Aerospace

Jet engines are among the most demanding mechanical systems created by mankind. They must meet stringent reliability requirements under severe operating conditions that include high temperatures, abrasion, hot corrosion and oxidation. Ever-increasing fuel efficiency requirements pose a further challenge in the selection of materials and surface treatments for engine components.

For compressor and fan sections, protection against hard particle erosion is crucial, especially in newer turbofan engines with larger fans prone to erosion damage. Ionbond offers TiN and TiAlN coatings for effective erosion protection.

Combustor and turbine sections, operating at extreme temperatures, require specialty coatings. Ionbond meets this demand with aluminum-based diffusion coatings applied through an eco-friendly CVD process. These coatings excel in protecting against oxidation and hot corrosion on components like airfoils and abradable seals. Unlike alternative aluminizing methods, CVD is powder media-free and environmentally friendly, also allowing for the modification of classic aluminides with doping elements to enhance coating performance.

Main engine bearings benefit from standard Tribobond™ PVD coatings, enhancing wear resistance and preventing issues like galling, fretting, and surface fatigue.

Implementation of the REACH and RoHS initiatives to phase out the use of certain toxic materials forces aircraft manufacturers and their suppliers to look for more environmentally friendly alternatives to chrome and cadmium electroplating. Extensive programs to eliminate galvanic coatings have been initiated by every aircraft manufacturer, impacting the entire supply chain. IHI Ionbond offers coatings that are viable alternatives to their galvanic counterparts and which are already used in many applications. For instance, in aircraft actuation and control systems and various fasteners. For each new application, Ionbond engineers carefully examine the functionality of the galvanic coating and then recommend a suitable replacement from Ionbond’s portfolio.

Ionbond offers a special class of coatings to provide protection against high-temperature oxidation and hot corrosion in the hot section of jet engine turbines. These coatings are based on chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diffusion aluminizing, also known as CVA, and are offered by Ionbond under the brand name Ionbond™CVD 66.

Unlike pack aluminizing, CVA coatings can be easily deposited onto internal surfaces, such as the cooling channels of blades, vanes or other turbine components. In addition, the CVA process opens up virtually unlimited possibilities to dope the coatings with elements such as Hf, Cr and Si to further increase their performance.