In light weight constructions, researches focus more and more on ecological aspects of materials. In this way vulcanized fiber relive a renaissance because it is produced from renewable raw materials. Vulcanized fiber is a composite material, which was approximately discovered in 1855. It is manufactured by parchmentizing of pulp with the use of a zinc chloride solution. This material is well known for its good strength to weight relationship, but it is susceptible to the contact with aqueous fluids and also shows only a low resistance to wear. Therefore, a functionalization of the surface is needed. The functionalization can be realized by thermal spray processes to increase the potential of vulcanized fiber. Especially the pretreatment of the specimen to enable the coating application is one of the key topics of this paper. Vulcanized fiber is a thermal sensitive material. The impact of hot spray materials can cause undesired reactions such as the combustion of fibers on the substrate's surface. To reduce this effect, twin wire arc spraying and low-pressure cold gas spraying processes were used to apply low-melting materials (copper, zinc) onto the specimen. Thereby, the influence of the coating on the vulcanized fiber surface was investigated. In addition, non-destructive testing methods were evaluated to gain information about the vulcanized fiber.
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