Nanostructured thermal barrier coatings by APS and EB-PVD and their properties

To exploit full potentials of the current widely used yttria-partially-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), nano-sized YSZ powders were developed and used as the ceramic source material. By controlling the deposition processes, novel TBCs with outstanding nanostructures such as nano-sized grains and pores were produced by atmospheric plasma spray (APS) and electron beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD), respectively. The incorporated nanostructures in TBCs resulted in substantial increase in hardness, thermal barrier effect and lifetime against thermal cycling. The long-term microstructural stability of nano-coating at elevated temperature was also evaluated.