Effects of surface nanocrystallization on corrosion resistance of β-type titanium alloy

Surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT) was performed on biomedicalβ-type TiNbZrFe alloy for 60 min at room temperature to study the effect of surface nanocrystallization on the corrosion resistance of TiNbZrFe alloy in physiological environment. The surface nanostructure was characterized by TEM, and the electrochemical behaviors of the samples with nanocrystalline layer and coarse grain were comparatively investigated in 0.9% NaCl and 0.2% NaF solutions, respectively. The results indicate that nanocrystallines with the size of 10-30 nm are formed within the surface layer of 30 μm in depth. The nanocrystallized surface behaves higher impedance, more positive corrosion potential and lower corrosion current density in 0.9%NaCl and 0.2%NaF solutions as compared with the coarse grain surface. The improvement of the corrosion resistance is attributed to the rapid formation of stable and dense passive film on the nanocrystallized surface of TiNbZrFe alloy.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of CoCrFeMnNi high entropy alloy with ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification process

In this study, mechanical properties improvement of equiatomic CoCrFeMnNi treated with an ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification(UNSM) was studied. The applied UNSM treatment with static loads of 10 N, 20 N, and 60 N provided a severe plastic deformation, which produced a gradient structure. The nearsurface area exhibited a high number of dislocation densities and deformation twin interaction, leading to a surface strengthening and hardness improvement of up to 112% than the deformation-free interior region. Increment of dislocation densities and deformation twin formation on the surface also enhanced the yield and ultimate tensile strength of the UNSM-treated specimens. Furthermore, the combination of hard nanocrystallites layer on the surface and ductile coarse grain in the specimen interior as a result of the UNSM treatment successfully maintained the strength–ductility balance of the CoCrFeMnNi.

A new guide for improving mechanical properties of non-equiatomic FeCoCrMnNi medium-and high-entropy alloys with ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification process

Ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification (UNSM) treatment on non-equiatomic medium-and highentropy alloy (HEA) of Fex(CoCrMnNi)100-xis firstly introduced and its impact on microstructure and mechanical properties are revealed.By UNSM,severe plastic deformation-induced dislocation and deformation twins (DTs) arise at the topmost surface.Especially,Fe60(CoCrMnNi)40(Fe60),which is classified as a medium-entropy alloy (MEA),exhibits ε-martensitic transformation.In the room temperature tensile test,a high strength of ~600 MPa and ductility of ~65%elongation (strain to failure) is accomplished in Fe60.Initially formed DTs and ε-martensitic transformation by UNSM treatment plays a key role in retardation of necking point via both twinning-induced plasticity and transformation-induced plasticity.However,Fe20(CoCrMnNi)80(Fe20) comparatively shows low strength of ~550 MPa and ~40% elongation,owing to the low accommodation of DTs than Fe60.Our research will provide new guidelines for enhancing the mechanical properties of MEA and HEA.

Effect of surface nanocrystallization and PPEC time on complex nanocrystalline hard layer fabricated by plasma electrolysis

Size distribution of nano-carbides produced by duplex treatments of surface nanocrystallization(by surface severe plastic deformation) and plasma electrolytic carburizing on CP-Ti was investigated.Skewness and kurtosis of Gussian shape distribution curves were studied and the effect of time was determined.The usage of longer time is more suitable for achieving less size of complex nano-carbides.Surface roughness of treated samples was measured.It is observed that there is an optimum level for time on surface roughness increasing(difference between two measured data).

Gaseous Nitriding Process of Surface Nanocrystallized (SNCed) Steel

The behavior of gaseous nitriding on the surface nanocrystallized (SNCed) steel was investigated. The mild steel discs were SNCed on one side by using the method of ultrasonic shot peening. The opposite side of the discs maintained the original coarse-grained condition. The gaseous nitriding was subsequently carried out at three different temperatures: 460, 500 and 560℃. The compound layer growth and diffusion behavior were then studied. It was revealed that SNC pretreatment greatly enhances both diffusion coefficient D and surface reaction rate. As a result, nitriding time could be reduced to the half. It was also found that the growth of compound layer with nitriding time conformed with parabolic relationship from the start of nitriding process in the SNCed samples.

Internal Friction and Elastic Study on Surface Nanocrystallized 304 Stainless Steel Induced by High-energy Shot Peening

The 304 stainless steel with nanostructured surface layer was successfully obtained by using the high-energy shot peening (HESP) method. The internal friction and Young's modulus of this kind of surface nanocrystallized material were dynamically measured by means of the vibrating reed apparatus. The results implied that different treatment time could induce different microstructure and distribution characteristic of defects in this kind of materials. It is also demonstrated that there is a transition layer between the nano-layer on surface and the coarse grain region inside. The transition layer obviously has certain influence on the overall mechanical properties.

