# US 2013/0153089 A1 · Cold spray of nickel-base alloys

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- Number: US 2013/0153089 A1
- Document ID: US20130153089A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 13/328,290
- Filed: 2011-12-16
- Published: 2013-06-20
- Earliest claimed: 2011-12-16
- Assignees: General Electric Company
- Inventors: Leonardo Ajdelsztajn; Timothy Hanlon
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20130153089A1

## CPC

- C23C 24/04: Impact or kinetic deposition of particles
- C23C: COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL (making metal-coated products by extrusion B21C23/22; covering with metal by connecting pre-existing layers to articles, see the relevant places, e.g. B21D39/00, B23K; metallising of glass C03C; metallising mortars, concrete, artificial stone, ceramics or natural stone C04B41/00; enamelling of, or applying a vitreous layer to, metals C23D; treating metal surfaces or coating of metals by electrolysis or electrophoresis C25D; single-crystal film growth C30B; by metallising textiles D06M11/83; decorating textiles by locally metallising D06Q1/04)

## Abstract

Briefly, in one embodiment, a method is disclosed. The method includes introducing a powder feedstock into a cold-spray apparatus, and operating the cold-spray apparatus to deposit the feedstock. The feedstock includes particles including nickel-base alloy having a thermally altered microstructure.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method comprising:
introducing a powder feedstock into a cold-spray apparatus, wherein the feedstock comprises particles comprising a nickel-base alloy having a thermally altered microstructure; and
operating the cold-spray apparatus to deposit the feedstock.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the thermally altered microstructure comprises gamma-phase.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The method of claim 2, wherein the thermally altered microstructure further comprises precipitates of gamma prime phase, gamma-double prime phase, or combinations thereof.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the particles have an average grain size in the range from about 1 μm to 20 μm.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the feedstock consists essentially of particles comprising at least about 40% nickel by weight.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising exposing the powder feedstock to a temperature of at least half the melting point of the nickel-base alloy for a duration of at least 5 minutes to produce the thermally altered microstructure.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein operating the cold spray apparatus further comprises introducing a carrier gas comprising nitrogen into the apparatus.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The method of claim 7, wherein a carrier gas temperature is in the range from about 20° C. to about 1200° C.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising heat-treating the deposited feedstock to form a deposit comprising a strengthening precipitate phase distributed within a matrix phase.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein the matrix comprises nickel-base gamma phase and the strengthening precipitate phase comprises gamma prime, gamma-double prime, or combinations thereof.

### Claim 11 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein the matrix phase has a face-centered cubic crystal structure.

### Claim 12 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein the precipitate is less than about 80 volume % of the deposit.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The method of claim 12, wherein the precipitate is in the range from about 20 volume % to about 55 volume % of the deposit.

### Claim 14 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein heat-treating the deposited feedstock comprises heating to a temperature in the range from about 300° C. to about 1300° C.

### Claim 15 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein operating the cold spray device comprises accelerating the feedstock to a velocity in the range from about 500 m/s to 1100 m/s.

### Claim 16 (depends on 1)

An article formed by the method of claim 1.

### Claim 17

A method comprising:
introducing a powder feedstock into a cold-spray apparatus, wherein the feedstock consists essentially of nickel-based alloy particles having a thermally altered microstructure; and
operating the cold-spray apparatus to deposit the feedstock.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The method of claim 17, further comprising heat-treating the deposited feedstock to form a deposit comprising a strengthening precipitate phase distributed within a matrix phase.