Cold spray additive manufacturing of titanium metal matrix composites

Cold spray additive manufacturing is a solid-state deposition method in which metal powder impacts a surface at supersonic velocities depositing on a surface in the form of a coating or a 3D structure. Cold spray additive manufacturing can produce metal matrix composite materials by simultaneously processing metal and ceramic powders. In such a case, the reinforcement material embeds into the metal matrix during the deposition process. Processing both materials can also contribute to reducing the overall porosity of the deposited material. Mixing titanium and other particles could potentially offer a path to producing reinforced composites with other functional properties, such as reduced thermal conductivity and expansion. In this research, titanium metal matrix composites were cold sprayed and heat treated using ceramic reinforcement ((ZrO₂)_0.92(Y₂O₃)_0.08, TiB₂ and TiC), and elemental blending with W. Final chemical composition, microstructure and tensile mechanical properties were investigated in the heat treated cold spray material. This paper also discusses the effect of the addition of the secondary particles on the deposition efficiency and bulk density of cold spray Ti-MMCs before and after heat treatment.