Effects of simultaneous boron and nitrogen implantation on microhardness and fatigue properties of Fe-13cr-15ni alloys

Eight complex austenitic stainless steel alloys based on the composition Fe-13Cr-15Ni-2Mo-2Mn-0.2Ti-0.8Si-0.06C were implanted simultaneously with 400-keV B+ and 550-keV N⁺ ions and were investigated for changes in fatigue properties and surface microhardness. The nearsurface hardness of all eight alloys improved, but the fatigue life of each decreased. These findings were contrary to those obtained in an earlier study using four simple Fe-13Cr-15Ni alloys, where the dual implantation improved fatigue life by up to 250 pct. While unimplanted specimens failed by slip-band crack initiation, it was hypothesized that the dual implantation suppressed slip to the extent that fewer slip-band cracks were initiated and these were subjected to accelerated crack propagation. In addition, grain-boundary cracking was promoted, yielding a lower fatigue life. Support for this hypothesis was obtained by a study of single crystals of Fe-15Cr-15Ni, which were also implanted with B⁺ and N⁺. The dual implantation caused a lower fatigue life due to concentration of slip along a few slip bands to relieve applied stress. Evidence of grain-boundary cracking was obtained using the four simple alloys, which were subjected to triple ion implantation with B⁺, N⁺, and C⁺. The triple implantation decreased the fatigue life of the alloys and caused accelerated growth of fewer slip bands and grain-boundary cracking due to suppression of surface slip bands. This study thus shows the existence of an optimum level of strengthening when multiple ion implantation is used to improve the fatigue properties of alloys.