Application of Indentation for Estimating the Thermal Stability of Plasma Thermal Barrier Coatings

The physicomechanical properties of zirconia-based thermal barrier coatings, which are deposited by air-plasma method on a heat-resistant VKh4A high-chromium nickel alloy and are subjected to heat treatment under various conditions imitating real exploitation processes of the coatings, are studied. To estimate the fracture strength of the coatings (critical stress intensity factor K1c) and Young’s modulus, Vickers microindentation is used. This method is shown to allow one to estimate the effect of a heat load and to find the factors affecting the properties of the coatings.