Thermal Spray
Thermal Spray or Metalising is a group of coating processes which deposits finely divided metallic or non-metallic materials in a molten or semi-molten condition on a surface/substrate to form a coating. The coating material may start out in the form of a powder, ceramic rod, wires, or even molten materials. The process has the potential to generate very small particulate often referred to as “fume”. This thermally generated fume can be smaller than one micron in diameter, and uniform in size making collection a challenge.
Following are terms for typical thermal spray processes that produce fumes needing to be controlled;
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Flame Spray |
Powder Flame Spray |
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Wire Flame Spray |
High Velocity Oxy/Fuel Spraying (HVOF) |
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Cold Spray |
Plasma Arc Spray |
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Electric Arc Spray |
Related processes producing contaminants – surface preparation and finishing operations
- Abrasive blasting
- Grinding
- Wet machining