Silicate Compositions Database

Degradation of thermal and environmental barrier coatings (T/EBC) by interactions with molten silicate deposits (ash, sand, dust) poses a fundamental threat to progress in gas turbine technology. This file is the first publicly available, comprehensive database of its kind on potential silicate deposits. It features in an accompanying article addressing an original ICME-inspired approach (Integrated Computational Materials Engineering) to analyzing the high dimensional data. The article responds to a longstanding need for identifying a reasonable number of silicate compositions that may represent the wide variability in engine deposits arising from the airborne siliceous debris in the atmosphere.

Investigators in the aircraft engine industry might work toward developing this database further. Collaborations between industry and academia might facilitate accelerated progress toward understanding the nature of high-dimensional datasets and identifying relevant exemplary compositions for testing T/EBC materials.

Methods
Silicate deposit compositions were obtained from the open literature in addition to a few private communications. Concentrations of all measured cations were first recorded for each silicate composition. Prior to later analyses, compositions were reduced to five principal oxides (CaO, MgO, FeOx, AlO1.5, SiO2) and normalized.