Monday, 3 December 2018

Arc Spray Wire- Highly cost-effective coating alternative for Industries



High wear and corrosion of parts result in increase of operating costs at thermal power plants. The arc spraying of protective coatings is an effective solution to this problem. The wear & heat resistance of the coatings were tested via a two-body wear test accompanied by microhardness measurement and the gravimetric method respectively. Cored wires of the base alloying system Fe-Cr-C were used as a feedstock. Rise of wear resistance and heat resistance of the coatings was achieved by additional alloying with Al, B, Ti and Y. A high temperature corrosion test was performed at 550°C under KCl salt deposition. The porosity and adhesion strengths of the coatings were also evaluated. The microstructure was investigated with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) unit equipped with an energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) microanalyzer and the phase composition was assessed by X-ray diffractometry. The test results showed the positive influence of additional alloying with Y on the coating properties. A comparison with commercial boiler materials showed that the coatings have the same level of heat resistance as austenite steels and are an order of magnitude higher than that of pearlite and martensite-ferrite steels. The coatings can be applied to wear-resistant and heat-resistant applications at 20°C-700°C.

Thermal spray coating is a suitable method to improve corrosion resistance of low carbon steels. The corrosion behavior of wire-arc-sprayed coatings on C35 steel was undertaken. Characterization techniques including metallographic and corrosion resistance of different coatings were investigated. Electrochemical tests of arc sprayed stainless steel, Inconel and composite coatings were performed in 3, 5% NaCl solution. The results comparison showed an excellent corrosion resistance of the stainless steel coating.

Nickel-basedalloys are used for Arc Spray Wire in numerous applications due to their outstanding wear and corrosion resistance at high temperatures and their relatively low cost. These alloys have high strength, hardness and excellent corrosion resistance due to addition of chromium.

The oxidation and sulfidation can cause problems for the materials exposed depending on the local activities of oxygen and sulphur in coal fired boilers used for power generation. Burning fuels with significant amounts of chlorine or elements such as potassium, zinc, sodium, vanadium and lead can cause the formation of ash & salt deposits with very low melting points. Corrosive conditions develop with the molten salts fluxing the protective oxide scales or directly dissolving the metal if the temperature of the metal surface is above the melting point of the salt’s eutectic composition. This corrosion mechanism is often encountered in waste incinerators, fluidized bed boilers burning fuels with higher chlorine contents (e.g. solid waste), black liquor recovery boilers in the pulp & paper industry and engine exhaust systems when oils with higher amounts of vanadium are burnt.

There are numerous countermeasures that are developed to avoid excessive material damage corresponding to the variety of corrosive environments. Alloy selection is an essential factor wherein a large number of Fe-, Co- and Ni- based alloys exist today specially designed for excellent resistance to sulfidation, oxidation and corrosion by ash/salt deposits. Designs aspects improve temperature distribution (avoid hot spots), avoid excessive deposition of ash and slags by use of soot blowers, rapping, screens. Chemical additives such as neutralization of corrosive components in the flue gases by injecting additives such as dolomite or limestone. Shielding  such as SiC tiles in waste incinerators and other types of refractory linings. Different coating techniques are applied to protect critical surface areas from corrosive gases including co-extrusion, weld overlay, chromizing and thermal spray coatings.

No comments:

Post a Comment