Microstructural investigation of plasma sprayed ceramic coatings using peridynamics

The present study deploys a continuum mechanics approach called peridynamics to investigate the damage behaviour of a 2D microstructure, which was taken from a plasma sprayed ceramic coating used in solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) sealing systems. At the beginning, two benchmark cases, namely, plate with a hole as well as plate with a single edge notch, are considered. The results are compared to an analytical solution and a very good agreement is obtained. Based on these findings, a microstructural model from a plasma sprayed ceramic coating of SOFC sealing systems is investigated. These micromechanical simulations show that structural defects influence the crack initiation as well as the crack propagation during interconnecting the defects. Typical crack mechanisms, such as crack deflection, crack shielding or multiple cracking, are observed. Additionally, an anisotropy of the effective mechanical properties is observed in this heterogeneous material, which is well known for plasma sprayed materials.