Surface nanocrystallization of commercial pure titanium by shot peening

The surface nanostructures of commercial pure titanium was realized by the modified shot peening equipment commonly used in industry through the special treatment process. The results show that high-energy-shot-peening(HESP) commonly used to prepare nanostructured surface layers can be achieved by the increase of pill size, pill speed, and treatment time in the commercial shot peening equipment. XRD, SEM and TEM were used to characterize the surface layer microstructure of treated specimens. The analytic results show that the main deformation mode of commercial pure Ti is twinning. At the beginning of deformation, the dislocations are formed and twins occur within or on plane, then twins in intersection plane appear, and at last the twin characteristics disappear in the surface layer after longer treatment time. The deformation layer depth increases with treatment time in a certain period when the pill size and speed are unchanged. And in the severe plastic deformation (SPD) layer in which the twins are not identified easily by using SEM, the nanocrystalline microstructures are found under TEM. The finest grain size in the surface layer is about 40 nm, and the depth of nanostructured layers is over 60 μm. The microhardness of the nanostructured surface layers is enhanced significantly after shot peening compared with that of the initial simple.

Research on the dissolution behavior of cementite in the GCr15 steel surface layer induced by surface nanocrystallization

Dissolution of cementite was found in the surface layer of 1.0C-1.5Cr steel plates during the process of surface mechanical attrition treatment(SMAT),and its evolution was characterized by transmission electron microscope(TEM),three-dimensional atom probe(3DAP)and Mssbauer spectroscopy.The average grain size contained in the top surface of SMAT specimen was 10nm,and no diffraction ring corresponding to cementite grain was identified in the selected area election diffraction(SAED)pattern,which indicated the disappearance of cementite.3DAP analysis showed the average carbon concentration in ferrite(0.75 at%)after SMAT,which was almost 100 times higher than that in matrix(0.008 at%),which suggested cementite dissolve in the process of SMAT.The results of Mssbauer spectroscopy indicated that partial cementite dissolved in the process of SMAT,the saturation of cementite dissolution is about 47%.Evolution of cementite involved three sub-stages:①inoculation stage,in the first 5 min of treated duration,cementite fraction is reduced only by 0.4%;②dissolution stage,within the following 25 min cementite fraction significantly is reduced from 14.6% to 8.4%;③saturation stage,when treatment exceeds 30 min,the fraction of cementite nearly remains the same.

Surface Nanocrystallization of C45E4 Steel by Ultrafast Electropulsing-ultrasonic Surface Treatment

The effect of high-energy electropulsing-ultrasonic surface treatment（EUST） on the surface properties and the microstructure evolution of C45 E4 steel was investigated. Refined microstructure and reduced surface roughness were obtained owing to the surface nanocrystallization process. Compared with the ultrasonic surface treatment（UST）, the impact depth of the surface strengthened layer was increased by 40% to 700 μm after EUST. The average grain size of the surface nanocrystallization layer was reduced to 30-50 nm. The surface roughness of the C45 E4 steel was reduced to 0.25 μm, and the surface microhardness was dramatically enhanced to 460 HV. The improvement of microstructure and micro-hardness at ambient temperature was likely attributed to the acceleration of atomic diffusion and the enhancement of plastic deformation ability in the surface strengthened layer under the influence of electropulsing. Due to the electropulsing-assisted ultrasonic strengthening effect, the surface nanocrystallization in this ultrafast procedure was noticeably enhanced.

Surface Nanocrystallization of Steel 20 Induced by Fast Multiple Rotation Rolling

In order to expand the application of steel 20 in precision device,fast multiple rotation rolling( FMRR) is applied to fabricate a nanostructured layer on the surface of steel 20. The FMRR samples are then Cr-Rare earth-boronized under low-temperature. The microstructure of the top surface layer is characterized by transmission electron microscopy( TEM). Microhardness of the top surface is measured by a Vickers microhardness tester. The boride layer is characterized by using scanning electron microscopy( SEM).Experimental results show that a nanostructured layer with their grain size range from 200 to 400 nm is obtained in the top surface layer. The microhardness of FMRR sample changes gradiently along the depth from about274 HV in the top surface layer to about 159 HV in the matrix,which is nearly 1.7 times harder than that of the original sample. The penetrating rate is enhanced significantly when the FMRR samples are Cr-Rare earthboronized at 600 ℃ for 6 h. Thickness of the boride layer increases to around 20 μm,which is nearly twice thicker than that of the original sample.

