Effect of substrate temperature on deposition behavior of copper particles on substrate surfaces in the cold spray process

The deposition behavior of sprayed individual metallic particles on the substrate surface in the cold spray process was fundamentally investigated. As a preliminary experiment, pure copper (Cu) particles were sprayed on mirror-polished stainless steel and aluminum (A]) alloy substrate surfaces. Process parameters that changed systematically were particle diameter, working gas, gas pressure, gas temperature, and substrate temperature, and the effect of these parameters on the flattening or adhesive behavior of an individual particle was precisely investigated. Deposition ratio on the substrate surface was also evaluated using these parameters. From the results obtained, it was quite noticeable that the higher substrate temperature brought about a higher deposition rate of Cu particles, even under the condition where particles were kept at room temperature. This tendency was promoted more effectively using helium instead of air or nitrogen as a working gas. Both higher velocity and temperature of the particles sprayed are the necessary conditions for the higher deposition ratio in the cold spraying. However, instead of particle heating, substrate heating may bring about the equivalent effect for particle deposition.