An overview of intermetallics research and application: Status of thermal spray coatings

Abstract

The aim of this review is to update and to offer an overview of the investigations that have more recently been made on intermetallics, to highlight their importance for several applications in many areas and to examine topics for future research. The main subject is the application of intermetallics as thermal spray coatings. This will allow balancing the discussion of whether they are promising as a surface medium for materials that work at high temperatures. The general intermetallics classification includes iron, nickel, and titanium aluminides, as well as transition metal silicides. As nickel aluminides have been important in issues related to bonding coats, their research trajectory has been revised. Moreover, as the Fe-Al system has also been studied in terms of thermal spray processing, its good characteristics have also been assessed. The third intermetallic this article focuses on is NiTi, which appears not to be included in general classifications of intermetallic compounds, but it deserves to be mentioned mainly due to its shape memory effect and biocompatibility properties.