Detonation spray coatings are applied using a detonation gun (D-gun) which is composed of a long-water-cooled metal barrel containing inlet valves for introducing gases and powders into the chamber. A preselected amount of the desired protective coating material known as feedstock (in powder form of particle size 5–60μm) is introduced into the chamber (at common powder flow rates of 16–40 g/min). Here oxygen and fuel (generally acetylene) are ignited by a spark plug to create a supersonic shock wave that propels the mixture of melted and/or partially-melted and/or solid feedstock (depending on the type of material used) out of the barrel and onto the subject being sprayed. The barrel is then cleared using a short burst of nitrogen before the D-gun is ready to be fired again. This is an important step because the heat from the residual gases can cause the new fuel mixture to combust which would in turn cause an uncontrollable reaction. Also a small amount of inert nitrogen gas inserted between the two mixtures of fuel and feedstock prior to firing, helps to prevent backfiring. D-guns typically operate at firing rates of between 1–10 Hz. Many different mixtures of coating powders and D-gun settings can be used during detonation gun spraying of a material, all of which influence the final surface characteristics of the sprayed coating. Common powder materials used include but are not limited to: alumina-titania, alumina, tungsten carbide-tungsten-chromium carbide mixture with nickel-chromium alloy binder, chromium carbide, tungsten carbide with cobalt binder.
Metallurgists consider the measurements of surface oxygen content, macro and micro-hardness, porosity, bond strength and surface roughness when determining the quality of a thermally sprayed coating.