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High Temperature Material Processes (An International Quarterly of High-Technology Plasma Processes)

An International Journal

ISSN for PRINT: 1093-3611

Institutional price:	$604.00
Issues per year:	4

Best Paper Award Selection - Editorial Board Site

2003, Volume7

145 pages

DOI: 10.1615/HighTempMatProc.v7.i3

Issue price - $144.00

NITRIDATION OF AUSTENITIC STAINLESS STEEL IN A NITROGEN PLASMA

Liudas Pranevicius
Lietuvos energetikos institutas, Breslaujos g. 3, LT-3035; Vytauto Didþiojo universitetas, S. Daukanto g. 28, LT-3000 Kaunas, Lithuania

D. Milcius
Lithuanian Energy Institute, 3 Breslaujos St., LT-3035 Kaunas, Lithuania

G. Abrasonis
Vytautas Magnus University, 8 Vileikos St., LT-3035 Kaunas, Lithuania; and Laboratoire de Metallurgie Physique, Universite de Poitiers, Bd. Marie et Pierre CURIE, B.P. 30179, 86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex, France

J. Nomgaudyte
Vytautas Magnus University, 8 Vileikos St., LT-3035 Kaunas, Lithuania

L.L. Pranevicius
Vytautas Magnus University, 8 Vileikos St., LT-3035 Kaunas, Lithuania

C. Templier
Laboratoire de Metallurgie Physique, Universite de Poitiers, Bd. Marie et Pierre CURIE, B.P. 30179, 86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex, France

J.-P. Riviere
Laboratoire de Metallurgie Physique, Universite de Poitiers, Bd. Marie et Pierre CURIE, B.P. 30179, 86962 Futuroscope Chasseneuil Cedex, France

ABSTRACT

The effectiveness of the austenitic stainless steel nitriding can be significantly increased using an ultra high atomic nitrogen flux produced by a plasma torch at atmospheric pressure. It is shown, employing Glow Discharge Optical Spectroscopy (GDOS) profiling technique and cross-sectional Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) analysis that an efficient nitriding proceeds at temperature above 350-400°C. The thickness of the nitrided layer is up to 150-200 μm after 25 min of processing. The possible nitriding mechanism is proposed with the emphasis on the interaction between the free surfaces, grain boundaries and bulk. The high-flux external irradiation increases the surface chemical potential and creates the compressive stress in the near surface layer. Stress relaxation initiates inelastic processes in grains, mainly dislocation glide, and related mass-transport of matrix atoms including nitrogen, supplied through the grain (subgrain) boundaries of crystallites and dislocations.