Friction and wear behaviour of implanted AISI 316L SS and comparison with a substrate

Ion implantation creates alterations in surface composition or morphology of solids which yield to a modification of physical and especially mechanical properties; such as hardness and modulus of elasticity. The aim of this study is to focus on the friction and wear behaviour of N2 and Zr implanted and TiN coated 316L stainless steel and compare with a substrate. Particularly, stainless steels were of interest, because they often display a poor tribological behaviour, which can be improved when they are hardened by incorporating N2, TiN and Zr and forming a hardened surface zone. The present implantations were shown to improve the friction coefficient as well as the wear resistance of the stainless steel surface.