Radek Mušálek

The Role of Spraying Parameters and Inert Gas Shrouding in Hybrid Water-Argon Plasma Spraying of Tungsten and Copper for Nuclear Fusion Applications

Tungsten-based coatings have potential application in the plasma-facing components in future nuclear fusion reactors. By the combination of refractory tungsten with highly thermal conducting copper, or steel as a construction material, functionally graded coatings can be easily obtained by plasma spraying, and may result in the development of a material with favorable properties. During plasma spraying of these materials in the open atmosphere, oxidation is an important issue, which could have adverse effects on their properties. Among the means to control it is the application of inert gas shrouding, which forms the subject of this study and represents a lower-cost alternative to vacuum or low-pressure plasma spraying, potentially applicable also for spraying of large surfaces or spacious components. It is a continuation of recent studies focused on the effects of various parameters of the hybrid water-argon torch on the in-flight behavior of copper and tungsten powders and the resultant coatings. In the current study, argon shrouding with various configurations of the shroud was applied. The effects of torch parameters, such as power and argon flow rate, and powder morphology were also investigated. Their influence on the particle in-flight behavior as well as the structure, composition and properties of the coatings were quantified. With the help of auxiliary calculations, the mass changes of the powder particles, associated with oxidation and evaporation, were assessed.

Application of Structure-Based Models of Mechanical and Thermal Properties on Plasma Sprayed Coatings

Mechanical and thermal properties of thermal sprayed coatings, especially ceramics, are strongly influenced by cracks and pores that are present in the coating microstructure. In the recent past, there have been efforts to find an analytical model describing the coating properties based on the microstructural characteristics. Various analytical models were developed and published in the literature. In this study, several major models were applied to ceramic and metal coatings to describe their elastic modulus and thermal conductivity. The sensitivity of the models to the variations in the microstructure and relevancy of their use in specific cases were examined. The results were compared with those obtained by FEM modeling and experimentally measured values.

Fatigue Testing of TBC on Structural Steel by Cyclic Bending

Abstract For applications with variable loading, fatigue performance of coated parts is of utmost importance. In this study, fatigue performance of conventional structural steel coated with thermal barrier coating (TBC) was evaluated in cyclic bending mode by “SF-Test” device. Testing was carried out at each stage of the TBC preparation process, i.e., for as-received and grit-blasted substrates, as well as for samples with Ni-based bond-coat and complete TBC: bond-coat with YSZ-based top-coat. Comparison of results obtained for different loading amplitudes supplemented by fractographic analysis enabled identification of dominating failure mechanisms and demonstrated applicability of the high-frequency resonant bending test for evaluation of fatigue resistance alteration at each stage of the TBC deposition process.

Elastic and Anelastic Behavior of TBCs Sprayed at High-Deposition Rates

Coatings sprayed at high-deposition rates often result in stiff, dense, and highly stressed coatings. The high deposition temperature at which the coatings are formed is responsible for these characteristics. In this paper, TBCs were sprayed at high-deposition rates, increasing the tensile quenching stresses beyond the threshold of crack opening during spraying. Dense structures were observed within a pass, in the presence of micro and macro defects specifically horizontal cracks within interpasses and vertical segmentation cracks. Mechanical properties, mainly the elastic and anelastic behavior of TBCs were significantly affected by the strain accommodation and friction occurring within intersplats and interpass interfaces. The strain tolerance obtained in as-sprayed conditions decreased as the microstructure and defects sintered during high-temperature heat cycles. The non-linearity degree decreased while the elastic modulus of the various coatings increased to a maximum value.

Recent results and challenges in development of metallic Hall sensors for fusion reactors

Reliable and precise diagnostic of local magnetic field is crucial for successful operation of future thermonuclear fusion reactors based on magnetic confinement. Magnetic sensors at these devices will experience an extremely demanding operational environment with large radiation and thermal loads in combination with required long term, reliable, and service-free performance. Neither present day commercial nor laboratory measurement systems comply with these requirements. Metallic Hall sensors based on e.g. copper or bismuth could potentially satisfy these needs. We present the technology for manufacturing of such sensors and some initial results on characterization of their properties.

