Thermal Effects in Sn Coating on a Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic by Cold Spraying

Carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) is a competitive and promising material that is employed in various industries, including the aerospace industry. Metallized CFRPs and multimaterials based on metals are highly attractive for such applications. In this study, we deposited Sn on an epoxy-based CFRP via cold spraying and investigated the effects of gas temperature on Sn deposition behavior. A continuous Sn coating was successfully obtained on the CFRP at gas temperatures ranging from 473 to 523 K. By contrast, severe erosion of the CFRP substrate occurred at 623 K, making the cold spray coating of Sn difficult. The relationships between the processing temperature, surface topology, and erosion state are examined from the perspective of the CFRP surface temperature. The results indicate that a higher gas temperature leads to a greater surface temperature, resulting in an uneven surface topology with more severe erosion accompanied by a gradual decrease in coating thickness.