Nitrogen recoil chromium implantation into SAE 1020 steel by means of ion beam or plasma immersion ion implantation

As an effort to improve the corrosion behavior of the mild steel under work conditions, we attempted to produce a high chromium content layer on its surface by applying the recoil implantation process. After polishing, SAE 1020 construction steel samples were covered with chromium and then bombarded with ions. As recoil bombarding atom, we used nitrogen, a light mass specimen. Recoil atoms were applied either by ion beam (IB) accelerator or by plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) method. Samples treated by the PIII process showed better results, presenting a thicker layer of high Cr content, as measured by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). esence of nitrogen, from hitting process, caused little effect on the surface hardness, as SAE 1020 steel is not suitable for nitriding hardening. Corrosion tests of the PIII-treated samples showed significant enhancement in the steel behaviour under chloride medium attack.