Design and Validation of Conformal Anodes for a Thermal Barrier Coating on a Triple Vane

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are layered systems deposited on thermally highly loaded metallic components such as high pressure turbine blades or nozzle guide vanes in gas turbines. TKIBOMET ® MCrAlY coatings are Praxair Surface Technologies' unique electrodeposited version of the high temperature oxidation and corrosion resistant MCrAly coating and typically contain "metal" (nickel/cobalt) chromium-aluminum-yttrium and other active elements. Praxair's MCrAlY coatings are produced by the carefully controlled codeposition of CrAlY powder with nickel and/or cobalt from conventional electroplating baths. This is later followed by vacuum heat treatment to produce the MCrAlY alloy coating. To date, design of the electroplating configuration is largely a combination of experiential and empirical approaches often consuming substantial labor and lead time. This paper describes how Elsyca's newly developed CAM tools were used to assess and guide the design of a conformal anode system with the objective of achieving a very uniform deposit on a triple vane configuration. The simulations are validated with experimental deposit thickness measurements on the actual parts and a very good agreement is observed for all test points on the triple vanes. From this it can be concluded that simulations are a relevant and very powerful tool to design complex plating configurations. Implementing such a digital manufacturing approach can significantly reduce labor costs in reaching an optimum tooling design, resulting in a reduction in time to market and time to revenue.