The material acts as a biomimetic of teak wood and creates an environmental barrier coating.

Researchers have developed an innovative technique in plasma spray physical vapor deposition known as vapor/liquid alternating deposition. By tuning the arc current, the researchers achieved fine control over the evaporation and deposition of SiO2 and, through the heat treatment process, achieved an in-situ reaction that optimized the composition, structure, and nanoscale dimensions of the coating, resulting in well-arranged multilayer structures. membrane can be created. There is a layered teak-like biomimetic structure within it.

They conducted a detailed analysis of the complex deposition mechanisms involved in this process. This new teak-like biomimetic structural coating is expected to significantly improve its mechanical properties and corrosion resistance, providing an innovative coating protection strategy for high-temperature applications in the gas turbine engine field.

The team published their findings in the Journal of Advanced Ceramics.

“Biomimetic studies on environmental barrier coatings are relatively rare, primarily because there are significant challenges in precisely controlling coating composition and structure during the high-temperature thermal spray process. “We chose teak wood, which is known for its mechanical properties and environmental durability, as a subject for biomimicry,” said Dr. Guifang Han, corresponding author of the paper and a professor at the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Shandong University.

“By employing a vapor-liquid spaced deposition method and controlling parameters during the thermal spraying process such as arc current, we achieved the evaporation and deposition of SiO2, thereby building a regularly arranged multilayer structure within the coating. This unique deposition mechanism allows us to mimic the natural layered structure of teak, which is important for enhancing the mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of the coating,” Dr. Han continued.

“From a thermodynamic point of view, we carried out a detailed analysis of the deposition mechanism of volatile SiO2 gas during the thermal spraying process. We found that the in-situ reaction between vapor-deposited SiO2 and Yb2SiO5 We have creatively applied a heat treatment technique to reshape Yb2Si2O7, which is produced by the decomposition of Yb2Si2O7 powder. can be controlled at the same time. Due to the nanoscale dimensions of the coating, we were able to successfully achieve a functional structure that biomimetic teak wood,” said Dr. Han.

Despite the progress made, there is still much to explore in the field of environmental barrier coatings for biomimetic teak structures. In this context, Han said that the key for future research will be to systematically evaluate the corrosion resistance and mechanical properties of these coatings and compare them with existing literature findings to determine their effectiveness in real-world applications. He emphasized that it was about examining gender.

The ultimate vision of the research is to commercialize these coating technologies, thereby increasing the protection efficiency of high-temperature applications such as gas turbine engines.