High-temperature properties of joint interface of VPS-tungsten coated CFC

Tungsten coated carbon fiber composite (CFC) is a candidate material for the high heat flux components in fusion reactors. In order to investigate the high-temperature properties at the joint interface of coating, heat load experiments by using electron beam were performed on VPS-tungsten coated CX-2002U samples. After the heat load test for 3.6 ks at 1400 °C, tungsten–rhenium multilayer (diffusion barrier for carbon) at the joint interface of coating was observed clearly. But, at the temperatures above 1600 °C, the multilayer was disappeared and a tungsten carbide layer was formed in the VPS-tungsten coating. At the temperatures below 1800 °C, the thickness of this layer logarithmically increased with increasing its loading time. At 2000 °C, the growth of the tungsten carbide layer was proportional to the square root of loading time. These results indicate that the diffusion barrier for carbon is not expected to suppress the carbide formation at the joint interface of the VPS-tungsten coating above 1600 °C.