Heat-induced interface-coupling behaviour of thermally sprayed Cu/ceramic coatings

Abstract A new phenomenon of heat-induced interface-coupling behaviour was observed in the Cu/ceramic coatings prepared by thermal spraying, and the formation mechanism of the interface-coupling layer was explained. The experimental results showed that the as-received Cu/ceramic interface is clear and smooth, with an abundance of nanoparticles present near the interface. However, after heat treatment (900 °C, 12 h, Ar atmosphere), it was clearly discerned that the Cu/ceramic interface formed an Al-rich and Ti-rich phase coupling layer with Cu-rich particles by XRD, EPMA and EBSD. The formation of the coupling layer could be due to the growth of nanoparticles and the decomposition of Al 2 TiO 5 during heat treatment.