanalysis

Abstract Reciprocating sliding wear experiments were conducted on cold-sprayed pure aluminum and Al–22.6 wt% Al2O3 coatings using a custom-built in situ tribometer. Using a transparent sapphire counterface for the wear tests, the dynamic behavior of third body material in the contact was optically observed. The presence of Al2O3 particles led to greater stability of the transfer films adhering to the sapphire counterface, as well as greater stability of the friction coefficient and lower wear rates. Ex situ microanalysis of material in the wear tracks and transfer films suggests that the presence of Al2O3 particles promoted strain localization during sliding. This produced more uniform third body microstructures and protected the underlying aluminum matrix from deformation, which slowed the rate of transfer to the counterface.

Wire-arc sprayed nickel based coating for hydrogen evolution reaction in alkaline solutions

Abstract Nickel based coatings of various Ni/Al ratios were prepared by the wire-arc spray technique on mild steel substrate. High porosity Ni based electrodes were obtained by leaching out the aluminum in concentrated KOH at 70°C. These electrodes were studied under hydrogen evolution reaction in 1 M NaOH at 25°C. Good mechanical electrode stability and very low overvoltage values, i.e., down to 179 mV at 0.25 A/cm 2 , were observed. These low overvoltages have been related to the porosity of the material by AC impedance measurements. This spray technique exhibits several advantages for processing large scale electrode materials at low cost.

Nondestructive testing of open microscopic cracks in plasma-sprayed-coatings using ultrasound excited vibrothermography

While other nondestructive testing methods hardly reveal microscopic open cracks, vibrothermography stimulated by ultrasound provides very promising results by converting mechanical waves into local heat by friction. This phenomenon enhances thermal gradients in temperature maps as compared to conventional techniques. To detect temperature gradients caused by hidden cracks, high thermal and spatial resolution infrared cameras are usually used. The aim of this work is to investigate the ability of the vibrothermography stimulated by ultrasound to detect such cracks and measure the gap between adjacent cracks. To do so, we investigated tungsten carbide coatings where cracks were artificially generated using a controlled bending test. Several samples were investigated during this study but only typical results from one sample are presented and discussed.

Bending behavior of HVOF produced WC-17Co coating: Investigated by acoustic emission

A four-point bend test using acoustic emission (AE) was used to compare coating properties under mechanical solicitation, mainly the toughness and spalling behavior. Coatings are made from the same material; Sulzer-Metco (Westbury, NY) 2005NS (WC-17Co) sprayed with an HVOF gun with different spray parameters. Coatings deposited on thin rectangular substrates were first bent in tension then in compression. AE features like the event number, energy per event, and cumulative energy were used to assess the damages in the coatings. The results are analyzed in relation to the coating microstructure.

Effect of Pulsed Laser Ablation and Continuous Laser Heating on the Adhesion and Cohesion of Cold Sprayed Ti-6Al-4V Coatings

The individual and cumulative effects of in situ pulsed laser ablation and continuous laser pre-heating on adhesion and cohesion strength of cold sprayed Ti-6Al-4V coatings are investigated. Laser beams were coupled to a cold spray gun in order to ablate and pre-heat the substrate surface a few milliseconds prior to the impact of the spray particles. Cohesion and adhesion strength were evaluated by scratch test, standard ASTM C633 pull test and laser shock (LASAT) technique. The effects of laser ablation before and during cold spray operations were investigated. Results demonstrate that laser ablation of the substrate before cold spraying led to a smooth surface which improved adhesion strength. However, when laser ablation was maintained throughout the cold spray process, i.e., in between the coating layers, a reduction of cohesion and adhesion was observed. These negative effects were circumvented when laser ablation and laser pre-heating were combined.

Gas-Substrate Heat Exchange During Cold-Gas Dynamic Spraying

In this study, the temperature distribution of the surfaces of several substrates under an impinging gas jet from a cold spray nozzle was determined. A low-pressure cold-gas dynamic spraying unit was used to generate a jet of hot compressed nitrogen that impinged upon flat substrates. Computer codes based on a finite differences method were used to solve a simplified 2D temperature distribution equation for the substrate to produce nondimensional relationships between the surface temperature and the radius of the impinging fluid jet, the axial velocity of the cold spray nozzle, the substrate thickness, and the heating time. It was found that a single profile of the transient nondimensional maximum surface temperature could be used to estimate the dimensional maximum surface temperature, regardless of the value of the compressed gas temperature. It was found further that, as the thermal conductance of the substrate increased, the maximum surface temperature of the substrate beneath the gas jet decreased. Heat exchange between the substrate and the compressed gas jet during motion of the nozzle to produce heat conduction within the substrate was characterized by the nondimensional Peclét number. It was found that lower Peclét numbers produced higher temperatures within the substrate. The close agreement of the numerical results with the experimental results suggests that the nondimensionalized results may be applied to a wide range of conditions and materials.