HIGH-TEMPERATURE COATING FOR TITANIUM ALUMINIDES USING THE PACK-CEMENTATION TECHNIQUE

The practical application of titanium aluminide metal-matrix composites (MMCs) at high temperatures requires suitable surface coatings to provide the needed oxidation resistance. Without a coating, the titanium aluminide alloys suffered from rapid oxidation attack at elevated temperatures, particularly under thermal cyclic conditions. The pack-cementation coating process was utilized to aluminize the surface region of a Ti3Al-base alloy to TiAl3, the most oxidation-resistant phase. With the existence of an adherent conversion coating, a thin protective alumina scale formed on the outer surface, and a significant improvement in the corrosion resistance was observed. Excellent coating efficiency and geometric flexibility were demonstrated in this study by the pack-cementation technique. Further development of the cementation process will focus on the elimination of surface cracking in the coating. © 1990 Plenum Publishing Corporation.