Thermal Barrier Materials Research Articles

A Promising High-Entropy Thermal Barrier Material with the Formula (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12.

YSZ has been widely used as a TBC material, but its phase change at high temperatures limits its development, thus the need for developing new thermal barrier materials resistant to high temperatures. Rare-earth aluminate ceramics with a garnet structure (Yb3Al5O12) have been considered as a potential thermal barrier material. The melting point of Yb3Al5O12 is 2000 °C, which has a potential high temperature application prospect. However, Yb3Al5O12 has lower thermal expansion and higher thermal conductivity than YSZ, which is a widely employed thermal barrier coating (TBC) material. To overcome these obstacles, (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12, a high-entropy ceramic, was prepared by a solid-state reaction and pressureless sintering. The thermal conductivity of the (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12 was 3.48 W/(m·K) at 300 K, approximately 25.48% lower than that of the Yb3Al5O12 (4.67 W/(m·K)). The thermal expansion coefficient of the (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12 was 9.28 × 10-6 K-1 at 673-1273 K, approximately 18.52% higher than that of the Yb3Al5O12 (7.83 × 10-6 K-1, 673-1273 K). When the (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12 was annealed at 1550 °C for 7 days, its average grain size only increased from 0.7 μm to 1.3 μm. Moreover, the (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12 exhibited better chemical stability and a lower grain growth rate than the Yb3Al5O12. This study reveals that (Y0.2Dy0.2Ho0.2Er0.2Yb0.2)3Al5O12 is a promising candidate for the future generation of thermal barrier materials.

Static and modal analysis of functionally graded piezoelectric plate for sensor responses

With industrial development, the evolution of materials serves in the thermal environment takes place faster and this results in a new class of composites called functionally graded material (FGM). In the early years, FGMs were used in aerospace as a thermal barrier material. Now FGMs are developed for general use in a high-temperature environment. FGMs appear as one of the most effective materials for the sustainable development of industries. FGMs with piezoelectric material can produce sensors and actuator responses. In this article, we have tried to simulate the FGM using finite element Analysis, firstly results for boundary conditions are validated with the result available in literature for FGM having one layer of ceramic and one layer of metal. In this research, natural frequencies are evaluated then five-layered FGM having two layers of piezoelectric material, two layers of metal, and one layer of ceramic are simulated. Along with this static deflection is also reported on the same piezoelectric functionally graded plate to find responses of sensors and actuators for different boundary conditions. After this research, it is concluded that more deflection indicates more voltage and effective more sensor response.

Medium-entropy (Me,Ti)0.1(Zr,Hf,Ce)0.9O2 (Me = Y and Ta): Promising thermal barrier materials for high-temperature thermal radiation shielding and CMAS blocking

With continuous enhancement of gas-turbine inlet temperature and rapid increase of radiant heat transfer, thermal barrier coating (TBC) materials with a combination of low thermal conductivity and good high-temperature thermal radiation shielding performance play vital roles in ensuring the durability of metallic blades. However, yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), as the state-of-the-art TBC and current industry standard, is unable to meet such demands since it is almost translucent to high-temperature thermal radiation. Besides, poor corrosion resistance of YSZ to molten calcia-magnesia-alumina-silicates (CMAS) also impedes its application in sand, dust, or volcanic ash laden environments. In order to improve the high-temperature thermal radiation shielding performance and CMAS resistance of YSZ and further reduce its thermal conductivity, two medium-entropy (ME) oxide ceramics, ME (Y, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 and ME (Ta, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2, were designed and prepared by pressureless sintering of binary powder compacts in this work. ME (Y, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 presents cubic structure but a trace amount of secondary phase, while ME (Ta, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 displays a combination of tetragonal phase (81.6 wt.%) and cubic phase (18.4 wt.%). Both ME (Y, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 and ME (Ta, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 possess better high-temperature thermal radiation shielding performance than YSZ. Especially, the high-temperature thermal radiation shielding performance of ME (Ta, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 is superior to that of ME (Y, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 due to its narrower band gap and correspondingly higher infrared absorbance (above 0.7) at the waveband of 1 to 5 μm. The two ME oxides also display significantly lower thermal conductivity than YSZ and close thermal expansion coefficients (TECs) to YSZ and Ni-based superalloys. In addition, the two ME oxides possess excellent CMAS resistance. After attack by molten CMAS at 1250 °C for 4 h, merely ∼2 μm thick penetration layer has been formed and the structure below the penetration layer is still intact. These results demonstrate that ME (Me, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2 (Me = Y and Ta), especially ME (Ta, Ti)0.1(Zr, Hf, Ce)0.9O2, are promising thermal barrier materials for high-temperature thermal radiation shielding and CMAS blocking.

