Electrolytic-Plasma Processing and Boriding of Various Surfaces

Abstract

The results of electrolytic-plasma processing (EPP) of copper M2P substrates in 2% solution (NH4)2SO4 + 0.5% NaCl, brass L68 M2R EPP polished with 2% solution (NH4)2SO4 + 0.5% NaCl as well as steel 12X18N9T have been presented. Both anodic and cathodic treatment processes were used for EPP. Electrolytic-plasma boriding (EPB) was also used for surface strengthening and surface texturing of 12X18N9T stainless steel. After treatment with a borax solution, two additional peaks appear in the XRD patterns of the samples in addition to the Fe-α ferrite peaks. These peaks refer to iron borate FeBO3 (hexagonal lattice) with lattice parameters a = 4.659Å; c = 14.601Å. It was shown that microhardness of the stainless steel of the 12Х18Н9Т type after EPB processing increased from 130 to 500 kg/mm2.