Effects of Al Content and Addition of Third Element on Fabrication of Ti-Al Intermetallic Coatings by Heat Treatment of Warm-Sprayed Precursors

Four powder mixtures of titanium and aluminum with 50:50, 40:60, 30:70, and 20:80 atomic ratios were used as feedstock for Warm Spray process to produce composite coatings. A two-stage heat treatment at 600 and 1000 °C was applied to the deposits in order to obtain titanium aluminide intermetallic phases. The microstructure, chemical, and phase composition of the as-deposited and heat-treated coatings were investigated using SEM, EDS, and XRD. It was found that the Al content affects on the thickness expansion of the heat-treated Ti-Al coatings significantly and also has a major influence on the porosity development, which is caused by the Kirkendall effect. The effects of adding a third element Si and heat treatment with pressure to produce denser Ti-Al intermetallic coating were also examined. The investigated hot-pressed coatings with addition of Si exhibited much denser microstructure and contained Ti-Al intermetallic phases with titanium silicide precipitates.