Thermal properties of (Zr0.2Ce0.2Hf0.2Y0.2RE0.2)O1.8 (RE= La, Nd and Sm) high entropy ceramics for thermal barrier materials

The high-entropy ceramic materials (Zr0.25Ce0.25Hf0.25Y0.25)O1.875 (H-0) and (Zr0.2Ce0.2Hf0.2Y0.2RE0.2)O1.8 (H-RE) (RE = La, Nd and Sm) with fluorite structure and homogeneous element distribution were prepared. With fluorite structure, fine grain size and high density, the H-0 and H-RE ceramics displayed low thermal conductivity, suitable thermal expansion coefficient, high hardness and fracture toughness. The effect of La, Nd and Sm on the mechanical, heat conductivity and heat expansion properties of high entropy ceramics were discussed. The single-phase high-entropy ceramic materials in this work are very suitable for application as thermal barrier materials.

The Effect of Thermal Barrier Coatings on Diesel Engine Performance

The performance of internal combustion engines should be improved depending on some technological requirements and rapid increase in the fuel expenses. On the other hand, the improvements in engine materials are forced by using alternative fuels and environmental requirements. Therefore, the performances of engine materials become increasingly important. For improving the performance of engine, thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are a promising step forward. In this experimental study, alumina – (40 %) titania and nickel - chromium are used as the thermal barrier materials. The purpose of using these materials is to reduce the heat loss from engine. TBCs are done by atmospheric plasma spraying technique. Engine working conditions are maintained constant before and after coating. The results showed a reduction in specific fuel consumption. CO and HC emissions are slightly more than the conventional coated diesel engine at low and medium loads but lesser at higher loads whereas NOx is reduced. Keywords: YSZ; TBC; LHR engines; Diesel engine

Electron beam physical vapor deposited YbGYZ thermal barrier coatings: Phase stability, thermo-physical properties and thermal shock behavior

The rare earth oxide ceramics designed as 5.5 wt% Yb2O3-4.5 wt% Gd2O3-12 wt% Y2O3-78 wt% ZrO2 (YbGYZ) is a candidate material for thermal barrier coating (TBC) which will be suitable for application at higher temperatures. YbGYZ ceramic powders and bulks are fabricated by solid-state synthesis at temperatures above 1673 K, whose powders still have no phase transformation and exhibit excellent thermal stability despite long-term heat treatment at two different temperatures. In the temperature range from room temperature to 1573 K, the averaged coefficient of thermal expansion of YbGYZ ceramic bulk is 11.12 × 10−6 K−1, which meets the demand of novel ceramic materials of TBCs. Meanwhile, the averaged thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity of YbGYZ ceramics are approximately 2.3% and 7.6% lower than those of the conventional YSZ bulk material respectively. The YbGYZ ceramic coatings are directly manufactured on the surface of (Ni, Pt)Al bond coat by means of electron beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD), whose phase structure consists primarily of cubic phase with co-existing of excess Y2O3 and ZrO2. A large number of regularly distributed “mud-like” microcracks appear on the surface of YbGYZ ceramic coating when it has experienced long-term thermal shock at 1373 K. The transverse microcracks originating in the ceramic coating have elongated to the interface of ceramic coat and thermally grown oxide (TGO) film that further cause the degeneration and separation of the interface. The spalling position of the YbGYZ coating where mainly occurs at the upper and lower adjacent interfaces of TGO layer. The serious rumpling, undulation, cross-linking, stress accumulation and rapid relaxation within TGO layer are the critical factors to accelerate interfacial delamination and spallation failure of YbGYZ TBCs.

