Characterization of ultrasonically peened and laser-shock peened surface layers of AISI 321 stainless steel

The effects of ultrasonic impact peening (UIP) and laser-shock peening (LSP) without protective and confining media on microstructure, phase composition, microhardness and residual stresses in near-surface layers of an austenitic stainless steel AISI 321 are studied. An X-ray diffraction analysis shows both significant lines broadening and formation of strain-induced ε- and α-martensite after UIP with additional peaks found near austenite ones in the low-angle part after LSP supposedly due to formation of a dislocation-cell structure in the surface layer. TEM studies demonstrate that a nano-grain structure containing either only austenitic grains with ε-martensite (at strains up to 0.42) or both austenite and α-martensite grains (at higher strains) can form in the surface layer after UIP. Highly tangled and dense dislocation arrangements and even cell structures in fully austenitic grains are revealed both at the surface after LSP and in the layer at a depth of 80 μm after UIP. UIP is found to produce a sub-surface layer 10 times thicker and about 1.4 times harder than that formed by LSP. A mechanism of formation of the dislocation-cell structure in such steels (with a low stacking fault energy) is discussed. A nucleation process of α-martensite is discussed with respect to strain, strain rate, local heating and mechanical energy accumulated/applied to the surface layer under conditions of UIP and the LSP and compared to literature data for different loading schemes.