Interface topography and residual stress distributions in W coatings for fusion armour applications

Vacuum plasma sprayed (VPS) tungsten (W) coatings are potential plasma facing components in future fusion power plants. However, the large coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch between W and underlying structural steels and other metallic materials poses a significant problem for manufacturing and service life because of the evolution of large thermally induced stresses leading to failure. In this paper, the effects of the substrate/coating interface 3D geometry on stress distributions are investigated using finite element analysis and VPS experiments to manufacture up to 2 mm thick W coatings. The key factors that affect internal stress distributions during thermal exposure have been identified including graded composition inter-layers, stress concentration effects, mechanical adhesion, and the possible role of segmentation in relieving coating stresses on surface sculptured substrates.