Microstructure and Tribological Properties of Plasma Nitriding Cast CoCrMo Alloy

A medical cast CoCrMo alloy was coated by plasma nitriding process to enhance the wear resistance. The microstructures, phases and micro-hardness of nitrided layers were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and micro-hardness. Tribological properties were investigated on a pin-on-disc wear tester under 25% bovine serum solutions. The experimental results showed that plasma nitriding was a promising process to produce thick, hard and wear resistant layers on the surface of CoCrMo alloy. The harder CrN and Cr2N phases formed on the plasma nitrided layer with the compact nano-crystalline structure. Compared with the untreated sample, all nitrided samples showed the lower wear rates and higher wear resistance at different applied loads and nitriding temperatures. It was concluded that the improvement of wear resistance could be ascribed to the formation of thicker and harder nitrided layers with the specific microstructures on nitrided surfaces.