Ferrochromium slag as a protective coating material against oxidation for caster rolls

In this study, ferrochromium (FeCr) slag, which is available as an industrial waste, is proposed as a protective surface coating material particularly for protection of continuous casting rolls against oxidation. FeCr slag was successfully deposited with atmospheric plasma spray (APS) method. Before the coating process, FeCr slag powder prepared in the particle size range of 5-38m, was investigated using conventional characterization methods (XRD, SEM, TGA etc.). Thermal Barrier Coating (TBC) system was used as a basis for deposition processes. Accordingly, NiCoCrAlY (Amdry, -45+5m) was firstly deposited as metallic bond coat layer onto the surface of AISI 420 substrate, and then FeCr slag layer was deposited as the top coating layer. After the deposition of FeCr slag powder, the resulting coating layer was found to have low porosity with a homogeneous microstructure. The deposited FeCr slag coatings were subjected to isothermal oxidation tests at different temperatures and test durations for determination of their oxidation behavior and upper operating temperature limits. The results obtained from this study indicate that FeCr slag can be considered as an alternative protective coating material for caster rolls which are subjected to high temperatures up to 800 degrees C.