Nanocrystallization of aluminized surface of carbon steel for enhanced resistances to corrosion and corrosive wear

Aluminizing is often used to improve steel's resistances to corrosion, oxidation and wear. This article reports our recent attempts to further improve aluminized carbon steel through surface nanocrystallization for higher resistances to corrosion and corrosive wear. The surface nanocrystallization was achieved using a process combining sandblasting and recovery heat treatment. The entire surface modification process includes dipping carbon steel specimens into a molten Al pool to form an Al coat, subsequent diffusion treatment at elevated temperature to form an aluminized layer, sandblasting to generate dislocation network or cells, and recovery treatment to turn the dislocation cells into nano-sized grains. The grain size of the nanocrystallized aluminized surface layer was in the range of 20–100 nm. Electrochemical properties, electron work function (EWF), and corrosive wear of the nanocrystalline alloyed surfaces were investigated. It was demonstrated that the nanocrystalline aluminized surface of carbon steel exhibited improved resistances to corrosion, wear and corrosive wear. The passive film developed on the nanocrystallized aluminized surface was also evaluated in terms of its mechanical properties and adherence to the substrate.