Abstract: The invention relates to a plasma spraying device (1) for spraying a coating (2) onto a substrate (3) by a thermal spray process. Said plasma spraying device (1) includes a plasma torch (4) for heating up a plasma gas (5) in a heating zone (6), wherein the plasma torch (4) includes a nozzle body (7) for forming a plasma gas stream (8), and said plasma torch (4) having an aperture (9) running along a central longitudinal axis (10) through said nozzle body (7). The aperture (9) has an convergent section (11) with an inlet (12) for the plasma gas (5), a throat section (13) including a minimum cross-sectional area of the aperture, and a divergent section (14) with an outlet (15) for the plasma gas stream (8), wherein an introducing duct (16) is provided for introducing a liquid precursor (17) into the plasma gas stream (8). According to the invention a penetration means (18, 161, 181, 182) is provided to penetrate the liquid precursor (17) inside the plasma gas stream (8).

Abstract: The invention relates to a masking system (1) for the masking of a crank chamber (2) of an internal combustion engine (3) during a surface treatment of a cylinder running surface (4, 41, 42) of a cylinder bore (5, 51, 52) of a cylinder (6, 61, 62) of the internal combustion engine (3). The masking system (1) includes a hollow masking body (7) with a connector segment (71) for the connection of the hollow masking body (7) to the cylinder bore (5, 51, 52) as well as a screen segment (72). In accordance with the invention, the hollow masking body (7) is configured such that the connector segment (71) of the hollow masking body (7) can be positioned on the cylinder bore (51) of the first cylinder (6, 61) at the crank chamber side during the surface treatment of a first cylinder (6, 61) of the internal combustion engine (3). The invention further relates to the use of a masking system (1) in accordance with the invention.

Abstract: The invention relates to a thermal spraying material (5) for the coating of a surface of a workpiece by means of a thermal spraying method, wherein the spraying material (5) contains zinc. The invention further relates to a thermal spraying method and to a thermally sprayed coating sprayed with the material (5).

Abstract: The invention relates to a powder supply system (1) for supplying a processing apparatus (2) with a granular substance (3). In this arrangement the powder supply system (1) includes a main container (4) and a powder conveying system (5) with a storage container (51) for conveying the granular substance (3) into the processing apparatus (2). In accordance with the invention means (6, 611, 612, 62) are provided so that, in the operating state of the processing apparatus (2), a predetermined amount of the granular substance (3) can be conveyed from the main container (4) as working powder to the storage container (51) in such a way that at least a minimum amount (M1) is available as a granular substance (3) in the storage container (51).

Abstract: According to a method for producing a solid ceramic fuel cell, a solid electrolyte layer is gas-tightly deposited on an electrode inside a coating chamber, using a plasma spraying technique. The pressure inside the coating chamber is set at less than approximately 15 mbar for this purpose. A coating material is powder form, preferably with a particle diameter of significantly less than 10 ?m, is finely dispersed in the plasma jet in such a way that the individual particles are isolated from each other when they meet the electrode. This enables a very homogenous and impervious solid electrolyte layer to be deposited.

Abstract: The invention relates to a material based on an oxide ceramic for the manufacture of a surface layer (5) by means of a thermal coating process including aluminium oxide and zirconium oxide, with the material additionally containing chromium oxide for the simultaneous optimization of the hardness and toughness of the surface layer (5).

Abstract: A method is proposed for arc spraying by means of a spray gun (1). The spray gun includes two electrically conductive spray wires (2) and at least one first supply device (3) for supplying a fluid (4), with an electrical voltage being applied to the spray wires (2), the spray wires (2) being fed by means of a wire guide (5), an arc (6) being ignited by the electrical voltage, the spray wires (2) being converted into a melt (8) in a melting region (7) and the melt (8) being applied by the fluid (4) to the surface (9) of a body (10). In this connection, particles (11) from a storage container (12) are supplied to the melt (8) by the fluid (4).

Abstract: The invention relates to a spray powder for coating a substrate (2) in particular for coating a bearing part (2) of a bearing apparatus, said spray powder having at least the following composition: zinc=5% to 30% by weight, tin=1% to 10% by weight, silicon=0.1% to 3% by weight, aluminium=0.1% to 7% by weight, iron=0.01% to 2% by weight, manganese=0.01% to 4% by weight, cobalt=0.01 to 3% by weight, copper=the balance to 100% in % by weight.

Abstract: The invention relates to a spray powder for coating a substrate (2), in particular for coating a bearing part (2) of a bearing apparatus, said spraying powder having at least the following composition: carbon=0.1% to 1.5% by weight, manganese=0.1% to 8% by weight, sulphur=0.1% to 2% by weight, copper=0.1% to 12% by weight and iron=the balance in % by weight to 100%.

Abstract: The plasma spraying method is a coating method in which a material to be coated is sprayed onto a surface of a metallic substrate (2) in the form of a powder beam. The coating material is injected at a low process pressure, which is lower than 10,000 Pa, into a plasma defocusing the powder beam and is there partly or fully melted. In this connection, a plasma with sufficiently high specific enthalpy is produced so that a substantial portion, amounting to at least 5% by weight, of the coating material changes into the vapour phase and an anisotropically structured coating (1) is produced on the substrate. An anisotropic structured layer of the coating material is deposited on the substrate. In this coating, elongate particles (10), which form an anisotropic micro-structure, are aligned standing largely perpendicular to the substrate surface and low-material transitional zones (11, 12) bound the particles from one another.