Synthesis and Characterization of Fluorite-Type La2Ce2O7 Plasma Sprayable Powder for TBCs Application

This work focuses on the fabrication of lanthanum cerate (La2Ce2O7, LC) powders via two chemical routes: modified Pechini sol-gel method and solid-state synthesis. The synthesized LC powders were heat treated in the temperature range of 1000–1400 °C for 6 h and investigated as a material for thermal barrier coating (TBC) applications. For this purpose, the powder morphology, chemical composition, crystal structure and thermal stability were studied. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the synthesized powders revealed an agglomerated structure consisting of fine and uniformly distributed grains. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS) indicated that the chemical compositions of the LC powders were similar to the stoichiometric ratio of La2Ce2O7. A cubic fluorite structure was observed by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) after calcining the LC powder prepared by solid-state synthesis at 1300 °C. In contrast, there was always a fluorite structure in the LC powder synthesized by the Pechini sol-gel method after heat treatment over the entire temperature range. The thermal behavior of the LC powders was analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetric analysis (TG) in the temperature range of 25–1300 °C. Neither an obvious mass change nor a visible energy change was observed within the tested temperature range, indicating high phase stability of the LC powder and its suitability for TBC applications. Spheroidization on the prepared LC powders was also investigated, revealing that powder size and morphology had a significant impact on the spheroidization efficiency.

Corrosion behavior of high-entropy (La0.2Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2Gd0.2)Ce2O7 in different aggressive molten salt

High-entropy (La0.2Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2Gd0.2)Ce2O7 (HECO) was synthesized as a potential thermal barrier material. The hot corrosion behavior of HECO in the mixture of V2O5 + Na2SO4 with variable aggressiveness was investigated from reaction crystallization kinetics, as well as La2Ce2O7 (LCO). Overall, HECO exhibits smaller corrosion depth than LCO except for partial exfoliation. Sluggish diffusion effect of HECO greatly inhibits nucleation of corrosion products, while a horizontal growth is triggered along (001) crystal plane, leading to a reduction in corrosion depth. Meanwhile, with the aggressiveness of molten slat strengthened, reaction kinetics is accelerated and arouses a sharp alleviation of corrosion.

Phase stability and CMAS corrosion resistance of RETaO4 (RE=Gd and Yb) at 1250 °C

Due to the restriction of CMAS corrosion, the YSZ TBCs are facing great challenges, which accelerates the development of the novel potential thermal barrier materials. This work has investigated the CMAS corrosion resistance of the novel thermal barrier material GdTaO4 and YbTaO4 to assess their potential in replacing the traditional YSZ. The results indicate that GdTaO4 and YbTaO4 possess excellent phase stability, and there is no phase transition after 150 h sintering at 1350 °C. The crystallization phenomenon has occurred in the residual CMAS when the reaction time is 0.5 h, and the main crystallization product is CaMgSi2O6. In comparison, when the reaction time increase to 10 h, the crystallization phenomenon has disappeared completely. The maximum reaction layer thickness of GdTaO4 and YbTaO4 are ∼10 μm and ∼6 μm after 10 h CMAS corrosion, respectively. The XRD patterns indicate that the main product after 10 h reaction is Ca2Ta2O7. Compared with the CaMgSi2O6, the Ca2Ta2O7 possesses lower formation enthalpy and cohesion energy. With the reaction time rising, the formation of Ca2Ta2O7 consumes lots of Ca elements and restrain the formation of CaMgSi2O6. Besides, the difference of GdTaO4 and YbTaO4 in CAMS corrosion resistance is also attributed to cohesion energy. These results indicate that GdTaO4 and YbTaO4 exhibit enormous potential to manufacture the novel TBCs in CMAS corrosion resistance compared with the YSZ.

High-entropy (La0.2Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2Gd0.2)2Ce2O7: A potential thermal barrier material with improved thermo-physical properties

High-entropy oxides (HEOs) are widely researched as potential materials for thermal barrier coatings (TBCs). However, the relatively low thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) of those materials severely restricts their practical application. In order to improve the poor thermal expansion property and further reduce the thermal conductivity, high-entropy (La0.2Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2Gd0.2)2Ce2O7 is designed and synthesized in this work. The as-prepared multicomponent material is formed in a simple disordered fluorite structure due to the high-entropy stabilization effect. Notably, it exhibits a much higher TEC of approximately 12.0 × 10−6 K−1 compared with those of other high-entropy oxides reported in the field of TBCs. Besides, it presents prominent thermal insulation behavior with a low intrinsic thermal conductivity of 0.92 W·m−1·K−1 at 1400 °C, which can be explained by the existence of high concentration oxygen vacancies and highly disordered arrangement of multicomponent cations in the unique high-entropy configuration. Through high-temperature in-situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement, this material shows excellent phase stability up to 1400 °C. Benefiting from the solid solution strengthening effect, it shows a higher hardness of 8.72 GPa than the corresponding single component compounds. The superior thermo-physical performance above enables (La0.2Nd0.2Sm0.2Eu0.2Gd0.2)2Ce2O7 a promising TBC material.

