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Partially stabilized zirconia was applied as coatings to 316L stainless steel substrata using an 80-kw arc-plasma unit. Some of these coating-substrate systems were subsequently glazed using a 10 kw CO2 continuous-wavelength laser. SEM was used to characterize the microstructures of the coatings and coating-substrate interfaces. Results are reported and discussed.
A time integration of a linearized plasma equation of motion has been performed to calculate the ideal linear stability of arbitrary three-dimensional magnetic fields. The convergence rates of the explicit and implicit power methods employed are speeded up by using sequences of cyclic shifts. Growth rates are obtained for Gold-Hoyle force-free equilibria, and the corkscrew-kink instability is found to be very weak.
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The present study of the condensation modes in coronal cylindrical plasmas, with attention to magnetic shear effects on stability, notes that such shear is insignificant in the initiation of condensation in the case of low beta coronal plasmas. The effects of magnetic field shear, twist, and strength on condensation modes differ, depending on the wave vector. The stability of condensation modes strongly depends on the choice of equilibrium temperature and density profiles. If plasma temperature increases with twist but density does not, condensation modes are unstable for low field twist; by contrast, if plasma density increases with twist but temperature does not, condensation modes are unstable for high twist.
Observations of an energetic interplanetary electron event associated with the production of Langmuir waves, both of which are identified at 4.3 AU by instruments on the Ulysses spacecraft, are presented in this paper. This electron event propagates inside a well-defined magnetic structure. The existence of this structure is firmly established by joint particle and plasma observations made by Ulysses instruments. Its local estimated radial width is of the order of 2.3 x 10(exp 7) km (0.15 AU). The electron beam is associated with a type III burst observed from Earth at high frequencies and at low frequencies from Ulysses in association with Langmuir waves detected inside the structure. The consistency of local (Ulysses) and remote (Earth) observations in terms of temporal and geometrical considerations establishes that the structure is anchored in the solar corona near the solar active region responisble for the observed type III emission and gives an accurate determination of the injection time for the observed electron beam. Propagation analysis of the electron event is presented. In order to quantify the magnetic field properties, a variance analysis has been performed and is presented in this paper. The analysis establishes that inside the structure the amount of magnetic energy involved in the fluctuations is less than 4% of the total magnetic energy; the minimal variance direction is well defined and in coincidence with the direction of the mean magnetic field. This configuration may produce conditions favorable for scatter free streaming of energetic electrons and/or Langmuir wave production. The results presented show that the magnetic field might play a role in stabilizing the coronal-origin plasma structures and then preserving them to large, approximately 4 AU, distances in the heliosphere.
The Soft Plasma Arc (SPA) process was devised to avoid interactions between backshield and full penetration mode plasma jet in welding 2195 aluminum-lithium alloy. Occasional sudden and mysterious losses in penetration were encountered in flat position SPA welding. To understand what was happening a model of the dynamics of the molten metal meniscus at the root of the weld was worked out. When the power input to the weld P(sub in) exceeds the power leakage P(sub out) the difference in power is absorbed by an increase in the molten weld pool volume V, Rho X L(SUB m) X (d(V)/dt)) = P(sub in) - P(sub out) where rho is the density and L(sub m) the specific heat of the weld metal.
Two-stream and cross-stream effects on nonlinear wave stability with shock in collisionless plasma
Coating systems consisting of a plasma sprayed layer of zirconia stabilized with either yttria, magnesia or calcia over a thin alloy bond coat have been developed, their potential was analyzed and their durability and benefits evaluated in a turbojet engine. The coatings on air cooled rotating blades were in good condition after completing as many as 500 two-minute cycles of engine operation between full power at a gas temperature of 1644 K and flameout, or as much as 150 hours of steady state operation on cooled vanes and blades at gas temperatures as high as 1644 K with 35 start and stop cycles. On the basis of durability and processing cost, the yttria stabilized zirconia was considered the best of the three coatings investigated.
Ceramic thermal-barrier coatings on hot engine parts have the potential to reduce metal temperatures, coolant requirements, cost, and complexity of the cooling configuration, and to increase life, turbine efficiency and gas temperature. Coating systems consisting of a plasma-sprayed layer of zirconia stabilized with either yttria, magnesia or calcia over a thin alloy bond coat have been developed, their potential analyzed and their durability and benefits evaluated in a turbojet engine. The coatings on air-cooled rotating blades were in good condition after completing as many as 500 two-minute cycles of engine operation between full power at a gas temperature of 1644 K and flameout, or as much as 150 hours of steady-state operation on cooled vanes and blades at gas temperatures as high as 1644 K witn 35 start and stop cycles. On the basis of durability and processing cost, the yttria-stabilized zirconia was considered the best of the three coatings investigated.
A ceramic seal system is reported that employs plasma-sprayed graded metal/ceramic yttria stabilized zirconium oxide (YSZ). The performance characteristics of several YSZ configurations were determined through rig testing for thermal shock resistance, abradability, and erosion resistance. Results indicate that this type of sealing system offers the potential to meet operating requirements of future gas turbine engines.
A 30 cm inert gas electrostatic ion thruster has been developed, exhibiting excellent performance. In the development, the effective anode area was reduced by altering the magnetic field geometry to improve plasma containment, consistent with operational stability. The propellant introduction scheme has the effect of 'folding' the discharge chamber without the increased wall loss penalty associated with a longer chamber. These features contribute to a low discharge cost (eV/ion) versus mass utilization characteristic which remains relatively flat even to high mass utilizations.
