Effect of deposition conditions on the properties and annealing behavior of cold-sprayed copper

The deposition of copper by cold gas dynamic spraying has attracted much interest in recent years due to the capability to deposit low-porosity oxide-free coatings. However, it is generally found that as-deposited copper has a significantly greater hardness, and potentially lower ductility, than bulk material. In this article, copper was deposited by cold spraying using helium as the driving gas at both 298 and 523 K. Evidence is presented indicating that the material sprayed at the lower temperature exhibits a lower dislocation density throughout the grain structure than the material sprayed at the higher temperature. The low stacking fault energy of copper restricts recovery during annealing, and thus microstructural changes during annealing only proceed once recrystallization begins. The material sprayed at low temperature (with the low dislocation density) exhibited recrystallization at annealing temperatures as low as 373 K with a corresponding reduction in hardness. However, the copper sprayed with helium at 523 K was resistant to annealing at temperatures up to 473 K where the dislocations in the structure prevented recrystallization. However, at higher temperatures, recrystallization did proceed (with corresponding reductions in hardness). The fracture behavior of the copper that was cold sprayed with helium at 523 K, both in the as-sprayed condition and following annealing, was measured and explained in terms of the annealing mechanisms proposed.