Opaque Gd2Zr2O7/GdMnO3 thermal barrier materials for thermal radiation shielding: The effect of polaron excitation

Opaque thermal barrier materials play a pivotal role in thermal radiation shielding of turbine blades, since the intensity of thermal radiation rapidly increases with the increase of operating temperature of gas turbines and has become a new and major concern for the durability of metallic blades. The conventional thermal barrier coating (TBC) materials such as YSZ and Gd2Zr2O7, however, are almost translucent to thermal radiation and are unable to protect the blades at such harsh environment. Although searching for new thermal barrier materials is significant, it is still a challenge to make the current TBC materials opaque without significantly modifying the composition or other physical properties. To cope with this challenge, GdMnO3 is incorporated as an absorptive second phase into Gd2Zr2O7 in this work, which is originally translucent (absorption coefficient 101–102 m−1) in the near-infrared wavelengths. Intriguingly, with less than 5 wt.% GdMnO3, the Gd2Zr2O7/GdMnO3 becomes opaque to thermal radiation and successfully refrains the rise of thermal conductivity at high temperatures. Meanwhile, the lattice thermal conductivity and mechanical properties are almost unchanged. The small polaron mechanism is confirmed for GdMnO3, leading to a high absorption coefficient (> 106 m−1) for near-infrared radiation. To understand the underling mechanism, a theoretical model is built to estimate the absorption coefficient of the Gd2Zr2O7/GdMnO3 composites (> 104 m−1). This paper proposes a powerful strategy to design thermal-radiation-shielding TBCs through incorporating minor second-phase particles with high-absorption mechanism, such as polaron excitation.

Mechanical Properties Durability of Sc2O3-Y2O3 Co-Stabilized ZrO2 Thermal Barrier Materials for High Temperature Application

The poor phase stability of conventional 6–8 wt.% yttria-partially stabilized zirconia (YSZ) results in the formation of detrimental cracks in thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) as well as the decrease of fracture toughness, limiting its long-term application above 1200 °C. Here, we try to prove that a higher t′-phase stability is the prerequisite for the mechanical properties durability of ZrO2-based TBC materials. Compared with YSZ ceramic, 7.0 mol.% Sc2O3 and 0.5 mol.% Y2O3 co-stabilized ZrO2 (ScYSZ) shows a superior t′ phase stability at 1300 °C. In addition, the fracture toughness of ScYSZ is nearly stable after being annealed at 1300 °C for 0–40 h, while the value of YSZ gradually declines during the aging process. The stable fracture toughness of ScYSZ is closely related to its prominent t′ phase stability. The elastic modulus of ScYSZ is nearly unchanged and lower than that of YSZ. The excellent stability of the phase structure and mechanical properties makes ScYSZ a great potential material for next generation high-temperature TBCs.

Proposal of a Thermal Fatigue Damage Evaluation Method for Ceramic Thermal Barrier Coating Systems.

In recent years, the application of thermal barrier coatings to the components used in gas turbines for thermal power generation has become indispensable as higher inlet temperatures for requirement to further improve the efficiency of thermal power generation. Thermal barrier coatings, generally referred to as TBCs, consist of a top coat, which is a thermal barrier layer, and a bond coat, which improves the adhesion strength between the TC and the base material. As the development of new thermal barrier materials is progressed, it is also demanded to clarify the stress and damage behavior of TBCs under the complex thermal fatigue loading conditions in actual gas turbine operation. In this study, comprehensive finite element analysis is performed on a TBC system under cyclic thermal fatigue loading conditions with temperature and stress variations to clarify the deformation behavior and crack initiation life of the TBC, and to develop a fatigue life evaluation method for TBCs.

