Study of sand particle erosion of magnetron sputtered multilayer coatings

Sand particle erosion remains a crucial problem in aeronautical engines. Bl ades are made out of titanium alloy known for its poor erosion resistance. To protect these pieces, tungsten-based multilayer coatings deposited by ma gnetron sputtering were developed. They were tested on a specific erosion r ig. Tests allowed to choose deposition parameters leading to extremely resi stant films. impact tests were performed on several monolayer coatings to d etermine their mechanical properties in order to simulate erosion by finite element method. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.