Metal Science and Heat Treatment

Vol. 48, Nos. 11 12, 2006

UDC 621.785.53:669.14.018.44

COMBINED COATING FOR TURBINE BLADES

OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE GAS TURBINE ENGINES
P. T. Kolomytsev1 and V. M. Samoilenko1
Translated from Metallovedenie i Termicheskaya Obrabotka Metallov, No. 12, pp. 28 31, December, 2006.

A combined coating for protecting turbine blades of high-temperature gas turbine engines is studied. Comparative tests of coatings under laboratory conditions and of coated blades in engine operation are performed.
The microstructure of the coating is studied and the concentration profiles of alloying elements are determined
by the method of x-ray diffraction analysis. Tests for high-temperature strength are performed.

natural to introduce a barrier layer onto the interface between

the alloy and the coating, which would hinder the diffusion
of nickel into the coating. The efficiency of a barrier layer
was first mentioned in [2], where the authors tested the
high-temperature strength of specimens of alloy ZhS32 with
a double-layer coating consisting of an internal (barrier) and
an external (protective) layer and then studied the specimens
metallographically. A coating of this type was called a combined one due to the combination of two types of coating deposited by different methods. Ways for improving combined
coatings were considered earlier in [3].
The aim of the present work consisted in studying the
composition and structure of combined coatings after longterm high-temperature tests of specimens and bench tests of
first-stage turbine blades of the RD-33 engine.

INTRODUCTION
Coatings protecting the blades of the first turbine stage
from high-temperature oxidation have been used for over
40 year since the time when the maximum temperature on
the blades attained 850 950C. At first the blades were primarily protected by simple aluminizing performed by a powder or a slip method. Upon the creation of more powerful gas
turbine engines (GTE), the gas temperature at the inlet to the
turbine increased, which inevitably increased the maximum
temperature on the blades. For some modern engines it exceeds 1100C. This reduces considerably the rate of deterioration of the protective properties of coatings on turbine
blades and shortens their service life. The high-temperature
oxidation of the coating is accompanied by its partial removal from the most heated places due to high speeds of the
gas flow. With growth in the temperature of the blades the
strength of their material and of the material of the coating
decreases, which increases the probability of appearance of
cracks in the coating and of propagation of the cracks into
the material of the blade. In addition, growth in the temperature increases the rate of diffusion of alloying elements, primarily of nickel, from the alloy into the coating. As a result,
the content of aluminum in the coating decreases at a rate
comparable with the decrease due to oxidation and formation
of an Al2O3 film and its spalling. This circumstance was discovered by M. Fleetwood [1] when he studied the composition and structure of a coating on an aluminized nickel alloy
after 100-h hold at 1125C. Since the diffusion of nickel
from the alloy into the coating at a high temperature leads to
substantial deterioration of the protective properties, it seems
1

METHODS OF STUDY
The studies were performed on specimens and blades
fabricated from alloy ZhS32 with chemical composition of
5% Cr, 4% Re, 4% TA, 1%, Mo, 8,3% W, 1.5% Nb, 6% Al,
9% Co, 0.05% Zr, and 0.15% C [4].
In the first stage we studied specimens with a combined
double-layer coating containing a diffusion barrier. In order
to deposit a condensation coating with a thickness of about
40 mm we used a MAP-1 installation with cathode from alloy
AZh8-1 bearing Ni, Cr, Al, Ta, W, Hf, Si, and Y. Then an aluminized layer was deposited onto the specimen with the condensation coating by the method of chrome aluminizing in
vacuum at 1080C in a powder mixture containing 14% Al,
36% Cr, and 50% Al2O3. The specimen with the combined
coating was subjected to thermovacuum treatment at 1150C
for 1 h 10 min and them to annealing at 1050C.

N. E. Zhukovsky Air-Force Engineering Academy, Moscow,

Russia.

558
0026-0673/06/1112-0558 2006 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.