An investigation is conducted of the stability of a large laboratory plasma current sheet, which has been generated in the process of magnetic field line reconnection, with respect to local current increases. Magnetic flux variations in regions remote from the current sheet generate an inductive voltage in the current loop that drops off inside the plasma in the form of a potential double layer, leading to particle acceleration with velocities much larger than those expected from the steady state electric fields in the plasma. A model for the mechanism of the current disruptions is formulated in which the potential structure leads to ion expulsion, creating a localized density drop. The associated current drop in an inductive circuit drives the potential structure, providing feedback for the disruptive instability. Similarities to, and differences from, magnetospheric substorm phenomena are noted.
Ceramic protective coatings on combustor liners adhere better. Report discloses results of recent combustor-liner research where thick yttria stabilized zirconia ceramic was plasma-sprayed on BRUNSBOND substrates and exposed to nearly stoichiometric combustion. Combustor screening tests exposed 30 test specimens to nearly-stoichiometric flame temperatures of 3,450 degrees F (2,170 K) for 4 cycles. After completion of screening tests, all 30 specimens showed no visible evidence of discoloration or failure. There were no mudflat cracks, felt/ceramic, or backing/felt separations on any panels.
Report discusses performances of ceramic thermal-barrier coating materials for use in electric-utility gas-turbine engines. Variations of standard coating evaluated in search for coating resistant to dirty fuel. Variations included alterations of level of yttria, replacement of yttria by other stabilizers, controlling surface density (by plasma spray processing, infiltration, laser glazing, or sputtering), and interface treatments.
The objectives of this research were to determine the predominant modes of degradation of a plasma sprayed thermal barrier coating (TBC) system, and then to develop and verify life prediction models accounting for these degradation modes. The TBC system consists of a low pressure plasma sprayed (LPPS) bond coat layer of Ni-22Cr-10Al-O.3Y, an air plasma sprayed (APS) yttria partially stabilized zirconia (ZrO sub 2-8Y sub 2 O sub 3) top coat on a conventionally cast Rene 80 (Ni base) substrate. Thermal cycle testing of TBCs was employed to evaluate the effect of coating edges, bond coat oxidation, bond coat creep, top coat thickness, and bond coat thickness.
Plasma-sprayed 8wt% yttria-stabilized zirconia (8YSZ) thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) have been demonstrated to exhibit nonlinear hysteretic elastic behavior by quasistatic cyclic compression and cylindrical punch indentation measurements. In particular, the instantaneous (tangential) elastic modulus increases with applied stress and exhibits significant hysteresis during cycling. Sound velocity (dynamic) measurements also show an increase in TBC modulus with applied compressive stress, but in contrast show no significant hysteresis for the modulus during cycling. The nonlinear elastic behavior of the TBCs evidenced by these tests is attributed to coating compaction and internal sliding. The differences between the quasistatic and dynamic measurements are explained by the relative absence of the effect of internal sliding in the dynamic modulus measurements. By incorporating short load reversals into the larger loading cycle and measuring the instantaneous modulus at the start of each load reversal, the effects of internal sliding can be substantially reduced in the quasistatic measurements, and the resulting modulus values show good agreement with the modulus values determined by dynamic sound velocity measurements.
Thermographic phosphors have been previously demonstrated to provide effective non-contact, emissivity-independent surface temperature measurements. Because of the translucent nature of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs), thermographic-phosphor-based temperature measurements can be extended beyond the surface to provide depth-selective temperature measurements by incorporating the thermographic phosphor layer at the depth where the temperature measurement is desired. In this paper, thermographic phosphor (Y2O3:Eu) fluorescence decay time measurements are demonstrated for the first time to provide through-the-coating-thickness temperature readings up to 1000 C with the phosphor layer residing beneath a 100-Fm-thick TBC (plasma-sprayed 8wt% yttria-stabilized zirconia). With an appropriately chosen excitation wavelength and detection configuration, it is shown that sufficient phosphor emission is generated to provide effective temperature measurements, despite the attenuation of both the excitation and emission intensities by the overlying TBC. This depth-selective temperature measurement capability should prove particularly useful for TBC diagnostics, where a large thermal gradient is typically present across the TBC thickness.
Thermographic phosphors have been previously demonstrated to provide effective non- contact, emissivity-independent surface temperature measurements. Because of the translucent nature of thermal barrier coatings (TBCs), thermographic-phosphor-based temperature measurements can be extended beyond the surface to provide depth-selective temperature measurements by incorporating the thermographic phosphor layer at the depth where the temperature measurement is desired. In this paper, the use of thermographic phosphor (Y2O3:Eu) luminescence decay time measurements is demonstrated for the first time for through-the-thickness temperature readings up to 1000 C with the phosphor placed beneath a 100-micron-thick TBC (plasma-sprayed 8wt% yttria-stabilized zirconia). With an appropriately chosen excitation wavelength and detection configuration, it is shown that sufficient phosphor emission is generated to provide effective temperature measurements, despite the attenuation of both the excitation and emission intensities by the overlying TBC. This depth-selective temperature measurement capability should prove particularly useful for TBC diagnostics, where a large thermal gradient is typically present across the TBC thickness.