Effect of Surface Nanocrystallization Induced by Fast Multiple Rotation Rolling on Cr-Rare Earth-Boronizing for Steel 45 under Low-Temperature

In this paper, fast multiple rotation rolling （FMRR） is applied to fabricate a nanostructured layer on the surface of steel 45. The FMRR samples are then Cr-Rare earth-boronized under low-temperature. The boride layer is characterized by using Scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）. Experimental results indicate that the thickness of the boride layer is greatly increased by surface nanocrystallization. The boride layer with relatively continuous structure instead of the zigzag teeth structure is obtained, and the penetrating rate is enhanced by 2. 5-3.7 times when the FMRR samples are Cr-Rare earth- boronized at the temperature of 570 %, 600℃ and 650℃ for 6 h. The boride layer fabricated on the FMRR sample consists of single phase Fe2B. Severe plastic deformation with the grain size of approximately 100 nm in the top surface layer of steel 45 is observed, and the thickness of the plastic deformation layer is about 30 6xm. The microstructure in the top surface layer is characterized by Transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. Grain boundaries are largely increased with high stacking fault energy after FMRR, leading to a significant enhancement of RE boron-chromizing speed.

Chromizing treatment of the surface-nanocrystallized AISI H13 steel and the improved wear resistance

A hot-working AISI H13 tool steel was subjected to a combined process consisting of surface nanocrystallization(SNC)and chromizing treatment successively.The composition,microstructure,hardness and wear resistance of the chromized layer were characterized by using the scanning and transmission electron microscopy,a nano-indenter and a tribo-meter.It was shown that a continuous chromized layer of approximately 30 μm in thickness was formed on the SNC specimen after a dual chromizing treatment at both 600℃ and 1050℃ consecutively,as thick as about 3 times of that on the coarse-grained specimen after the same chromizing treatment.In addition,the wear resistance of the SNC-chromized specimen was enhanced significantly,due to a smaller grain size and a higher hardness,as well as smoother gradient variations of the microstructure,composition and hardness across a greater depth in the formed chromized surface layer.

Study on the friction and wear properties of the surface nanocrystallized 1.0C-1.5Cr steel induced by the surface mechanical attrition treatment

Nano-structured layers are fabricated on the surface of 1.0C-1.5Cr steel by using the surface mechanical attrition treatment(SMAT)technology,and the microstructures of the surface nano-crystallization layers are characterized by means of X-ray diffraction(XRD)and transmission electron microscopy(TEM).The friction and wear properties are also investigated by a UMT-2 friction and wear tester.Experimental research has indicated that the average diameter of nanocrystalline grains in the surface layer after being treated for 15 min is in the range of 10-20 nm,and ferrite and cementite grains can not be identified by their morphologies.The wear-resistance of the specimen treated for 15 min has been doubled,compared with that of the matrix due to the grain refinement to a nano-sized scale.The lowest friction coefficient is 0.27,which is for the specimen treated for 30 min,resulting from the dissolution of the cementite phase and the formation of a relative homogenous structure.The SMAT technique for enhancing the wear-resistance of the 1.0C-1.5Cr steel has an optimum processing time,which is in the range of 15-30 min.The dominant wear mechanism of the specimen treated for 15 min changes from adhesive wear into particle wear.

Surface Nanocrystallization of Magnesium Alloy AZ91D by High-Energy Shot Peening

High-energy shot peening （HESP）, a method to produce severe plastic deformation by high velocity flying balls, was applied on die cast magnesium alloy AZ91D. Effects of surface nanocrystallization by HESP and heat treatment at different temperatures were investigated. The mi- crostructure evolution was conducted using X-ray diffraction （XRD） and field emission scanning electronic microscopy （FESEM）. The hardness was measured by microhardness tester. The experimental results show that surface nanocrystrallization of AZ91D obtained by HESP would lead to the increase of microhardness. Low temperature heated at 100℃ for 1 h do not change the property obviously. However, both the microstructure and microhardness vary greatly after heat treatment at 400℃ for 1 h.

Surface Nanocrystallization of Commercial Pure Titanium Induced by SMAT and Its Properties

In this paper the preparation technique of surface nanocrystallization in commercial pure titanium was carried out by surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT). The mean grain size was calculated by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscope (TEM), and the results showed that the mean grain size of the surface was refined to nm Ievel after SMAT treatment. Nanocrystallized surface layers were formed after treated for 5, 15, 30 and 60 min. Microhardness experimental results implied the microhardness obviously increased on the surface layer and it also showed the variation of microhardness at the cross section. Corrosion test results showed the corrosion resistance of the surfaces in the original commercial pure titanium treated by SMAT was not improved in HCI solution. The corrosion micrographs were observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM).

Nanocrystallization of Cementite in 0.4C-1Cr Steel During High-Power Surface Processing

The microstructures of the nanocrystalline surface layer of a quenched and high temperature tempered 0. 4C- 1Cr steel induced by high-power surface processing （HPSP） technique were characterized by scan- ning eleetron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The results indicate that a nanocrystalline layer was fabricated on the surface of the steel 19 using HPSP treatment. The mean grain size in the surface layer is about 11 nm. The nanocrystallization of cementite is prior to that of the matrix phase, ferrite.

