Advanced thermal spray technology and coating for lightweight engine blocks for the automotive industry

New advanced thermal spray technology allows providing wear-resistant coatings on the cylinder surface of aluminum or magnesium engines. The obtained special surface topography after the finishing allows to decrease significantly the coefficient of friction and to decrease the fuel consumption from 2% to 4%. Engine tests on diesel and gasoline engines have confirmed the value of this technology regarding the aspect of energy saving. This coating technology is introduced since 4 years in Europe by the manufacturing of high power diesel, respectively, gasoline engines. The combination of different MMC coating materials allows the development of new specific solutions for each types of engine. Coatings with improved corrosion resistance and abrasion resistance were also developed and are available now. A brief overview on other applications of thermal spraying in the automotive industry will be given also. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.