Improved microstructure and properties of 12Cr2Ni4A alloy steel by vacuum carburization and Ti plus N co-implantation

The carburized 12Cr2Ni4A alloy steel was implanted by Ti + N double elements implantation. The microstructure, nano-hardness and corrosion properties were investigated by EPMA, TEM, XPS, nano-hardness and electrochemistry tests in detail. The results showed that the Ti + N co-implanted layer is composed of FCC TiN and TiC phases with BCC martensite. Compared with the un-implanted layer, the Ti + N implanted layer has higher nano-hardness and better corrosion resistance. In addition, the higher nano-hardness was presented below the surface of 1800 nm compared with un-implanted layer, which is far beyond the thickness of the implanted layer. The results also indicated that the generation of nanoscale ceramic phase and structures are not the only factor to impose the influence on the nano-hardness and corrosion resistance, but the radiation damage and lattice distortion will play an important role. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.