SURFACE ENGINEERING FOR

TRIBOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS
SURFACE ENGINEERING
 Transformation Hardening
The simplest method of producing a region of hard material
at the surface of a softer carbon steel components
Surface material - rapidly and selectively transformed by
heating to austenite and then quenched to form martensite
and subsequently tempered
Restricted to ferrous alloys
used for gear teeth, camshafts, crank shafts, cutter blades,
bearing surfaces
Flame hardening (oxy-acetylene or oxy-propane flame)
Induction hardening
- in both cases an external quenching medium is used
depth of hard layer - 0.25 to 6 mm
New methods - laser hardening, electron beam hardening
infra red beam from a high power (0.5 - 15 kW) laser
directed on a steel surface coated with graphite, ion oxide
(to increase infra red absorption)
rapid heating (106 Ks-1)
rapid cooling by conduction (104 Ks-1)
no external quenching media required
high power density and shorter heating time - shallow
depth of hardening
Electron beam hardening - similar to laser hardening
beam moved over the surface by electromagnetic
deflection and work piece also may be moved
no surface coating is essential; moderate vacuum
depth of hardening - up to 2 mm
Rapid cooling due to self-quenching in laser and electron beam
processes - steels of low carbon content can be hardened
Also, retention of some austenite in the hardened layer -
enhanced abrasive wear resistance
bulk heating and consequent distortion of the component are
absent
If C > 0.5 %, low toughness, quench cracking
If C < 0.3 %, cooling rate > 400 K/s to form martensite. So
flame/induction hardening cant be used for low C steels
 Surface Melting

Modifying the surface without changing the chemical composition

- liquid-solid phase transformation by locally melting material
and allowing it to resolidify
if solidification is rapid homogenisation and refinement of
microstructure
laser, electron beam heating, electric arc welding methods with
non-consumable electrodes (TIG)
TIG melting process widely used for crank shafts, cam shafts, cam
followers
ferrous, non-ferrous metals and even non-metals
laser surface melting of cast Al-Si alloys can reduce the size of the
brittle silicon phase - wear mechanism may change
 Al-17% Si alloy
Si particle size reduced
from >60 m to <5 m
Bulk hardness increased
from 80 HV to 160 HV
untreated alloy - wear
mechanism by extensive
fracture - high wear
As-cast Laser surface melted treated alloy - plastic
deformation
Low carbon steels - not suitable for surface melting
treatment - soft delta ferrite is formed and retained in the
quenched surface layer
With carbon content between 0.4 and 0.9% - the treated
layer has martensite and retained austenite that may be
hardened by further heat treatment - beneficial
Cast iron responds very well - fine grained structure
Laser surface treatment of steels
 Thermochemical processes

The range of surface microstructures achieved by

transformation hardening and surface melting - limited by
composition of starting material
In thermochemical processes surface composition is locally
altered - microstructures and associated mechanical properties
are completely different from those of substrates
Two classes of solid state processes - atomic transport by
thermally enhanced diffusion
(1) diffusion of small atoms into the surface - formation of an
interstitial solid solution in the substrate and sometimes
formation of compounds as very fine precipitates -
carburizing, carbonitriding
(2) chemical reaction between the diffusing atoms and
constituents of the substrate - distinct layer of a new
compound at the surface formed - nitriding, nitrocarburizing,
boronizing, chromizing
 Carburizing
Diffusion of atomic carbon into steel from the surface
plain carbon or low alloy steels of low initial carbon content
(0.15 - 0.2%) - core will be tough
temp. 9000C or higher (austenitizing temp.) - carbon in
surface enhanced to 0.7 - 0.9%, hardness of 900 HV
depth of hardening, hardness depend on time, temp., and
carbon activity at the surface during the process
gas carburizing - commonly used - atmosphere of CO, H2 and
N2 - mixture of methanol and N2
recent processes at 10500C- vacuum carburizing and plasma
carburizing - energy efficient - more case depth
vacuum carburizing - heated in moderate vacuum - methane
or propane admitted at low pressure - after saturation of
surface with carbon the component kept for some more time
 Carbonitriding
simultaneous diffusion of carbon and nitrogen into
austenite in low carbon steels (<0.25%)
temp. 800 - 9000C
nitrogen content at the surface - 0.5 - 0.8%
carbon in surface enhanced to 0.7 - 0.9%
nitrogen increases the hardenability, also increases the
resistance to tempering of martensite
carbonitrided steels - greater sliding wear resistance than
carburized steels
 Nitriding
Temp. 500 - 5700C; hardness up to 1100 HV
applied to steels having nitride forming solute elements - Al, Cr,
Mo, Ti, W, V
very fine nitride precipitates - 5 to 15 nm
low temp., no phase transformation - very little distortion
compared to carburizing
sluggish diffusion - long treatment times
gas nitriding - heated at 5300C in ammonia - long duration
plasma nitriding or ion nitriding - steel part kept in a chamber
having nitrogen and hydrogen at 10 to 1000 Pa pressure - plasma
discharge established at 500 to 1000 V with work piece as
cathode - electrical power dissipation heats the surface
bombarded with nitrogen ions
 Nitrocarburizing

A thin hard layer -Fe2(C,N) forms - 20m - 500-650 HV

also, significant hardening of the underlying steel through
inward diffusion of nitrogen
done on carbon steels in the ferritic condition; mild or low
alloy steels, high strength alloys also
Tufftriding - another name
thiocyanate baths of lower toxicity
gas and plasma processes also developed using methane as
the source of carbon in addition to ammonia
 Boronizing (Boriding)

Diffusion of boron into the surface of a metal to form a hard

layer of metal boride
mostly to steels - above the austenite transformation temp.
(800 - 10500C)
two layers form in steels - outer layer of FeB and inner layer
(next to the substrate) of Fe2B
Iron boride layers are very hard - >1500 HV
the two boride layers have different thermal coefft. of
expansion - cracking at the interface between two layers
by proper control of process FeB can be reduced or avoided
pack boronizing - boron carbide (B4C), SiC or Al2O3 and an
activator (KBF4) - activator transports B in the gas phase to
steel
boronizing also done on Ti & its alloys - TiB, Ti2B - 2500 HV
 Chromizing
Carbon and tool steels - Cr reacts with carbon to form a
surface layer of chromium carbide
to be preceded by carburizing to keep the initial carbon
concentration at the surface high
process temp. 900 to 10000C
hardness >1500 HV, retained at high temp. (7000C)

Toyato Diffusion process - for tool and die steels - carbides

of Cr, Nb, Ti, V
work piece immersed in a salt bath of molten borax and iron
alloys of the appropriate carbide forming element
temp. 800 to 10500C; hardness - 3000 to 4000 HV