Tribocorrosion Behavior of γ′-Fe4N Nitride Layer Formed on Mild Steel by Plasma Nitriding in Chloride-Containing Solution

Abstract

Nitriding has long been used to engineer the surfaces of engineering steels to improve their surface and subsurface properties. The role of the surface compound layer (γ′-Fe4N and/or ε-Fe2-3N) in improving the tribological and corrosion-resistant properties of nitrided steels has been established. However, there have been very few studies on the response of the compound layer to tribocorrosion in corrosive environments. In this work, the tribocorrosion behavior of a 5 μm thick γ′-Fe4N nitride layer produced on mild steel (MS) by plasma nitriding has been studied in a NaCl- containing solution under various electrochemical conditions. The results show that at a cathodic potential of −700 mV (saturated calomel electrode, SCE), where mechanical wear is predominant, the total material removal (TMR) from the γ′-Fe4N layer is 37% smaller than that from the untreated MS, and at open circuit potential, TMR from the layer is 34% smaller than that from the untreated MS, while at an anodic potential of −200 (SCE), the γ′-Fe4N layer can reduce TMR from mild steel by 87%. The beneficial effect of the γ′-Fe4N nitride layer in improving the tribocorrosion behavior of mild steel is derived from its high hardness and good corrosion resistance in the test solution and its ability to resist both mechanical wear and corrosion and to reduce wear–corrosion synergism.