Effect of Deposition Temperature on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of SiC Coatings Prepared by Single Gas Source PECVD

LI Yang; FAN Zheqiong; LU Yongheng; GAO Jianquan; WANG Xuanli; SONG Xiwen

doi:10.7643/issn.1672-9242.2025.06.012

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Equipment Environmental Engineering ›› 2025, Vol. 22 ›› Issue (6) : 101-110. DOI: 10.7643/issn.1672-9242.2025.06.012

Effect of Deposition Temperature on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of SiC Coatings Prepared by Single Gas Source PECVD

LI Yang^1a, FAN Zheqiong², LU Yongheng^3,4, GAO Jianquan^1b, WANG Xuanli^1b,*, SONG Xiwen^1a,5,*

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Abstract

The work aims to deposit SiC coatings with an atomic percentage close to 1:1 on the outer surface of zirconium alloy at low temperature (520 ℃, 550 ℃ and 580 ℃) to improve the mechanical properties of zirconium alloy cladding tube and prolong its service life. By the radio frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) method, the silicon carbide (SiC) coating was deposited on the surface of zirconium alloy cladding tube at low temperature with methylsilane (CH₃SiH₃) as the only reaction gas source and hydrogen (H₂) as the only carrier gas. The composition and chemical structure of the coating were characterized by X-ray diffractometer, Raman spectrometer, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Then, the scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy were used to observe surface and cross-sectional morphology and analyze the content of various elements in the coating. The micro scratch tester was employed to test the adhesion of the coating and the nanoindentation was adopted to test the hardness of the coating. Moreover, the axial tensile performance testing was conducted on zirconium alloy cladding tubes with a universal testing machine. Under the conditions of RF power of 300 W, gas flow ratio of CH₃SiH₃:H₂=2:1, pressure of 60 Pa, and deposition temperature of 520-580 ℃, the deposited SiC coatings exhibited amorphous state, with an atomic percentage C/Si ratio close to 1:1. As the deposition temperature increased to 580 ℃, the bonding force with the substrate increased from 6 N to 15 N, the hardness increased from 14.4 GPa to 22.6 GPa, the elastic modulus increased from 174.6 GPa to 304.6 GPa, the tensile strength and yield strength decreased slightly to 632 MPa and 241 MPa respectively, and the elongation increased to 24.06%. With the increase of the deposition temperature, the surface of the coating becomes denser, and the bonding force with the substrate becomes stronger. The hardness and elastic modulus of the coating increase with the increase of deposition temperature. The tensile strength and yield strength of zirconium alloy cladding tube decrease slightly, but the elongation rate increases significantly, which is helpful to prolong the service life of zirconium alloy cladding tubes.

Key words

zirconium alloy cladding tube / silicon carbide coating / RF plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition / methylsilane / deposition temperature / mechanical property

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LI Yang, FAN Zheqiong, LU Yongheng, GAO Jianquan, WANG Xuanli, SONG Xiwen. Effect of Deposition Temperature on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of SiC Coatings Prepared by Single Gas Source PECVD[J]. Equipment Environmental Engineering. 2025, 22(6): 101-110 https://doi.org/10.7643/issn.1672-9242.2025.06.012

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