Research progress on tantalum carbide coatings on carbon materials

Carbon materials, such as graphite, carbon fibers and C/C composites, have a high specific modulus and specific strength, especially at high temperatures. However, they corrode easily in air or ammonia at high temperatures and have poor scratching resistance. Tantalum carbide (TaC) has an excellent high-temperature mechanical stability, high-temperature corrosion resistance, high-temperature ablation resistance and good chemical and mechanical compatibility with carbon materials. This paper summarizes research progress on coating TaC on graphite, carbon fibers and C/C composites. The coating methods and their effects on the properties of carbon materials are introduced, including plasma spraying, chemical vapor deposition, chemical vapor infiltration, slurry coating, sol coating and reactive coating in molten salt media with a focus on chemical vapor deposition. Development trends and research directions on the subject of TaC coating are discussed.