Thermal barrier coatings: Review

Thermal barrier coatings (TBC) are extensively used for high temperature applications like gas turbine blades, internal combustion engines,and pyro chemical reprocessing units. This leads to a considerable competition in development of TBC materials and as a result various materials are developed. Also parallel development in the coating technologies such as atmospheric plasma spray (APS), electron beam physical vapour deposition (EB-PVD) etc. helped in improving microstructure of the coating which in turn helps in increasing their life. In coating process, main focus is on increasing the life of underlying substrate. Continuous research and investigation in thermal barrier materials is done by evaluating and analysing its high temperature behaviour and various failure modes. This review paper gives a summary of the different thermal barrier coating materials used at present, advancements in coating materials,high temperature behaviour of TBC, residual stresses induced in the coating and its failure mechanism.

Compositional control and high-temperature phase stability of plasma-sprayed Ba(Mg1/3Ta2/3)O3 coatings

The Ba(Mg 1/3 Ta 2/3 )O 3 (BMT) ceramic is considered a promising material for high-performance thermal barrier coating (TBC), due to the ultra-high melting point and excellent thermophysical properties . However, the preferential evaporation of Mg from BMT during plasma spraying causes the composition in deposited coatings to deviate from the standard stoichiometry , resulting in the formation of undesirable barium tantalite. These impurities would accelerate the cracking and failure of BMT with low fracture toughness during thermal shock , which greatly limits the application of BMT coatings. In this study, the evaporation of Mg, and the evolutionary characteristics of the composition and microstructure of BMT particle in the plasma spray process were investigated. The relationship between the melting conditions of BMT particles and the composition and microstructure of the coatings was analyzed. The compositional controls, and the high-temperature phase stability of plasma-sprayed BMT coatings were studied and characterized. The results indicate that the evaporation intensity of Mg was strongly affected by the melting conditions of the BMT particles in the plasma jet . The particles with a higher degree of melting had a greater evaporation intensity of Mg, owing to the higher heat transfer and element diffusion rate, and more impurity phases formed in the deposited coating. The nonuniformity of Mg evaporation in BMT particle could lead to composition segregation, promoting the formation of the impurity phases during particle solidification, and ultimately affect the composition uniformity of the coating. By employing the powder with large particle sizes and adjusting the spray parameters to reduce the energy of plasma jet under the premise of ensuring the coating deposition quality, the evaporation intensity of Mg and the content of impurity phase could be significantly restrained, and the high-temperature phase stability of the coatings could be greatly improved compared to the original unmodified BMT coatings. • Evaporation behavior of Mg in plasma sprayed Ba(Mg 1/3 Ta 2/3 )O 3 (BMT) was investigated. • Relationship between the melting conditions of BMT particles and the characteristics of the coating was analyzed. • The composition of BMT coating was controlled by adjusting the powder size and spraying parameters. • Significant improvement in high-temperature phase stability of the BMT coatings was achieved.

Effect of Ta5+ doping on the thermal physical properties of defective fluorite Y3NbO7 ceramics

AbstractThe effects of substituting the B cation in A3BO7 ceramics on their thermal physical properties were investigated by applying a large mass difference. Y3(Nb1‐xTax)O7 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5) ceramics were synthesized, and their structural characteristics were determined. All the fabricated Y3(Nb1‐xTax)O7 ceramics showed defective fluorite structures and glass‐like low thermal conductivity (1.18−2.04 W/m∙K at 25°C) because of the highly distorted crystal structure and significant mass difference. Substitution with Ta5+ enhanced the sintering resistance, leading to superior thermal‐insulating performance via grain boundary scattering. Furthermore, the ceramics exhibited excellent coefficients of thermal expansion, implying the promising applicability of Y3(Nb1‐xTax)O7 as new thermal barrier materials. The effect of mass difference on the thermomechanical properties of the ceramics was examined, suggesting a simple strategy for engineering the chemical composition of new thermal barrier materials.

