High aluminide coatings

Fig. 10. Schematic diagram showing the as-deposited structure of a low activity (left) and a high activity (right) diffusion aluminide coating on a nickel-base superalloy. The high activity coating would receive a heat treatment to convert the Ni2Al3 to NiAl.

N.E. Maragoudakis, S.D. Tsipa, G. Stergoindis, H. Omar, D.N. Tsipas, Boro-aluminide coatings for protection against high temperature steam oxidation, Proc. of Corrosion science in the 21st century, UMIST (2003) to be published in Electronic Journal of Corrosion Science and Engineering, 6, http //www.jcse.org/. 

When the coating metal halide is formed in situ, the overall reaction represents the transfer of coating metal from a source where it is at high activity (e.g. the pure metal powder, = 1) to the surface of the substrate where is kept less than 1 by diffusion. The formation of carbides or intermetallic compounds such as aluminides or silicides as part of the coating reaction may provide an additional driving force for the process. 

Calorised Coatings The nickel- and cobalt-base superalloys of gas turbine blades, which operate at high temperatures, have been protected by coatings produced by cementation. Without such protection, the presence of sulphur and vanadium from the fuel and chloride from flying over the sea promotes conditions that remove the protective oxides from these superalloys. Pack cementation with powdered aluminium produces nickel or cobalt aluminides on the surfaces of the blade aerofoils. The need for overlay coatings containing yttrium have been necessary in recent times to deal with more aggressive hot corrosion conditions. 

Diffusion aluminide and silicide coatings on external and internal surfaces for high temperature corrosion protection in parts such as gas-turbine blades is estimated at 40 x 106/yr in North America and about 50 x 106 worldwide. 

Turbine blades of jet engines are coated with a protective layer of platinum aluminide to impart high temperature corrosion resistance. Platinum is electroplated onto the blade using P-salt or Q-salt electroplating solutions (28,29). The platinum is then diffusion-treated with aluminum vapor to form platinum aluminide. Standards for the inspection and maintenance of turbine blades have become more stringent. Blades are therefore being recoated several times during their lifetime. 

Since many years the intermetallic phases based on aluminides have been an important topic for research and development, because of their high melting points, low densities and excelent corrosion resistance at high temperatures. Especially, nickel aluminides have been of great interest as coating materials for several high temperature applications. 

Aluminides based on the intermetallic phases Ni3Al and Fe3Al are considered both as structural materials and as coatings for high temperature applications [1-6]. Their excellent corrosion resistance is due to their forming a dense, protective alumina scale. Alumina, especially ot-Al203, shows low rate constants even at temperatures above 1000°C [7]. Unlike chromia, which is formed on conventional stainless steels and nickel base alloys, alumina does not evaporate above 1000°C [8] and it is even stable in oxygen deficient atmospheres. 

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