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A D V A N C E D

M A T E R I A L S

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P R O C E S S E S |

N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R

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CASE STUDY

ENHANCED DIAMOND-LIKE COATINGS

BOOST FUEL EFFICIENCY

A new laser arc method is being used to apply a hard carbon

coating to engine components on the production line.

S

cientists already know how to coat components with

diamond-like carbon to minimize friction. But research-

ers at Fraunhofer Institute, Germany, have now devel-

oped a laser arcmethod that applies layers of carbon almost as

hard as diamond at high coating rates andwith high thickness-

es. By applying the carbon coating to engine components such

as piston rings and pins, fuel consumption can be reduced.

“Systematic application of our new method could save

more than 100 billion liters of fuel each year over the next 10

years,” says Andreas Leson, a professor at the Fraunhofer Insti-

tute for Material and Beam Technology IWS.

Although carbon-based coatings are already used in vol-

ume production, the Fraunhofer teamsucceeded in producing

hydrogen-free ta-C coatings on an industrial scale with con-

sistent quality. These tetrahedral amorphous carbon coatings

are significantly harder and thus more resistant to wear than

conventional diamond-like coatings. “Unfortunately, you can’t

just scrape off diamond dust and press it onto the component.

So we had to look for a different method,” says teammember

Hans-Joachim Scheibe.

PULSED LASER CONTROLS LIGHT ARC

In a similar style to old-fashioned film projectors, the

laser arc method generates an arc between an anode and a

cathode (the carbon) in a vacuum. The arc is initiated by a la-

ser pulse on the carbon target. This produces a plasma made

of carbon ions, which is deposited as a coating on the work-

piece in the vacuum. To run this process on an industrial scale,

a pulsed laser is vertically scanned across a rotating graphite

cylinder as a means of controlling the arc. The cylinder is con-

verted evenly into plasma due to the scanning motion and

rotation. To ensure a consistently smooth coating, a magnetic

field guides the plasma and filters out any dirt particles.

Fig. 1 —

Volker Weihnacht, Andreas Leson, and Hans-Joachim

Scheibe (left to right) developed a new laser arc method of depos-

iting friction-reducing, wear-resistant coatings on components.

Courtesy of Dirk Mahler/Fraunhofer.

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The laser arcmethod canbe used todeposit very thick ta-C

coatings up to 20

μ

m at high coating rates. “High coating thick-

nesses are crucial for certain applications—especially in the auto

industry, where components are exposed to enormous loads

over long periods of time,” says researcher Volker Weihnacht.

One of the early adopters of this promising technology is

BMW. The auto manufacturer is working intensively on indus-

trial-scale implementation of ta-C engine components in its

various vehiclemodels with the aimof reducing fuel consump-

tion. Leson views this as the first major step in using the laser

arc method to save resources. And as a motorcycle aficionado

himself, he sees another positive effect stemming fromthis de-

velopment. “The fact that our research is helping tomake mo-

torcyclingmore environmentally friendly easesmy conscience

every time I go for a ride,” he says.

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For more information:

Andreas Leson, Fraunhofer Institute

for Material and Beam Technology IWS, 49.351.83391.3317,

Winterbergstr. 28, 01277 Dresden,

www.fraunhofer.de/en.html.

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