Cold spray nozzle assembly and a method of depositing a powder material onto a surface of a component using the assembly

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10155236-B2
Application number	US-201615380625-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 15, 2016
Priority date	Dec 18, 2015
Publication date	Dec 18, 2018
Grant date	Dec 18, 2018

Abstract

A Cold spray nozzle assembly for depositing powder material onto a component surface includes a primary spray nozzle, two or more secondary spray nozzles, and a support mechanism supporting each spray nozzle. Each spray nozzle deposits powder material on a single target point on the surface, a reference plane being defined normal to a surface plane at the target point. The primary nozzle is in a primary plane that is normal to the surface plane, and that defines a primary dihedral angle with the reference plane. An axis of the primary nozzle defines a primary nozzle angle with the surface plane. Each of the secondary spray nozzles is in a corresponding secondary plane, with each being normal to the surface plane and defining a respective secondary dihedral-angle with the reference plane. An axis of each secondary spray nozzle defines a respective secondary nozzle angle with the surface plane.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A cold spray nozzle assembly for depositing a powder material onto a surface of a component, the nozzle assembly comprising:
a primary spray nozzle;
two or more secondary spray nozzles; and
a nozzle support mechanism, the nozzle support mechanism being arranged to support each of the primary, and the two or more secondary, spray nozzles, wherein
each of the primary, and the two or more secondary spray nozzles are aligned to deposit the powder material on a single target point on the surface, a reference plane being defined normal to a surface plane at the target point, the primary nozzle including a primary axis being positioned in a primary plane, the primary plane being normal to the surface plane and forming a primary dihedral angle with the reference plane, the primary axis of the primary nozzle defining a primary nozzle angle with the surface plane,
the two or more secondary spray nozzles each including a secondary axis, each of the secondary axes being positioned in its own secondary plane of a plurality of secondary planes, each of the plurality of secondary planes being normal to the surface plane, and the plurality of secondary planes forming secondary dihedral angles with the reference plane such that each secondary plane of the plurality of secondary planes forms a secondary dihedral angle with the reference plane, and each of the secondary axes of the two or more secondary spray nozzles defining a respective secondary nozzle angle with the surface plane, and
at least three axes, selected from the primary axis and each of the secondary axes of the two or more secondary spray nozzles, are not coplanar.

2. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein one of the plurality of secondary planes is coplanar with the primary plane.

3. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the powder material is a metal powder or a metal alloy powder.

4. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the nozzle assembly comprises a primary spray nozzle, and two secondary spray nozzles.

5. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 4 , wherein a first secondary nozzle angle is 45° to the surface plane at the target point, and a second secondary nozzle angle is 135° to the surface plane at the target point.

6. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 4 , wherein a first secondary nozzle angle is between 45° and 70° to the surface plane at the target point, and a second secondary nozzle angle is between 110° and 135° to the surface plane at the target point.

7. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the primary nozzle angle is 90° to the surface plane at the target point.

8. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 7 , wherein a first secondary nozzle angle is 45° to the surface plane at the target point, and a second secondary nozzle angle is 135° to the surface plane at the target point.

9. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 7 , wherein a first secondary nozzle angle is between 45° and 70° to the surface plane at the target point, and a second secondary nozzle angle is between 110° and 135° to the surface plane at the target point.

10. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the primary nozzle discharges a first powder material at a first pre-determined discharge velocity, a first secondary nozzle discharges a second powder material at a second pre-determined discharge velocity, and a second secondary nozzle discharges a third powder material at a third pre-determined discharge velocity.

11. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 10 , wherein each of the second powder material and/or the third powder material is different from the first powder material.

12. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 10 , wherein each of the first pre-determined discharge velocity, the second pre-determined discharge velocity, and the third pre-determined discharge velocity, is selected in dependence on a thermo-mechanical property of the corresponding powder material.

13. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 11 , wherein each of the first pre-determined discharge velocity, the second pre-determined discharge velocity, and the third pre-determined discharge velocity, is selected in dependence on a thermo-mechanical property of the corresponding powder material.

14. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 12 , wherein the thermo-mechanical property is selected from the group comprising melting point, yield point, flow stress, fracture toughness and strain energy release rate.

15. The cold spray nozzle assembly as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the support mechanism is adjustable to alter an orientation of each of the primary spray nozzle and the two or more secondary spray nozzles.

16. A method of depositing a powder material onto a single target point on a surface of a component using a cold spray nozzle assembly, the cold spray nozzle assembly ( 100 ) comprising a nozzle support mechanism, the method comprising the steps of:
arranging the nozzle support mechanism to support each of a primary spray nozzle and two or more secondary spray nozzles;
defining a reference plane normal to a surface plane at the target point;
positioning a primary axis of the primary nozzle in a primary plane, the primary plane being normal to the surface plane and forming a primary dihedral angle with the reference plane;
positioning a secondary axis of each of the two or more secondary spray nozzles, in its own secondary plane of a plurality of secondary planes, each of the plurality of secondary planes being normal to the surface plane, and the plurality of secondary planes forming secondary dihedral angles with the reference plane such that each secondary plane of the plurality of secondary planes forms a secondary dihedral angle with the reference plane, and each of the secondary axes of the two or more secondary spray nozzles defining a respective secondary nozzle angle with the surface plane;
depositing powder material on the target point using the primary spray nozzle; and
depositing powder material on the target point using each of the two or more secondary spray nozzles, wherein
at least three axes, selected from the primary axis and each of the secondary axes of the two or more secondary spray nozzles, are not coplanar.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the step of depositing powder material on the target point using the primary spray nozzle, comprises the step of:
discharging a first powder material through the primary spray nozzle at a first pre-determined discharge velocity to deposit the first powder material on the target point;
and the step of depositing powder material on the target point using each of the two or more secondary spray nozzles, comprises the step of:
discharging second and further powder materials through respective ones of the two or more secondary spray nozzles at corresponding second and further pre-determined discharge velocities to deposit the second and further powder materials on the target point.

18. The method as claimed in claim 16 , wherein the support mechanism is adjustable to alter an orientation of each of the primary spray nozzle and the two or more secondary spray nozzles.

Assignees

• Rolls Royce Plc

Inventors

• Tan Adrian W Y
• Liu Erjia
• Marinescu Iulian

Classifications

• B05B7/1481 Primary

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• F05D2220/32

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• F05D2230/31

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