Investigation on the interface characteristics of the thermal barrier coating system through flat cylindrical indenters

Thermal barrier coating (TBC) systems are highly advanced material systems and usually applied to insulate components from large and prolonged heat loads by utilizing thermally insulating materials. In this study, the characteristics of the interface of thermal barrier coating systems have been simulated by the finite-element method (FEM). The emphasis was put on the stress distribution at the interface which is beneath the indenter. The effect of the interface roughness, the thermally grown oxide (TGO) layer's thickness, and the modulus ratio (η) of the thin film with the substrate has been considered. Finite-element results showed that the influences of the interface roughness and the TGO layer's thickness on stress distribution were important. At the same time, the residual stress distribution has been investigated in detail.