What is Metalspray?

All methods of thermal spraying involve the projection of small molten particles onto a prepared surface where they adhere and form a continuous coating. To create the molten particles, a heat source, a spray material and an atomisation/projection method are required. Upon contact, the particles flatten onto the surface, freeze and mechanically bond, firstly onto the roughened substrate and then onto each other as the coating thickness is increased.

As the heat energy in the molten particles is small relative to the size of the sprayed component, the process imparts very little heat to the substrate. As the temperature increase of the coated parts is minimal, heat distortion is not normally experienced. This is a major advantage over hot-dipped galvanising.

Is this a New Technology Process?

No the Metalspray process was developed in the early 1900s by Dr Max Ulrich Schoop an Engineer from Zurich Switzerland. The myth has it that Schoop developed the concept when playing "soldiers" with his son and observing the deformation of lead pellets being fired from a toy cannon against a brick wall.

What is Thermal spray, Spray galvanising, Metallizing?

Thermal Spray, Spray Galvanizing, Metallizing are all terms that are used to describe the Metalspray process. Other terms like Flamespray, Plasmaspray, Powderspray and High Velocity Oxygen Fuel(HVOF) are used to describe the various Metalspray processes that now exist and have been developed as surface coating solutions to many Industrial problems including Wear(abrasive ,adhesive, fretting, Erosion, cavitation, Impact), thermal barrier coatings, restoration, Oxidation, electrical ( resistance, conductivity).