Surface morphology and tribological behavior of AlSi10 alloys treated by plasma immersion ion implantation for automotive applications

Plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) was used to implant nitrogen into Al at a temperature in the range of 320–520 °C. AlN phase was observed for temperatures above 450 °C, whereas no AIN detected by XRD diagnosis at temperatures below 380 °C. It was also observed that there was no effective increase in hardness of the material, but some wear resistance due to formation of AlN.