Structure-phase transformations in high-speed steel treated by compression plasma flow

The changes in the phase and element composition in the near-surface layer of high-speed AISI T1 steel after treatment with a nitrogen compression plasma flow are studied in this work. It was found that the treatment resulted in the partial dissolution of hardening carbides and the formation of γ-Fe phase. The nitrogen concentration is strongly dependent on the treatment parameters: the nitrogen pressure in the vacuum chamber and the number of impulses. The change in the phase composition led to a decrease in the friction coefficient and the microhardness.