Optimized functionally graded La2Zr2O7/8YSZ thermal barrier coatings fabricated by suspension plasma spraying

In this paper, an optimized functionally graded coating (OFGC) was successfully fabricated by suspension plasma spraying (SPS) with feedstocks of the suspension of nanoparticles. La(2)Zr(2)O7(/)8YSZ OFGC with gradual compositional variation along the through-thickness direction is proposed to mitigate spallation and crack formation owing to the high residual stresses caused by frequent thermal cycling for TBCs. The single ceramic layer coatings (SCLC) of LZ and double ceramic layer coatings (DCLC) of LZ/8YSZ were fabricated by SPS as comparison. The phase composition and microstructure of the SCLC, OFGC and DCLC were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and Energy Dispersive Spectrometer (EDS). Moreover, the thermal cycling tests were carried out to evaluate their thermal shock behavior. Changes in weight and morphology of specimens were analyzed during thermal cycling tests. The results showed that OFGC has extended lifetime compared with SCLC and DCLC. The failure of DCLC with clear interface between different ceramic layers occurred via delamination mode, as a result of crack initiation and propagation generated by thermal mismatch between LZ and 8YSZ. While the failure of OFGC occurred in thermally grown oxide (TGO) layers, indicating that the gradual compositional variation avoided thermal stress concentration in the top ceramic layers. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.