The Influence of Powder Porosity on the Bonding Mechanism at the Impact of Thermally Sprayed Solid Particles

High-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) thermal spraying can generate dense depositions without melting the powders during spraying. Our previous study showed that most HVOF-sprayed particles are in solid state prior to impact on the substrate. The deposition of solid particles requires sufficient deformation of the particles as a result of a high impact. This report is a continuation of our previous work to study the bonding mechanism for thermally sprayed solid particles. The same hard material, WC-Co powder, is studied by considering the porosity inside the particles. The detailed deposition mechanism is examined by dynamically tracking the particle impingement using finite element analysis (FEA) models. The results confirm that the deposition of high-speed solid particles is caused mainly by the particle deformation and further implies that deformation is enhanced with increase in porosity alone. Therefore, a possible way to increase the deposition efficiency of hard cermet coating could be to use a properly designed porous powder.