Combined Coating for Turbine Blades of High-Temperature Gas Turbine Engines

A combined coating was deposited under production

conditions onto blades from alloy ZhS32 to be tested in an
engine. At first we formed a condensation coating from alloy
AZh8-1 and then the external and internal surfaces of the
blade were subjected to chrome aluminizing and heat treatment. The mixture used at the plant for chrome aluminizing
contains comparatively little aluminum. For this reason, after
the heat treatment we deposited a condensation coating of
Al + 15 wt.% Ni + 1 wt.% Y with a thickness of 10 15 mm
onto the leading edges of the blades with combined coating
and then annealed the blades at 1050C. The thickness of the
coating was 100 110 mm on the leading edge, 90 100 mm
on the other parts of the surface, and 55 75 mm on the internal cavity.
In order to study the diffusion processes occurring in the
alloy coating system the specimens were held in an argon
atmosphere at 1150C for 10, 25, 50, and 75 h. Then we
measured the thickness of the coating and determined the
concentration profiles of the alloying elements in the initial
state and after each hold.
In order to evaluate the endurance of the combined and
chrome aluminized coatings and the regularities of deterioration of their protective properties we tested specimens of alloy ZhS32 in an air medium for isothermal and cyclic hightemperature strength [5]. The tests for isothermal high-temperature strength were performed in an air atmosphere at
1150C. The composition and the structure of the coating
were studied after a hold of 10, 25, 50, 75, 100, 150, 200,
250, 300, and 350 h. The tests for cyclic high-temperature
strength were performed in the following mode: a hold
1150C for 1 h + cooling in air for 15 min (one cycle).
The first-stage turbine blades with combined and commercial coatings were tested in a RD-22 engine according to
the standard program of equivalent cyclic tests.
The microstructure of the coatings was studied under a
Neophot-21 microscope; the distribution of the concentration
of elements in the coating was determined by the method of
x-ray spectrum microanalysis using an S-600 scanning electron microscope and a Zink x-ray diffraction microanalyzer. The results were processed with the help of standard
SAF-4 three-correction software. The phase composition
was determined with the help of a DRON-4 x-ray diffractometer.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A study of diffusion processes between the combined
coating and the protected alloy has shown that with growth
in the duration of the hold at 1150C the thickness of the
coating increases. The distribution of the concentration of Al
and Ni in the coating changes. We should note in the first
turn that a gradient of nickel concentration is observed on the
interface of the barrier and external layers of the coating. After 75 h of holding at 1150C the amount of aluminum in the
coating remains unchanged whereas the nickel content al-

559

Al, Cr, Ta, W, %

25

Cr

Al

W Ta

20
15
10
5
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70 h, mm

Fig. 1. Distribution of alloying elements in a combined coating on

alloy ZhS32 after chrome aluminizing and thermovacuum treatment
(h is the distance from the surface of the coating).

most doubles. These results show that the change in the composition of the coating due to the hold at 1150C is chiefly
connected with the diffusion of nickel [6]. This agrees with
the data of [7] on diffusion processes in a NiAl Ni3Al couple at 1100C. It is shown in this work that the diffusivity of
nickel can be two orders of magnitude higher than the
diffusivity of aluminum. The curves of the distribution of alloying elements in the combined coating are presented in
Fig. 1. We should mention the high content of tungsten even
in the external zone of the coating, which promotes growth in
the strength and in the resistance of the coating to the appearance of cracks during operation of the engine.
Tests of alloy ZhS32 with various coatings for isothermal
high-temperature strength have shown that in all the coatings
the deterioration of the protective properties is accompanied
by about the same structural changes but the latter occur in
different times. For example, the coating deposited by pure
chrome aluminizing in vacuum has the following structure in
the initial state: b (NiAl) in the external zone of the coating
and b + g (Ni3Al) in the external zone. After 10 h of holding
at 1150C the external surface of the coating bears zones
with a structure of g-phase depleted of aluminum. A region
with a structure of b + g lies between these zones. In 75 h
the structure of the coating consists of a g-phase with double-phase islands of (b + g )-phases. In 100 h the structure
is considerably depleted of aluminum and the coating consists of a homogeneous g-solid solution. In 200 h the coating
is absent and the thickness of the layer depleted of aluminum
attains 30 mm.
At the beginning of the test the concentration of aluminum in the combined coating decreases markedly and that of
nickel increases. Then the rate of variation of the content of
these elements decreases noticeably. In 100 h of holding at
1150C the concentration of nickel in the coating is the same
as in the alloy, and the thickness of the coating increases.
In the initial stage of testing (20 200 h) the concentration of aluminum in the coating can be approximated by an
exponential dependence, which is typical for diffusion-controlled processes.

560

P. T. Kolomytsev and V. M. Samoilenko

Al, wt.%
21

1 2 3 4
5

0
1 2 3
4

20
19

5 67

18
17
7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0

3 4

n
Fig. 2. Distribution of aluminum over the profile of a rotor blade
with combined coating (n are conventional points on the blade
profile).

