Microstructures of two Al
2O
3-12 mol%ZrO
2 composite powders prepared by blending
† and fusing
†, respectively, were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction and laser-Raman spectroscopy before and after plasma spraying. Furthermore, the stress-induced transformation from the tetragonal (t-ZrO
2) to the monoclinic (m-ZrO
2) phase in the coatings, caused by the Vickers indentation, cracks and fracture, was directly observed by the use of laser-Raman microprobe.
The results obtained were as follows:
(1) The structural behavior of the B-coating was almost the same as that of a single alumina or zirconia coating prepared by plasma spraying.
(2) The T-ZrO
2 phase was predominant in the B-coating and was a metastable phase as the result of plasma spraying. The laser-Raman microprobe measurement indicated that the transformation behavior in the B-coating caused by a Vickers indentation was observed in the central area and around cracks of an indent due to stress concentration.
(3) In the F-coating the α-Al
2O
3 phase was mostly retained after plasma spraying, while a large amount of the m-ZrO
2 phase was formed. These results indicate that the microstructures of the alumina-zirconia coatings are dependant on the state of the starting ceramic powders.
†We named the alumina-zirconia coatings produced from blended and fused powders “B-coating” and “F-coating”, respectively.
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