Phase evolution of EBPVD coated ceria-zirconia nanostructure and its impact on high temperature oxidation of AISI 304

[Display omitted] •Highly challenging ceria-zirconia thin films deposited using EBPVD for the first time.•Addition of Zr4+ enhances the oxygen vacancy concentration of the films.•Optimum ceria-zirconia composition is essential for protection at high temperature.•Surface morphology of the coating is influenced by the composition. The present work focusses on the effect of nanocrystalline xCeO2–(1-x)ZrO2 (x=1, 0.75, 0.5, 0.25 and 0 in wt% abbreviated as C100, C75Z25, C50Z50, C25Z75 and Z100) coated by electron beam physical vapour deposition (EBPVD) on AISI 304 and its implication on the high-temperature oxidation protection. The oxidation kinetics indicate that the samples C100, C75Z25 and C50Z50 show 3–4 orders better oxidation protection than uncoated AISI 304. Coating morphology and composition play an important role in developing superior nanostructures against high temperature oxidation. The development of ceria-zirconia coating helps in the realization of structural materials for elevated temperature application.