Metals 2016, 6(6), 135; https://doi.org/10.3390/met6060135
Experimental Verification of Statistically Optimized Parameters for Low-Pressure Cold Spray Coating of Titanium
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Department of Chemical, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Tshwane University of Technology, P.M.B. X680, Pretoria 0001, South Africa
2
Department of Metallurgical Engineering, Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark 1911, South Africa
3
School of Mechanical, Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Soran Birosca
Received: 19 April 2016 / Revised: 10 May 2016 / Accepted: 24 May 2016 / Published: 2 June 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Process-Structure-Property Relationships in Metals)
Abstract
The cold spray coating process involves many process parameters which make the process very complex, and highly dependent and sensitive to small changes in these parameters. This results in a small operational window of the parameters. Consequently, mathematical optimization of the process parameters is key, not only to achieving deposition but also improving the coating quality. This study focuses on the mathematical identification and experimental justification of the optimum process parameters for cold spray coating of titanium alloy with silicon carbide (SiC). The continuity, momentum and the energy equations governing the flow through the low-pressure cold spray nozzle were solved by introducing a constitutive equation to close the system. This was used to calculate the critical velocity for the deposition of SiC. In order to determine the input temperature that yields the calculated velocity, the distribution of velocity, temperature, and pressure in the cold spray nozzle were analyzed, and the exit values were predicted using the meshing tool of Solidworks. Coatings fabricated using the optimized parameters and some non-optimized parameters are compared. The coating of the CFD-optimized parameters yielded lower porosity and higher hardness. View Full-TextKeywords:
process parameters; cold spray; optimization; critical velocity; SiC; microstructure; properties
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Adebiyi, D.I.; Popoola, A.P.; Botef, I. Experimental Verification of Statistically Optimized Parameters for Low-Pressure Cold Spray Coating of Titanium. Metals 2016, 6, 135.
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