Effect of pre-oxidation treatment on the thermal shock resistance of thermal barrier coatings in a combustion gas environment

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were deposited by an Air Plasma Spraying (APS) technique. The TBC coating comprised of 92 wt.% ZrO₂ and 8 wt.% Y₂O₃ (YSZ), CoNiCrAlY bond coat, and MarM247 nickel base super alloy. After APS of YSZ two batches of TBC specimens were tested, one batch of which was pre-oxidised in air for 10h at 1080 °C. Both types of the specimens were directly pushed into a combustion gas at 1150 °C for 25 min and then out to the natural air for quenching. The combustion gas was produced by burning jet fuel with high speed air in a high temperature wind tunnel, which simulates the real service conditions in an aeroengine. Results show that TBCs prepared by the APS had good thermal shock resistance in the combustion gas. The pre-oxidation treatment of the TBC had a significant effect on its thermal shock life. The as-oxidised TBCs always had worse thermal shock resistance than the as-sprayed ones after thermal shock cycles.