Self Healing in Coatings at High Temperatures

Alloys for high temperature applications in an oxidizing environment depend on the formation of a protective and slow growing oxide scale. The composition of these alloys is such that a continuous layer of a thermodynamically stable oxide is formed through selective oxidation of one of the constituting elements. Then, the oxide layer forms a barrier between the environment and the underlying alloy. The alloys for high temperature applications can be divided into alumina

(

Al

2

O

3

)

, silica

(

SiO

2

)

, or chromia

(

Cr

2

O

3

)

formers, such as stainless steels, superalloys (Reed 2006), and intermetallics (MX, where M is Ti, Fe, Co or Ni, and X denotes Al, Si, or Cr). These materials are successfully applied in for example gas turbine engines (aero, marine, and industrial), heating equipment and automotive converters etc. In this chapter, the focus will be on alumina forming alloys encountered as coating material for blades and vanes in gas turbine engines. However, the principles addressed also apply to the other mentioned classes of high temperature alloys.