Patented coating process from Heraeus extends the service life of high-temperature alloys for furnaces and chemical plants.

"The results of our study are very promising," says Dr. Ilka Luck, head of Heraeus High Performance Coatings. "The coating prevents any microstructural changes, voids and precipitations. Thus, alloy corrosion is greatly reduced. As a result, their service life is up to eight times longer."

One of the biggest challenges of high-temperature alloys is that their service life is limited by corrosion. Apart from maintenance downtime, the corrosion causes flaking, and these flakes contaminate products during production. This is precisely where the novel process from Heraeus comes in. With the aid of aerosol deposition, the alloys are protected with a layer of ?-Al2O3. Possible applications include calcination and drying furnaces, which are used for example in metal substrate production or the manufacture of battery materials. In these industries, high purity is essential. Avoiding impurities therefore means reducing scrap and increasing productivity.