Environmental-barrier coating ceramics for resistance against attack by molten calcia-magnesia-aluminosilicate (CMAS) glass: Part I, YAlO3 and γ-Y2Si2O7

The high-temperature (1500 °C) interactions of two promising dense, polycrystalline EBC ceramics, YAlO3 (YAP) and γ-Y2Si2O7, with a calcia-magnesia-aluminosilicate (CMAS) glass have been explored as part of a model study. Despite the fact that the optical basicities of both the EBC ceramics and the CMAS are similar, they both react with the CMAS. In the case of the Si-free YAlO3, the reaction zone is small and it comprises three regions of reaction-crystallization products, including Y-Ca-Si apatite solid-solution (ss) and Y3Al5O12 (YAG)(ss). In contrast, only Y-Ca-Si apatite(ss) forms in the case of Si-containing γ-Y2Si2O7, and the reaction zone is an order-of-magnitude thicker. These CMAS interactions are analyzed in detail, and are found to be strikingly different than those observed in Y-free EBC ceramics (β-Yb2Si2O7 and β-Sc2Si2O7) in the accompanying Part II paper. This is attributed to the presence of the Y in the YAlO3 and γ-Y2Si2O7 EBC ceramics.