We studied the deposition of nickel particles in a plasma spray on a stainless steel surface using both experiments and numerical simulations. We developed a three-dimensional computational model of free-surface fluid flow that includes heat transfer and solidification and used it to simulate the impact of nickel particles. In our experiments, particles landing on a polished stainless steel surface at a temperature below 300 °C splashed and formed irregular splats, whereas those deposited on substrates heated above 400 °C formed round disk splats. Simulations showed that formation of fingers around the periphery of a spreading drop is caused by the presence of a solid layer. Droplets that spread completely before the onset of solidification will not splash. To sufficiently delay the instant at which solidification started in our simulations to obtain disk splats, we had to increase the thermal contact resistance between the droplet and the substrate by an order of magnitude. We measured the thickness of the oxide layer on the test surfaces used in our experiments and confirmed that heating them creates an oxide layer on the surface that increases the thermal contact resistance. We demonstrated that the numerical model could be used to simulate the deposition of multiple droplets on a surface to build up a coating.

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