Development of a novel Silicon Carbide thermal spraying process

"Hunprenco is a precision engineering company, largest thermal spray company in the UK (one of the largest in Europe) and world-leading manufacturer of plungers (40% of Global market) and coolers for the glass container industry.

Silicon carbide (SiC) based ceramics are widely used as surface coatings in applications requiring low friction and high wear resistance (e.g. moving components, metal working tools, and protective coatings against corrosion in steel), due to high wear resistance, high temperature strength and thermal shock resistance. Most of these coatings are produced via dynamic ion mixing, RF magnetron sputtering or chemical vapour deposition. These methods are only able to produce SiC coatings on limited size components and are considered costly and unsuitable for large-scale machine components.

To tackle the industry-wide challenge of thermal spraying SiC coatings, Hunprenco are exploiting state of the art material formulations and thermal spray methods to develop a novel application process to exploit the benefits of SiC coatings.

Hunprenco are collaborating with ABG International, the market leader in digital finishing equipment, and the University of Nottingham's Advanced Materials Research Group. We will develop the thermal spaying of SiC, scale-up our process for large components and demonstrate proof of concept in a real-world environment.

Our consortium brings together leading experts in material processing and thermal spraying, with a track record in developing innovative coatings. Furthermore, ABG International is the market leader in digital finishing equipment and successful demonstration and testing at their facility provides an immediate route to market.

Successful project delivery will cement our reputation as leading innovators within the industry and is the first step in an ambitious growth strategy to enter new market sectors."