A cold-gas spray coating process for enhancing titanium

As we approach the 21st century, the importance of and need for improved energy efficiency, along with reduced emissions and other forms of pollution, will steadily increase. Titanium will play a crucial role in this area because of its tremendous potential for weight savings in automobiles and aircraft. However, many of the properties of Ti, such as strength, wear resistance, specific corrosion/oxidation resistance, and its ability to be securely bonded with alternate (metallic and nonmetallic) materials, must be improved to allow all of the potential benefits of Ti to be realized. Moreover, there may also be many applications where it is desirable to modify the behavior of other materials (again, metallic or nonmetallic) with the properties of Ti to enhance their capabilities. In either case, one viable method for overcoming these challenges is through the use of protective and /or enhancing coatings. Experimental results involving spray forming of titanium, spray coating of titanium with Cr sub 3 C sub 2 -20Ni-5Cr and application of titanium coatings to alumina and plastic.