Effects of the Process Parameters on the Microstructure and Properties of Nitrided 17-4PH Stainless Steel

The effects of process parameters on the microstructure, microhardness, and dry-sliding wear behavior of plasma nitrided 17-4PH stainless steel were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and wear testing. The results show that a wear-resistant nitrided layer was formed on the surface of direct current plasma nitrided 17-4PH martensitic stainless steel. The microstructure and thickness of the nitrided layer is dependent on the treatment temperature rather than process pressure. XRD indicated that a single α _N phase was formed during nitriding at 623 K (350 °C). When the temperature increased, the α _N phase disappeared and CrN transformed in the nitrided layer. The hardness measurement demonstrated that the hardness of the stainless substrate steel increased from 320 HV_0.1 in the untreated condition increasing to about 1275HV_0.1 after nitriding 623 K (350 °C)/600 pa/4 hours. The extremely high values of the microhardness achieved by the great misfit-induced stress fields associated with the plenty of dislocation group and stacking fault. Dry-sliding wear resistance was improved by DC plasma nitriding. The best wear-resistance performance of a nitrided sample was obtained after nitriding at 673 K (350 °C), when the single α _N-phase was produced and there were no CrN precipitates in the nitrided layer.