When the concentration of aluminum in the coating decreases to 15 wt.%, the rate of decrease in its content grows
abruptly as a result of intense acceleration of the oxidation
due to the absence of protective film of Al2O3.
Table 1 presents the results of tests of aluminized and
combined coatings on specimens of alloy ZhS32 with about
the same content of aluminum for cyclic high-temperature
strength. It can be seen that the double-layer coating with
barrier layer bearing W and Ta is almost two times more durable than the single-layer coating. Consequently, it can be
used successfully for protecting turbine blades with maximum temperature of about 1150C on the blades.
However, for the blades to operate reliably for the entire
scheduled period it is insufficient to protect them only from
oxidation, because the main reason for rejection of a blade is
the presence of cracks in the coating and in the material of
the blade.

TABLE 1. Results of Testing Coatings for Cyclic HighTemperature Strength at 1150C

Coating

Content of elements
in the coating, wt.%
Al

Structure

N,*
cycles

Cr

Aluminized

17

b + g

125

Combined

18

b + g

325

The number of test cycles before exhaustion of protective properties of the coating.

TABLE 2. Results of Equivalent Cyclic Testing of Engines

Stage of ECT

Engine

tECT , h

I
II
III

88-2006
88-2124
88-2003

42
36
32

1200
400
480

Notations: n is the number of blades with combined coating; tECT is the duration of the equivalent cyclic test.

In order to ensure a high resistance to crack formation in

a coating it is necessary that the coating possess a high
enough strength and a low coefficient of linear thermal expansion (CLTE). Coatings with a structure of (b + g )-phase
possess such properties; they have CLTE @ 13.5 10 6 K 1
in a range of 20 100C and a yield limit s0.2 = 1000
800 MPa in a range of 20 800C. The appearance of cracks
in a coating based on NiAl nickel aluminide can be associated
with the quite low strength of this compound (sr = 140 MPa)
and with the quite high CLTE @ 14.3 10 6 K 1 in a temperature range of 25 1050C.
After working out the regimes for forming a combined
coating on specimens we deposited coatings onto rotor
blades from alloy ZhS32. Blades of the first turbine stage
with combined coating were tested in RD33 engines. The
maximum temperature on the leading edges of the blades
was 1150 1170C; that on the trailing edges was 950
1000C. When the engine operated, compressive stresses
formed on the leading edges and tensile stresses formed on
the trailing edges.
The distribution of aluminum on the surface of combined
coatings on blades is presented in Fig. 2. As rule, the coating
on the leading edge contains 20 23 wt.% Al and has a
structure of g-phase. On the rest surface of the blade including the trailing edges the coating contains 16 18 wt.% Al.
The coating has the structure of a (b + g )-phase and has a
good enough heat resistance at 950 1000C.
Long-term tests of first-stage turbine blades with combined coating were conducted in three RD33 engines. The
duration of the equivalent cyclic tests (ECT) in each of the
engines is presented in Table 2. The total time of ECT of
blades with combined coating was 2080 h. The physical operating time during the tests was 720 h 44 min.
In addition to blades with combined coating we mounted
blades with a standard (double-layer condensation) coating
in the engines. The first layer was sputtered from alloy
SPD-2 and the second layer was sputtered from an alloy of
the Al Ni Y system with a high content of aluminum. After the testing several blades were removed from each of the
engines. They were examined and inspected for the presence
of flaws and some of them were cut into preforms for studying the composition and the structure of the coatings. In
1200 h of testing (stage I of the test) all the blades with combined coatings had no flaws and were mounted for further
tests in an 88-2124 engine. In the next 400 h of testing (stage
II of the test) the blades with combined coatings had no
flaws. The blades with standard coatings were removed from
the tests because many of them had been uncoated and five
had cracks on the trailing edges.
In stage III of ECT lasting for 480 h the removed blades
were replaced by new blades with the same kind of coating.
After ECT with a total duration of 2080 h combined
coatings were lost on leading edges of two blades, namely, at
a distance of 20 30 mm from the free end of the tip and at a
distance of 13 40 mm. This removal is explainable by the

