Evaluating microhardness of plasma sprayed Al2O3 coatings using Vickers indentation technique

In this work, the microhardness of plasma sprayed Al2O3 coatings was evaluated using the Vickers indentation technique, and the effects of measurement direction, location and applied loads were investigated. The measured data sets were then statistically analysed employing the Weibull distribution to evaluate their variability within the coatings. It was found that the Vickers hardness (VHN) increases with decreasing applied indenter load, which can be explained in terms of Kick's law and the Meyer index k of 1.93, as well as relating to the microstructural characteristics of plasma sprayed coatings and the elastic recovery taking place during indentation. In addition, VHN, measured on the cross section of coatings, was obviously higher than that on its top surface. The obtained Weibull modulus and variation coefficient indicate that the VHN was less variable when measured at a higher applied load and on the cross section of coating. The obvious dependence of the VHN on the specific indentation location within through-thickness direction was also realized. These phenomena described above in this work were related to the special microstructure and high anisotropic behaviour of plasma sprayed coatings.