A lattice Boltzmann based investigation of powder in-flight characteristics during APS process, part II: Effects of parameter dispersions at powder injection

Lattice Boltzmann-based (LB) numerical models for axisymmetric plasma jet are developed to investigate particle plasma spraying process. We study the plasma jet and we focus mainly on the plasma-particle exchanges during the powder journey in argon. The effects of injection conditions on the spraying jet and the arrival particle conditions (velocity, temperature, melting rate, …) are carried out for four selected operating parameters, say particle diameter, injection velocity, injection position (along injector section) and the injection angle at the injector exit. It has been observed that the LB method is a powerful tool for investigating plasma jet flows. It has been also concluded through the tracking model of the micro-sized particles that the present LB-based results agree well with the FD-based results and that the spray stream depends strongly on the studied injection conditions. Besides, it has been found that the splashing phenomenon is found to be a rule governing particle/droplet impact behaviors.

► Development of axisymmetric thermal lattice Boltzmann model for plasma jet dynamics
► Validation with previous findings leads to excellent agreement.
► Development of a spraying model for powder trajectory, velocity and temperature
► Validation on dense Al2O3 powder with Jets&Poudres code
► Injection dispersion effects on in-flight/arrival characteristics for ZrO2 powder