Efficient Simulation of Nonlinear Heat Transfer during Thermal Spraying of Complex Workpieces

The quality of coatings, produced by thermal spraying processes, considerably decreases with the occurrence of higher residual stresses, which are especially pronounced for complex workpiece geometries. To understand the occurring effects and to aid in the planning of coating processes, simulations of the highly transient energy flux of the HVOF spray gun into the substrate are of great value. In this article, a software framework for the simulation of nonlinear heat transfer during (HVOF) thermal spraying is presented. One part of this framework employs an efficient GPU-based simulation algorithm to compute the time-dependent input boundary conditions for a spray gun that moves along a complex workpiece of arbitrary shape. The other part employs a finite-element model for a rigid heat conductor adhering to the computed boundary conditions. The model is derived from the fundamental equations of continuum thermodynamics where nonlinear temperature-depending heat conduction is assumed.