Rumpling of Platinum Modified Aluminide Coatings during Thermomechanical Testing

The evolution in surface morphology of platinum modified nickel aluminide (Ni,Pt)Al oxidation coatings during thermo-mechanical testing has been evaluated. One type of test consisted of cyclic oxidation between an upper temperature of 1150°C and a lower temperature varying from room temperature to 1050°C. The other type of test was cycling between 1000°C/1150°C under an applied compressive stress. Profilometry using optical interferometry was used to quantify the surface “rumpling”. First and second-order statistical parameters including RMS roughness and the auto-correlation function were calculated from the profilometry measurements. The results indicate that the grain structure of the aluminide coating plays a major role in the early stages of rumpling and set its wavelength. Also, the superimposed compressive stress during thermal cycling leads to an asymmetry in the rumpling pattern with respect with the loading axis as well as cracking along the applied stress direction.