Multiple-Approach Evaluation of WSP Coatings Adhesion/Cohesion Strength

Adhesion/cohesion testing represents one of the most common methods for benchmarking and optimization of thermal spray coatings. However, owing to the inhomogeneous coating microstructure, such testing may be quite troublesome. In this study, adhesion/cohesion strength of representative metallic and ceramic coatings deposited by water-stabilized plasma (WSP) spraying was evaluated by four different methods: tensile adhesion test, pin test, tubular coating tensile test, and shear test. Combination of various methods enabled the evaluation of the coating adhesion/cohesion strength under different loading conditions. Limitations and benefits of each method for testing of WSP coatings are demonstrated. Dominating failure micromechanisms were determined by supplementary fractographic analysis.

Fatigue Crack Growth in Bodies with Thermally Sprayed Coating

Many applications of thermally sprayed coatings call for increased fatigue resistance of coated parts. Despite the intensive research in this area, the influence of coating on fatigue is still not completely understood. In this paper, the localization of crack initiation sites and the dynamics of crack propagation are studied. The resonance bending fatigue test was employed to test flat specimens with both sides coated. Hastelloy-X substrates coated with classical thermal barrier coating consisting of yttria stabilized zirconia and NiCoCrAlY layers. The strain distribution on the coating surface was evaluated by the Digital Image Correlation method through the whole duration of the fatigue test. Localization of crack initiation sites and the mode of crack propagation in the coated specimen are related to the observed resonance frequency. The individual phases of specimen degradation, i.e., the changes of material properties, crack initiation, and crack propagation, were identified. The tested coatings strongly influenced the first two phases, and the influence on the crack propagation was less significant. In general, the presented crack detection method can be used as a sensitive nondestructive testing method well suited for coated parts.

Residual Stresses and Young's Moduli of Plasma Sprayed W+Cu Composites and FGMs Determined by In Situ Curvature Method

In this work, application of the in-situ curvature method on plasma sprayed composite and graded coatings is presented. First, uniform composites of different W/Cu ratio, were sprayed by water stabilized plasma. By continuous monitoring of the curvature of a flat specimen during spraying, the stress evolution throughout the entire history of coating formation was traced. By a simultaneous monitoring of curvature and temperature during post-deposition cooling, Youngs moduli of the coatings were determined. Second, a 5-layer stepwise functionally graded material (FGM) was sprayed. With the knowledge of each layers properties, the complex evolution of deposition, thermal and residual stresses in the FGM could be determined. The ability to determine the stresses and mechanical properties with a spatial resolution comparable to the thickness of one spray pass is demonstrated.

Evaluation of failure micromechanisms of advanced thermal spray coatings by in-situ experiment

Identification of failure mechanisms of thermal spray coatings by means of traditional fractography of failed parts is often troublesome. Reason for this is a highly inhomogeneous character of the coating microstructure and harsh in-service conditions which may hinder evidentiary fractographic marks. In this study, failure evolution of advanced thermal barrier coating (TBC) prepared by plasma spraying was studied in-situ at high magnification in a scanning electron microscope under well-defined laboratory conditions of three-point bending (3PB).

Study of residual stresses, microstructure, and hardness in FeB and Fe 2 B ultra-hard layers

Boriding is a thermochemical diffusion-based process of achieving ultra-hard surface on metals. Two distinct crystalline phases, i.e. tetragonal Fe 2 B and orthorhombic FeB can exist in the surface layer penetrated by boron ions. In our contribution, we have studied the microstructure, the hardness, and the spatial distributions of both phase composition and residual stresses (RS) in samples exhibiting either single-phase Fe 2 B or duplex Fe 2 B-cum-FeB character. The indispensable knowledge of the elastic constants used in the stresses calculations from the measured strains by X-ray diffraction were gained from the refined lattice parameters of both iron borides employing density functional theory implemented in CASTEP software by Materials Studio. In the studied case, there is only minor occurrence of preferred orientation in the Fe 2 B phase and the evaluated RS have compressive character gradually decreasing from its maximum value on the very surface.