New flexible ceramic material delivers lightweight heat protection and cost savings
Article Type: New materials and equipment From: Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Volume 56, Issue 6
Plasma spray coating specialist Zircotec has developed what is believed to be the first-ever flexible ceramic heat shield material. The firm's new ZircoFlex™ product is to be supplied in a roll, and is set to revolutionise the use of ceramic materials for heat protection in a wide range of automotive, aerospace, and industrial applications.
Zircotec's plasma sprayed ThermoHold® based coatings are already used for the protection of metallic and composite components in an increasing number of applications. Applied to the material surface in a lightweight layer, Zircotec's engineered coatings can reduce surface temperatures by up 33 percent. A limitation of the process has, until now, been the need to treat parts directly using 14,000 K plasma sprays.
“ZircoFlex has the potential to transform the use of ceramic heat protection,” says Zircotec sales director Peter Whyman. “For the first time these coatings can be installed in-line to parts and assemblies during manufacture, even in high volume applications, without disrupting production flow. The potential in maintenance and aftermarket applications is huge too. Users can now upgrade parts with Zircotec ceramic protection without needing to dismantle or decommission their equipment.”
Now, Zircotec has developed a new technology that allows its coatings to be supplied as a thin aluminium backed foil. The new material, for which a patent has been applied, is lightweight at only 460 g/m2 and only 0.25 mm thick. ZircoFlex foil is however robust and easy to handle. It can be cut and installed by hand or machine, and is easily fixed in place using mechanical fasteners or high temperature adhesives, allowing it to be integrated directly into conventional production or maintenance operations.
Ceramic coatings are naturally brittle, which has limited their use up until now to rigid substrates. The new ZircoFlex product, which is the culmination of more than five years' intensive research and materials science, uses a new technology in which the ceramic material is sprayed in the form of thousands of individual “platelets” on the surface of the foil. While they are close-packed to provide comprehensive heat protection, this structure allows the foil to be bent and manipulated to suit different geometries, and it can even be folded tightly through 180° without damaging the thermal barrier.
Early applications for ZircoFlex foil are expected to come from the automotive industry, where the foil can be used to protect sensitive components from heat in increasingly crowded engine bays. Zircotec also reports considerable interest from the motorsport sector where the foil is in demand as a rapid solution to thermal protection problems. The company is continuing its research into flexible ceramic coatings and has plans to produce an expanded range of ZircoFlex foils using a range of alternative substrates (Figure 1).
Figure 1 New flexible ceramic material for heat protection
More information is available from the web site: www.zircotec.com