Optimization Design of an Embedded Multi-Cell Thin-Walled Energy Absorption Structures with Local Surface Nanocrystallization

Bymeans of the local surface nanocrystallization that enables to change the material on local positions,an innovative embedded multi-cell(EMC)thin-walled energy absorption structures with local surface nanocrystallization is proposed in this paper.The local surface nanacrystallization stripes are regarded as the moving morphable components in the domain for optimal design.Results reveal that after optimizing the local surface nanocrystallization layout,the specific energy absorption(SEA)is increased by 50.78%compared with the untreated counterpart.Besides,in contrast with the optimized 4-cell structure,the SEA of the nanocrystallized embedded 9-cell structure is further enhanced by 27.68%,in contrast with the 9-cell structure,the SEA of the nanocrystallized embedded clapboard type 9-cell structure is enhanced by 3.61%.Thismethod provides a guidance for the design of newenergy absorption devices.

Surface nanocrystallization of 7A52 aluminum alloy welded joint

As a means of surface modification process, metal surface nanocrystallization （MSN） has attracted widespread attention and enjoyed a great prospect. However, currently little research is carried out regarding MSN of welded joint. The processes of high energy shot peening （HESP） technology and ultrasonic impact treatment （UIT） were carried out to achieve joint surface nanocrystallization. The grain size of before and after the welded joint surface nanocrystallization were comparatively analyzed with X-ray diffractometer, the surface deformation layer thickness of before and after the welded joint surface nanocrystallization were comparatively analyzed with optical microscopy, the surface hardness of before and after the welded joint surface nanocrystallization were comparatively analyzed with micro hardness machine. The results show that both of the processes can achieve welded joint surface nanocrystaUization and the weld after HESP have smaller grain size, larger deformation layer thickness and higher hardness values than those after UIT. However, HESP is restrained by the shapes and sizes of welding materials, so the UIT process is preferred to use in the general engineering practical applications.

Surface nanocrystallization in AISI 52100 steel induced by surface mechanical grinding treatment(SMGT)

Surface nanocrystallization(SNC) has proved to be an effective approach to improve the overall properties of bulk metallic materials.Recently,a new surface nanocrystallization technique,i.e.,surface mechanical grinding treatment(SMGT),was developed.In this work,a gradient nano-micro structure was achieved in the surface layer of the AISI 52100 steel by using SMGT.We obtained a minimum grain size of about 7nm in the top surface layer.The total thickness of the deformed layer is over 200 micrometer.Meanwhile the surface roughness is rather low. Ferrite grains were deformed to different extents varying with depth from the top surface.Gradient grain sizes were formed from top surface to deep matrix which offered a great opportunity to study the refinement process of the ferrite grains.It is found that dislocation activities play a dominant role in the process.At the initiate stage, dislocations accumulated and interacted to form dense dislocation walls and cells.Increasing strain and strain rate induced more dislocation walls in cells,forming finer cells.This procedure continued until nanograins formed at the top most surface. The existence of cementite particles in ferrite matrix greatly facilitates the ferrite refinement process.Boundaries between ferrites and cementites offered many dislocation sources which accelerate the propagation of dislocations. Dislocation walls were blocked by cementites which certainly lead to finer dislocation cells.The existence of cementites makes it easier to generate fresh dislocation walls in sub-micron grains.A strain gradient was formed from a cementite particle to surrounding ferrite grains.This strain gradient gives rise to more geometric necessary dislocations. As ferrite grain size decreased less than that of cementite particles,fragmentation occurred in cementites.Hard second phase was usually considered as brittle.In this work,evidences of deformation(traces of dislocation activities) in cementites were distinct.Since the stress concentration in the phase boundary(especially triple junction) excesses the shear modulus of cementite,dislocation emission was triggered.It is found in this work that dislocations tend to slip along parallel planes,possibly on(001),(01 0),(100),(110),(10 1 ) and(011) planes,depending upon as the load directions.

Effect of surface nanocrystallization on the electrochemical hydrogen evolution behavior of IF steel

Cathodic polarization curve and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in 30% NaOH solution were utilized to investigate the hydrogen evolution （HE） behavior of interstitial free （IF） steel surface nanocrystallized （SNC） via ultrasonic particulate peening （USPP）. The surface morphology and grain size of the steel were analyzed by scanning electronic microscope （SEM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）. It was found that the IF steel treated by SNC and SNC ＋ 1% roiling got reductions of 200 mV and 300 mV in HE over-potentials ,respectively. Their real surface areas are enlarged by about 20 times and the hydrogen evolution reaction activation flee energies are about 50% of the original IF steels＇ s activation free energy.