Cold spraying of Al-Sn binary alloy: Coating characteristics and particle bonding features

In this study, Al-Sn binary alloy coatings were prepared with Al-10 wt.% Sn (Al-10Sn) and Al-20 wt.%Sn (Al-20Sn) gas atomized alloy powders by low pressure cold spray process. The microstructure and microhardness of the coatings were characterized. The deposition efficiency of Al-Sn and pure aluminum powder were tested on sand blasted substrates of Al6061, copper and SUS304. To investigate the particle bonding features of Al-10Sn powder, the wipe test was carried out on polished substrate surfaces. The average critical velocity of Al-Sn alloy powders was estimated combining with the deposition efficiency. The results proved that Al-Sn coatings with dense and uniform structure can be deposited successfully by low pressure cold spray with helium as the propellant gas. The weight content of tin in Al-Sn coating is 12% and 22% for Al-10Sn and Al-20Sn coating, respectively. With the increase of tin content in feedstock powder, the as-sprayed coatings present similar microhardness of 73 and 74 for Al-10Sn and Al-20Sn while, on the other hand, the deposition efficiency decreased. Bonding features of Al-10Sn particles indicated that the melting of tin phase occurred on the contact interface during particle impacting. This melting of tin phase and low strength of tin may affect the particle bonding process and hence increase the critical velocity for Al-Sn binary alloy powders.