HVOF Coating Case Study for Power Plant Process Control Ball Valve Application

This case study is the result of an investigation on HVOF 80/20 Cr3C2-NiCr coating failure of on-off metal-seated ball valve (MSBV) used in supercritical steam lines in a power plant and solution. HVOF 80/20 Cr3C2-NiCr coating is used to protect thousands of MSBVs without incident. However, in this case, the valves are challenged with exposure to rapid high-pressure and -temperature variations resulting in a unique situation where the coating experiences cracking and cohesive failure. It was found that carbide precipitation is a major factor causing embrittlement of the coating. Once the coating toughness and ductility is reduced, thermal, mechanical, and residual stresses can initiate and propagate cracks more easily, causing coating failure when exposed to thermal shock. To alleviate the above mentioned issues, possible coating alternatives were then evaluated.