Hybrid Aerosol Deposition: Enhancement of Solid Particle Deposition Capability by Mesoplasma Assistance

The hybrid aerosol deposition (HAD) process is a kind of aerosol deposition process with plasma assistance, enabling the deposition of ceramic coatings. The HAD process utilizes a mesoplasma flow, which is a transitional plasma from thermal plasma to low-pressure plasma, to enhance particle deposition efficiency and capability of three-dimensional coverage. In this process, the surface of fine solid particles is activated by the mesoplasma flow, while the core of the particles is kept solid without melting during flight. This surface activation of particles contributes to increase their sticking probability, which plays important roles in the increase in the deposition efficiency and the enhancement of the capability of three-dimensional coverage. This deposition mechanism is unique and different from either melt deposition or solid consolidation. Characteristics of the HAD process as well as applications to deposit several ceramic materials such as alumina and zirconia will be presented.