Thermal Barrier Coatings

The aerospace industry strives to develop new methods of refining gas turbine engines by increasing power and thermal efficiencies while simultaneously reducing cost. Turbine engines operate under high temperatures and therefore thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) composed of yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) play an important role in improving the performance of the components that make up the engine. Failure of the TBC could lead to catastrophic events, thus requiring consistent and accurate characterization for supplier qualification and production quality assurance. However, due to porosity and the anisotropic behavior of the coating and variability in processing of TBCs, consistent characterization has proven to be extremely challenging. One of the reoccurring issues is the inconsistency in measuring percent porosity, which stems from the difficulty in distinguishing filled pores from damaged, unfilled voids. Sample preparation of TBCs involves sectioning, mounting, grinding, polishing, and characterization. Eliminating variability in characterization begins with mounting which is a critical step to protect the surface integrity and edge retention of the coating durin