Effect of Interfacial Roughness of Bond Coat on the Residual Adhesion Strength of a Plasma Sprayed TBC System after Thermal Cycle Fatigue

The effect of the bond coat on residual adhesion strength after thermal cycle fatigue was investigated in plasma-sprayed thermal barrier coatings (TBC). This study used CoNiCrAlY powder with two different particle sizes for spraying bond coat material to examine the effect of interface roughness between the bond coat and top coat. In addition, the bond coat was sprayed on either by a high velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) or a low pressure plasma spray (LPPS). The residual adhesion strength of the TBC top coat was evaluated as a function of the number of thermal cycles by the modified 4-point bending test. In addition, SEM observations of thermal fatigue cracking morphologies and measurements of the residual stress in the ceramic top coat were carried out. The experimental results indicated that, after thermal cycle fatigue, microcracks were generated in the ceramic top coat; however, they were moderated in a rough interface TBC compared to a smooth interface TBC. In addition, the bond coat sprayed by the HVOF method showed a higher resistance to microcracking than the coat sprayed using the LPPS. Residual stress in the ceramic top coat is almost zero at 0 thermal cycles. After thermal cycle fatigue, it becomes compressional stress; however, it is independent of the bond coat. There was little difference in the adhesion strength by bond coat in as-sprayed conditions. On the other hand, the specimen with a rough interface exhibited higher residual adhesion strength after thermal cycle fatigue compared with the specimens with a relatively smooth interface. In addition, if the bond coat is sprayed by HVOF, the residual adhesion strength increases. It was revealed that the difference in residual adhesion strength by bond coat is related to the distribution morphology of thermal fatigue microcracks.