Baron and Ruiz concluded that the basic catalysts were more effective in crack-free film production compared with acidic catalysts and denser films were produced in more diluted sols. This also helps to increase the anticorrosive properties of the coatings. found that denser and more crack-free zirconia and silica films were formed at higher temperatures because of the removal of organic substances.
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have found that the corrosion resistance is improved with increasing the number of deposited silica layers because they become free of cracks and porosities. In recent years many researchers have tried to reduce these cracks and therefore changed many variables. Ĭracking the film during drying stage is the main concern of sol-gel derived ceramic coatings. Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) is the most common system because of its high ionic conductivity and thermal stability offering an improvement in adhesion and corrosion resistance properties. Zirconia films have been used widely in recent years because it possesses more efficient anticorrosion ability, thermal protection, optical properties, easier sol preparation, and good erosion resistance accompanied by toughening strength and its close thermal expansion coefficient to many metals and alloys. Many sol-gel derived ceramic thin films like SiO 2, ZrO 2, CeO 2-ZrO 2, ZrO 2-SiO 2, TiO 2, TiO 2-SiO 2, and so forth have been produced on different substrates. They include low processing temperature, chemically and physically uniform coatings, high purity, low capital investment, producing thin homogeneous films on large scale, easy controlling of film thickness, and practical in complex geometries effectively. Among all surface modification techniques such as chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition, plasma, ion implantation, and so forth, sol-gel processing has many advantages over other techniques. Surface modification of materials permits independent optimization of bulk and surface properties. So, they are somehow subject to corrosion and their specific surface properties (e.g., corrosion, oxidation, etc.) should be improved. In a failed container, zirconium is in contact with NaCl solution. Ground water composition especially in crystalline and sedimentary rock types contains NaCl. In fuel deep geological repository, used fuel bundles and the associated Zr cladding are encapsulated in durable containers and the containers are sealed in an engineered vault at a depth of hundreds of meters in a stable low permeability rock mass. For fuel cladding applications, the alloys of choice are zircaloy-2 (Zr-2) and zircaloy-4 (Zr-4). Introductionīecause of many excellent bulk properties like low thermal neutron capture cross section, favorable mechanical properties and good corrosion resistance even at high temperatures, zirconium and its alloys are widely used in nuclear reactors as fuel cladding and as reactor structural elements, chemical engineering, and lately in biomedical applications. The coated sample presented a 25% reduction in oxidation rate in comparison with bare substrate. The coating with the best quality, from the surface and corrosion point of view, was subjected to oxidation test in air at 800☌. According to the corrosion parameters, the YSZ coatings showed a considerable increase in the corrosion resistance, especially at higher heat treatment temperatures. The homogeneity and surface appearance of coatings produced was affected by the heat treatment temperature. The electrochemical behavior of the coated and uncoated samples was investigated by means of open circuit potential, Tafel, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in a 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. The morphological characterization of the coatings was carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to determine the crystalline phase structure transformation. Differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetric analysis (DTA-TG) revealed the coating formation process. Sol-gel 8 wt.% Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) thin films were prepared on zirconium (zircaloy-4 alloy) by dip-coating technique followed by heat treating at various temperatures (200☌, 400☌, and 700☌) in order to improve both electrochemical corrosion and high temperature oxidation properties of the substrate.