Combined Coating for Turbine Blades of High-Temperature Gas Turbine Engines

TABLE 3. Chemical Composition of Coatings on Leading Edges

of First-Stage Turbine Blades in the Zone of Maximum Temperatures
Coating

Duration
of testing, h

Content of elements, wt.%

Al

Combined Before testing 20.0

231
.
18
.
0
1200
17.5
13.05
2080
8.53
Standard Before testing 17.0
19.5
101
.
1200
12.7

Cr

Ni

Co

4.0
2.0
4.5
4.0
4.25
4.95
20.0
9.0
15.3
9.9

62.5
63.9
63.9
59.5
7186
.
68.34
63.0
68.0
62.6
63.5

3.7
3.0
4.7
4.5
613
.
5.7
0.2
0.2
2.3
2.2

71
.
5.0
9.4
9.4
216
.
5.29
0
0
8.2
8.2

Note. The numerators present the mean content of elements in the

coating; the denominators present the mean content of elements at
the surface.

elevated thickness of the wall at the leading edges of the

blades, which reduced the efficiency of their cooling. On the
third blade we detected partial loss of the coating. At the site
of the partial loss the coating had a thickness of 30 40 mm
and contained 12 13 wt.% Al and 4 5 wt.% Cr, which
could ensure a total service life of the blade for up to 2500 h
without repair. The other 29 tested blades with combined
coatings had no damage. We studied the composition and
structure of the coatings on undamaged blades after each
stage of the test. The data on the chemical composition of the
coatings before and after equivalent cyclic testing are presented in Table 3. Comparative analysis of the compositions
of the coatings after stage I of the test (1200 h) shows that a
combined coating is more durable than a standard one. For
example, the mean content of aluminum decreased during
the test by 6.9% in a standard coating and by 2% in a combined coating (at the surface by 6.8% and 5.6%, respectively). This conclusion was confirmed by the results of
stage II of the test after which the blades with standard coatings were withdrawn from further testing.
After testing for 480 h (stage III) the mean content of
aluminum in the combined coating was 13.05 wt.%, which
indicated that the coating had not lost its operating capacity.
On the leading edges of blades with combined coating the

561

thickness of the coating in the zones of maximum temperature amounted to about 60 mm after the test. A g-phase was
located at the surface of the coating where it had the form of
a thin layer and on the interface with the alloy at about half
the thickness of the coating. Coarse inclusions of b-phase
were located between the layers of continuous g-phase. The
g-phase was also the main structural component of the coating on the trailing edges on the interface with the alloy.
Coarse grains of -phase were contained in the g-phase at
the surface of a coating with a thickness of from 20 to 50 mm.
CONCLUSIONS
1. A combined double-layer coating obtained on alloy
ZhS32 under laboratory conditions is more than twice more
durable than a standard coating with an almost equal content
of aluminum.
2. Deposition of a combined three-layer coating onto rotor blades will prolong the service life of the first-stage turbine blades to 2000 h.
REFERENCES
1. M. J. Fleetwood, J. Inst. Metals, 98, 1 7 (1970).
2. P. T. Kolomytsev, O. V. Skryl, and S. A. Kochetov, Raising the
reliability of GTE by using high-temperature coatings on the
blades, in: Structural Strength of Engines, Abs. Rep. 10th
All-Union Sci.-Eng. Conf. [in Russian], Kuibyshev (1988), p. 88.
3. V. V. Kazanov, P. T. Kolomytsev, and V. M. Samoilenko, Main
tendencies in advancement of metallic coatings for turbine
blades of gas turbine engines, in: 39th Perusal in the Memory of
K. . Tsiolkovsky, Abs. Rep. [in Russian], Kaluga (2004).
4. E. N. Kablov, I. M. Svetlov, and K. V. Petrushin, Nickel hightemperature alloys for casting blades with directed and single-crystal structure, Materialovedenie, No. 4 (1997).
5. P. T. Kolomytsev and S. A. Kochetov, A study of the mechanism
and regular features of exhaustion of protective properties of heat
resistant coatings, in: Scientific and Methodological Materials
on Protective Coatings [in Russian], VVIA Im. Zhukovskogo,
Moscow (1992), pp. 106 113.
6. P. T. Kolomytsev and S. A. Kochetov, A study of diffusion processes in a combined heat resistance coating on a high-temperature nickel alloy, in: Scientific and Methodological Materials on
Protective Coatings [in Russian], VVIA Im. Zhukovskogo, Moscow (1990), pp. 146 152.
7. M. P. Janssen, Metall. Trans., 4, 1623 1633 (1973).