Microstructural Evolution and Sintering of Suspension Plasma-Sprayed Columnar Thermal Barrier Coatings

Suspension plasma spray (SPS) is capable of producing coatings with porous columnar structure, and it is also a much cheaper process compared to the conventionally used electron beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD). Although TBCs with a columnar microstructure that are fabricated using SPS have typically lower thermal conductivity than EB-PVD, they are used sparingly in the aerospace industry due to their lower fracture toughness and limited lifetime expectancy. Lifetime of TBCs is highly influenced by the topcoat microstructure. The objective of this work was to study the TBCs produced using axial SPS with different process parameters. Influence of the microstructure on lifetime of the coatings was of particular interest, and it was determined by thermal cyclic fatigue testing. The effect of sintering on microstructure of the coatings exposed to high temperatures was also investigated. Porosity measurements were taken using image analysis technique, and thermal conductivity of the coatings was determined by laser flash analysis. The results show that axial SPS is a promising method of producing TBCs having various microstructures with good lifetime. Changes in microstructure of topcoat due to sintering were seen evidently in porous coatings, whereas dense topcoats showed good resistance against sintering.