HYCOAT project

Development of multifunctional coatings for the automotive industry using plasma and laser processes, and study of their properties under extreme conditions of use.

The aim of the project is to identify, develop and characterize surface coatings for hydrogen-powered injectors in internal combustion engines.

Developing hydrogen-powered engines

One way of deploying hydrogen technology in the transport sector is to adapt internal combustion engines to run on hydrogen. To do this, the surfaces of the materials must be resistant to extreme conditions: high temperature, mechanical stress and friction without lubrication under H2. The aim of the project is to develop PVD coatings that are resistant to these extreme conditions, and which will eventually be compatible with BorgWarner's current PVD reactors in Blois.

Towards new coatings

The aim of this project is to identify new multifunctional coatings combining several mechanical and tribological properties (multilayers or nanocomposites) and to develop them by combining several plasma & laser technologies in order to have fine control over the structural and morphological properties of their surface. This project focuses on automotive engine components, which are subjected to multiple stresses under increasingly severe operating conditions, and the use of new fuels such as hydrogen calls for a continuous improvement approach to the coatings used on the base alloys making up the components.