Abstract: In the method for the coating of a substrate (3), a hybrid coating method is carried out with a thermal process jet (2) which makes it possible to combine the properties of a thermal spray method with those of a reactive vapour phase deposition. The properties of the process jet are determined by controllable process parameters, in particular by the parameters of pressure, enthalpy, composition of a process gas mixture (G) and composition and form of application of a coating material (M). The coating material is partly or completely evaporated in dependence on the controllable parameters. The phases of the coating material present in vapour form (23b) and, optionally, in condensed, i.e. solid or liquid form, (23a) are at least partly deposited on the substrate. The relative proportion of vapour and/or of condensed phase for the coating material (23) transported in the process jet is determined by a diagnostic measuring method (D).

Abstract: A combination of a plasma spraying process and a vacuum slip casting process is carried out. By combining these two processes, which can each be carried out without difficulty, it is surprisingly possible to achieve good electrolyte layers. Therefore, it is possible to construct a fuel cell system using coated tubes in a bundled arrangement, the tubes being electrically connected in series and operated as a fuel cell generator in power units of between 100 kW and a few MW.

Abstract: According to a method for producing a solid ceramic fuel cell, a solid electrolyte layer is gas-tightly deposited on an electrode inside a coating chamber, using a plasma spraying technique. The pressure inside the coating chamber is set at less than approximately 15 mbar for this purpose. A coating material is powder form, preferably with a particle diameter of significantly less than 10 &mgr;m, is finely dispersed in the plasma jet in such a way that the individual particles are isolated from each other when they meet the electrode. This enables a very homogenous and impervious solid electrolyte layer to be deposited.

Abstract: A surface coating of the working surface of a cylinder of a combustion engine is disclosed, having the combination of the following characteristics: The coating is applied by plasma spraying; the surface of the coating comprises a plurality of open pores; the degree of porosity of the surface of the coating amounst to between 0.5 and 10%; the statistic mean pore size amounts to between 1 and 50 &mgr;m, whereby at least nearly exclusively pores with a size of less than 100 &mgr;m are present; the pores are stochastically distributed in the surface of the coating, both as far as the area and the size is concerned; the coating comprises a content of bound oxygen of between 0.5 and 8% by weight; the coating comprises inclusions of FeO and Fe3O4 crystals, serving as solid lubricants; and the roughness of the surface of the coating is adjusted by mechanically finishing to an arithmetic mean roughness Ra of between 0.02 and 0.4 &mgr;m and to a mean peak-to-valley distance Rz of between 0.5 and 5 &mgr;m.

Abstract: A method is proposed for arc spraying by means of a spray gun (1). The spray gun includes two electrically conductive spray wires (2) and at least one first supply device (3) for supplying a fluid (4), with an electrical voltage being applied to the spray wires (2), the spray wires (2) being fed by means of a wire guide (5), an arc (6) being ignited by the electrical voltage, the spray wires (2) being converted into a melt (8) in a melting region (7) and the melt (8) being applied by the fluid (4) to the surface (9) of a body (10). In this connection, particles (11) from a storage container (12) are supplied to the melt (8) by the fluid (4).

Abstract: A surface coating of the working surface of a cylinder of a combustion engine is disclosed, having the combination of the following characteristics:

Abstract: A surface layer for forming a cylinder barrel wall of a combustion engine block is proposed. The surface layer has separate phases of components that are separated from the phase of the remaining materials. The surface layer is produced by plasma spraying an iron containing spraying powder, incorporating all components of the layer to be produced. Such a surface layer may be applied easily and shows a significantly improved behavior regarding the machining thereof, without negatively influencing other important characteristics of the layer material, like wear resistance and coefficient of friction vis-à-vis the material of the piston rings. Preferred components of the spraying powder are, besides Fe, Cr, MN, S and C. Moreover, the spraying powder can contain As, Te, Se, Sb and/or Bi.

Abstract: To improve the machining and processing, respectively, as well as the tribologic properties of ferrous coatings for the working surfaces of combustion engine cylinder blocks applied by a plasma spraying operation, a ferrous coating having a content of bound oxygen in the amount of between 1 to 4% by weight is suggested. Such coatings can be realized, for example, by adding an amount of 200 to 1000 normalized liters air per minute during the plasma spraying operation.

Abstract: Al2O3 based layers having a total thickness of more than 0.3 mm are produced on a substrate by plasma jet spraying, said Al2O3 based layers having a laminar sandwiched structure wherein at least one Al2O3 layer is interpolated between two intermediate layers which are produced by plasma jet spraying as well, said intermediate layers consisting of a ceramic laminated material which is different from Al2O3 and which on cooling increases in volume by phase transition. Preferred materials for said intermediate layers are Al2O3/ZrO2, Al2O3/TiO2, ZrO2/Y2O3, Y2O3/ZrO2, ZrO2/MgO ZrO2/CeO2 and ZrO2/CaO alloy systems.

Abstract: Ferrous coatings of the cylinder working surfaces of combustion engine blocks have a content of bound oxygen in the amount of between 1 to 4% by weight. They are characterized by extraordinary properties as far as tribology and the possibility of processing, e.g. machining, are concerned. Particularly, the coefficient of friction and the tendency to scuffing are substantially reduced. Such coatings can be realized, for example, by adding an amount of 200 to 1000 normalized liters air per minute during the plasma spraying operation.