Suspension Plasma Spraying: Process Characteristics and Applications

Suspension plasma spraying (SPS) offers the manufacture of unique microstructures which are not possible with conventional powdery feedstock. Due to the considerably smaller size of the droplets and also the further fragmentation of these in the plasma jet, the attainable microstructural features like splat and pore sizes can be downsized to the nanometer range. Our present understanding of the deposition process including injection, suspension plasma plume interaction, and deposition will be outlined. The drawn conclusions are based on analysis of the coating microstructures in combination with particle temperature and velocity measurements as well as enthalpy probe investigations. The last measurements with the water cooled stagnation probe gives valuable information on the interaction of the carrier fluid with the plasma plume. Meanwhile, different areas of application of SPS coatings are known. In this paper, the focus will be on coatings for energy systems. Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) for modern gas turbines are one important application field. SPS coatings offer the manufacture of strain-tolerant, segmented TBCs with low thermal conductivity. In addition, highly reflective coatings, which reduce the thermal load of the parts from radiation, can be produced. Further applications of SPS coatings as cathode layers in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) and for photovoltaic (PV) applications will be presented.

[1]  Emil Pfender,et al.  Plasma jet behavior and modeling associated with the plasma spray process , 1994 .

[2]  M. P. Sherman,et al.  Calorimetric Probe for the Measurement of Extremely High Temperatures , 1962 .

[3]  M. Boulos,et al.  Morphological study of hydroxyapatite nanocrystal suspension , 2000, Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine.

[4]  P. Fauchais,et al.  Phenomena Involved in Suspension Plasma Spraying Part 2: Zirconia Particle Treatment and Coating Formation , 2006 .

[5]  E. Pfender,et al.  Diagnostics of a thermal plasma jet by optical emission spectroscopy and enthalpy probe measurements , 1994 .

[6]  Rainer Koch,et al.  Spectral emissivity measurements of thermal barrier coatings , 1998 .

[7]  E. Pfender,et al.  Probe measurements in argon plasma jets operated in ambient argon , 1989 .

[8]  Thierry Chartier,et al.  Preparation of LaMnO3 perovskite thin films by suspension plasma spraying for SOFC cathodes , 2006 .

[9]  S. C. Snyder,et al.  Enthalpy probe performance in compressible thermal plasma jets , 1993 .

[10]  P. Fauchais,et al.  Phenomena Involved in Suspension Plasma Spraying Part 1: Suspension Injection and Behavior , 2006 .

[11]  Maher I. Boulos,et al.  The suspension plasma spraying of bioceramics by induction plasma , 1997 .

[12]  Izaak C. Vinke,et al.  Manufacturing of high performance solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) with atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) , 2007 .

[13]  Baki M. Cetegen,et al.  Superior thermal barrier coatings using solution precursor plasma spray , 2004 .

[14]  G. Soucy,et al.  Analysis of the enthalpy probe technique for thermal plasma diagnostics , 1995 .

[15]  Christian Coddet,et al.  Comparative study on the photocatalytic decomposition of nitrogen oxides using TiO2 coatings prepared by conventional plasma spraying and suspension plasma spraying , 2006 .

[16]  Robert Vaßen,et al.  Advanced thermal spray technologies for applications in energy systems , 2008 .

[17]  Zeng Yi,et al.  Suspension plasma spraying of TiO2 for the manufacture of photovoltaic cells , 2009 .

[18]  P. Bengtsson,et al.  Thermal shock testing of burner cans coated with a thick thermal barrier coating , 1998 .

[19]  Günter Schiller,et al.  DC and RF Plasma Processing for Fabrication of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells , 2004 .

[20]  Maurice Gell,et al.  Application opportunities for nanostructured materials and coatings , 1995 .

[21]  G. Schiller,et al.  Development of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) for Stationary and Mobile Applications by Applying Plasma Deposition Processes , 2003 .

[22]  G. Soucy,et al.  Fluid dynamic study of direct current plasma jets for plasma spraying applications , 1998 .

[23]  Christian Coddet,et al.  Oxidation control in atmospheric plasma spraying coating , 2007 .

[24]  Maher I. Boulos,et al.  Thermal Plasmas: Fundamentals and Applications , 1994 .

[25]  J. Nishikawa,et al.  Estrogenic activity of chemicals for dental and similar use in vitro , 2000, Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine.

[26]  D. Stöver,et al.  Comparison and Applications of DPV-2000 and Accuraspray-g3 Diagnostic Systems , 2007 .

[27]  C. Berndt,et al.  Nanomaterial deposits formed by DC plasma spraying of liquid feedstocks , 2005 .