Vladimir Yu. Ulianitsky

Detonation Spraying of Ti–Al Intermetallics: Phase and Microstructure Development of the Coatings

The goal of this work was to study the phase and microstructure changes involved in the process of coating formation by detonation spraying of Ti3Al, TiAl, and TiAl3 intermetallics. The O2/C2H2 ratio was varied between 1.1 and 2.0, and the explosive charge was 30–40% of the barrel volume. In most experiments air was used as a carrier gas; selected experiments were performed with argon. We found that depending on the spraying parameters, TiAl3 essentially retains in the coatings or partially decomposes forming TiAl and Ti3Al as minor phases. Detonation sprayed Ti3Al reacts with nitrogen and oxygen partially transforming into titanium nitrides TiN/Ti2N and titanium oxynitrides TiNxOy. TiAl partially decomposes forming Ti3Al, which further reacts with oxygen and nitrogen as the particle temperature and the content of oxygen in the explosive mixture increase. The in situ formed titanium nitrides and oxynitrides show a reinforcing effect increasing the hardness of the coatings.

Development of Catalytic Converters Using Detonation Spraying

One of the trends in hydrogen power engineering is the development of devices for the preparation of synthesis gas by the catalytic reforming of a hydrocarbon feedstock. Studies show the advantages of catalytic converters based on a modular catalyst support with a honeycomb-type structure produced from a metal foil, both sides of which are coated with highly porous oxide ceramics. The drawback of this design is a poor ability of the coating to withstand high-temperature operating conditions. The coating may detach from the substrate because of the difference in thermal expansion coefficients between the metal foil and the ceramic coating. Besides, a corrosion of metal foil takes place. The result of the present study is the development and application of a two-step coating method, which allows significantly increasing the service life of the catalyst supports. At the first step, a low-porosity ceramic layer is deposited on a metal foil by detonation spraying. At the second step, a high-porosity layer of a ceramic catalyst is deposited from suspension. In this work, the peculiarities of the detonation spraying of the ceramic coating on a metal foil and the design of the obtained catalytic converter have been addressed.

Structural and mechanical characterization of detonation coatings formed by reaction products of titanium with components of the spraying atmosphere

Structural characterization of detonation deposits formed by reaction products of titanium with the components of the spraying atmosphere showed that ceramic-based coatings of unique microstructures—consisting of alternating layers of different compositions—can be formed. For the first time, mechanical characteristics of the coatings formed by reaction-accompanied detonation spraying of titanium were evaluated. It was found that high-yield transformation of titanium into oxides and nitrides during spraying can result in the formation of coatings with high fracture resistance and interface fracture toughness. The hardness of the coatings measured along the cross-section of the specimens was higher than that on the surface of the coatings, which indicated mechanical anisotropy of the deposited material. In terms of mechanical properties, coatings formed by the reaction products appear to be more attractive than those specially treated to preserve metallic titanium.