Abstract
The primary goal of the present work is to define a model to predict the characteristics of materials processed using reactive spray atomization and deposition. The materials considered are aluminum alloys while target dispersoids are primarily oxides. These may be obtained by the reaction of oxygen-containing atomization gas mixtures with molten alloy droplets. Droplet position and velocity histories are obtained from the numerical solution of the one-dimensional equation of motion. The energy equation inside the droplet is solved numerically using finite-differences to predict the spatially resolved temperature field. The solid/liquid interface progression rate is estimated using a power law while an oxidation rate expression based on the Mott-Cabrera theory is used for the oxide thickness. Such a model can then be used to determine the parameters controlling the volume fraction and the size distribution of the dispersoids for various systems.
