Fe2B boride layer growth in carbon and low-alloyed steels

The aim of this paper is to present a simple mathematical model of Fe2B boride layer growth. Therefore, an original theory of laminar phenomena is applied to the experimental data of the powder boriding process. The general equation of concentration distribution is adopted to the case of one sided unsteady state diffusion in a solid which is analogous to now near a wall suddenly set in motion. The integral method, based on setting mass balances for the control volume, is used. Starting from the assumption that the boride layer growth is controlled by the diffusion of boron through the layer, the effects of the present obstacles on layer growth are incorporated into the model. The developed equations show good agreement with the obtained experimental results.