Improved thermal and structural stabilities of LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2 cathode by La2Zr2O7 multifunctional modification

Poor thermal stability and severe structural degradation of Ni-rich LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2 (NCM622) cathode during the (de)lithiation process hinder its further application. As a typical thermal barrier material and ion conductor, La2Zr2O7 (LZO) was herein served as the multifunctional modification layer due to its excellent thermal stability, robust chemical stability, and prominent Li+ conductivity. Through optimizing the contents of LZO, 2 wt.% LZO-coated NCM622 (2LZO-NCM) displayed the much improved cycling stability (66.0% capacity retention at 0.2 °C after 300 cycles at 55 °C) and rate capability (73.0 mAh g−1 at 5 °C) as compared with the pristine NCM622 (59.3%, 22.4 mAh g−1). An aging test, differential scanning calorimetry research, and kinetics analysis were conducted to unveil the improvement mechanism of electrochemical performances for 2LZO-NCM, mainly owing to the relieved structure degradation, boosted thermal stability, and enhanced electrochemical kinetics after LZO modification, synergistically contributing to the improved electrochemical performances. This work provides a universal avenue to enhance the thermal stability and electrochemical performances of the NCM622 cathode via employing the thermal barrier material as a coating layer, even in other cathodes beyond NCM622.

Blocking of radiative thermal conduction in Zn2+-Incorporated high-entropy A2B2O7 fluorite oxides

In this study, a high-entropy approach was employed to design a new single-phase A2B2O7 oxide for thermal insulation applications. Multicomponent high-entropy oxides, containing up to seven different cations, were successfully synthesized in a single defective fluorite structure. We observed that the incorporation of the functional cation, Zn2+, effectively blocked the heat radiation phenomenon by reducing the photon mean free path, and further reduced the high-temperature thermal conductivity owing to the larger free carrier concentration originated from the large number of oxygen vacancies. Although a large concentration of Zn2+ caused a slight reduction in thermal expansion, this study suggests that functional cations can be easily incorporated; thus, expanding the material diversity beyond the typical doping levels to develop new thermal barrier materials.

Glass-like thermal conductivity in mass-disordered high-entropy (Y, Yb)2(Ti, Zr, Hf)2O7 for thermal barrier material

An entropy-stabilization strategy was applied to engineer a novel thermal insulating material by establishing a single-phase solid solution with the formula of (Y1/2Yb1/2)2(Ti1/3Zr1/3Hf1/3)2O7 (YYHEO). Structural analysis revealed that this material exceeded the typical substitutional solubility limit, even with a significant atomic size difference, where the conventional determination rule was defied. YYHEO exhibited a lower glass-like thermal conductivity due to its highly disordered crystal structure and the specific design strategy. The coefficient of thermal expansion and mechanical properties (e.g. elastic modulus and hardness) were comparable to conventional materials, suggesting that YYHEO is a promising candidate for application as a new thermal insulating material.

The mechanical and thermal properties, CMAS corrosion resistance, and the wettability of novel thermal barrier material GdTaO4

Because the CMAS corrosion and phase transformation at elevated temperatures above 1250 °C have limited the applications of traditional YSZ, the design of novel thermal barrier materials is a hotspot. GdTaO4 is considered as a type of potential novel thermal barrier material owing to its low thermal conductivity. In this study, the mechanical and thermal properties, CMAS corrosion resistance, and the wettability of the GdTaO4 were studied and compared with that of YSZ. The results show that the coefficient of thermal expansion and hardness of GdTaO4 are 14.1 × 10−6 K−1 (1350 °C) and 534.2 Hv0.3 respectively. The thickness of CMAS reaction layer of GdTaO4 is ~30.8 μm after 24 h reaction at 1350 °C, which is thinner than that of YSZ. After corrosion reaction, the CMAS glass aggregated instead of completely disappearing or continuously extending over the surface of GdTaO4. The main reaction product is Ca2Ta2O7, and the anorthite phase may not be detected, which is similar to YTaO4. By comparison, the dense substrate of YSZ became porous and CMAS glass has disappeared after 10 h. CMAS corrosion at 1350 °C. The on-line contact angle results show that the wettability of CMAS on GdTaO4 is worse than that on YSZ at 1350 °C, while the opposite of the work of adhesion, which indicates that GdTaO4 can remove liquid CMAS more easily than YSZ TBCs during the service. Furthermore, the corrosion depth and areas of GdTaO4 are smaller than those of YSZ in the same situation. These findings suggest that GdTaO4 possesses better high-temperature properties and CMAS corrosion resistance than YSZ as a kind of potential of thermal barrier material.