Appeal 2006-2179
Application 10/735,369
Claims 14, 15 and 16 Ackerman ‘588 recites as follows:
14. A method for fabricating an article protected by a thermal
barrier coating system, comprising the steps of
providing a substrate having a substrate surface; and
applying a thermal barrier coating system overlying the
substrate by the steps of
depositing onto the substrate surface a thermal barrier
coating system comprising a thermal barrier coating material
arranged as a plurality of columnar grains extending generally
perpendicular to the substrate surface and having grain surfaces
and gaps between the columnar grains, and
producing a sintering inhibitor within the columnar
grains but concentrated at the grain surfaces, wherein the
sintering inhibitor has a higher melting point than the thermal
barrier coating material, and wherein the step of producing
includes the steps of liquid phase infiltrating an inhibitor
precursor material into the gaps of the thermal barrier coating,
wherein the step of infiltrating comprises the steps of forming a
liquid solution containing the inhibitor precursor material
dissolved in a solvent, and contacting the liquid solution to the
thermal barrier coating, and
chemically reacting the infiltrated inhibitor precursor
material and the thermal barrier coating material to form the
sintering inhibitor.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of applying
includes the steps of
depositing a bond coat overlying the substrate, and
thereafter depositing the thermal barrier coating overlying the
bond coat.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein the step of applying
includes the step of
providing an inhibitor precursor material comprising an
inhibitor element selected from the group consisting of barium,
strontium, tantalum, lanthanum, neodymium, ytterbium,
gadolinium, niobium, and mixtures thereof.
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