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www.jmrt.com.br

Original Article

Influence of plasma nitriding pressure on

microabrasive wear resistance of a microalloyed
steel

Henver Effgen Ludovico Ramos, Adonias Ribeiro Franco Jr. ∗ , Estéfano Aparecido Vieira
Coordenadoria de Metalurgia, Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo (IFES), Campus Vitória, Avenida
Vitória, 1729, Zip Code: 29040-780, Vitória, ES, Brazil

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Microalloyed steels have been studied not only by the advent of the pre-salt, but also by
Received 9 February 2018 the continuous search for improvement of their tribological properties. In this work, the
Accepted 31 July 2018 influence of the plasma nitriding (PN) pressure on the nitrided layer formed on top of an
Available online xxx API 5L X70 microalloyed steel was studied. PN treatments were carried out using a pulsed
plasma reactor at temperatures of 410 ◦ C and 440 ◦ C, in a gas mixture of N2 and H2 , for 3 h
Keywords: and under different pressures. Results showed that the pressure has a significant effect on
Plasma nitriding the uniformity and width of the plasma sheath and, consequently, on the structure and
API 5L X70 microalloyed steel thickness of the resulting nitrided layer. It has been observed that higher pressures and
Pressure temperatures have led to the formation of nitrided layers containing a thinner white layer
Plasma sheath and without nitride needles. The best wear results were offered by the thicker nitrided layers,
Micro-abrasive wear resistance besides thinner white layer. This type of structure can be produced when PN treatments are
performed using low-width plasma sheaths.
© 2018 Brazilian Metallurgical, Materials and Mining Association. Published by Elsevier
Editora Ltda. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

transport pipelines, where abrasive wear resistance is very

1. Introduction important.
A combination of good mechanical strength and toughness
The growing demand for natural gas as an environmentally
is obtained through a suitable thermo-mechanical processing,
clean source of energy has stimulated, in recent years, the
enabling the formation of acicular ferrite in the material struc-
search of new technologies and/or new materials, or the
ture [2,3]. Plasma nitriding (PN) is a good choice to increase
improvement of existing technologies. Microalloyed steels
the fatigue life, wear and corrosion resistance of microalloyed
have gained special attention due to the increasing use in
steels without changing the properties of the material in the
long transport lines of high pressure gases and with the
core [4–6]. Recently, PN also has been applied for improving
advent of the pre-salt, where they can be exposed to corrosive
wear resistance of non-ferrous metals such as titanium, alu-
environments [1]. These steels can also be applied to ore
minium and their alloys [6,7].
Due to the costly process and some technological difficul-
∗ ties, industrial ascension of the PN process began only in the
Corresponding author.
E-mail: adonias@ifes.edu.br (A.R. Franco Jr.). mid-1960s, with the evolution of vacuum technology, as well
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2018.07.025
2238-7854/© 2018 Brazilian Metallurgical, Materials and Mining Association. Published by Elsevier Editora Ltda. This is an open access
article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Please cite this article in press as: Ramos HE, et al. Influence of plasma nitriding pressure on microabrasive wear resistance of a microalloyed
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as the development of electronic devices. Unlike the gaseous
and liquid processes, the generation of hazardous waste is
mitigated in the PN process, because treatment atmosphere
uses small amounts of nitrogen and hydrogen, in addition to
reduced processing time and greater control over the growth
of the nitrided layer [7–10].
A gas atmosphere, usually consisting of nitrogen and
hydrogen, or cracked ammonia, at pressures between 1 and
10 Torr, is used in the PN process. The ions generated by the
potential difference between the anode (chamber) and the
cathode (part) are accelerated against the surface, allowing
the formation of atomic nitrogen that diffuses from surface
towards the core of the part, resulting in the formation of a
hardened layer [11].
Although the pressure is an important parameter in the PN
process, there is a lack of work in the literature reporting its
effect on the properties of steels [12,13]. The objective of this
work was to evaluate the influence of different PN pressures
on the thickness and structures of the nitrided layer produced
on the API 5L X70 microalloyed steel surface.
2.3. Microstructural characterization and phase
identification
After PN treatments, samples were cross-sectioned using a
low speed cutting machine and then assembled into Bakelite,
grounded and polished. The microstructures of the nitrided
layers were revealed by etching in 2% Nital (2 ml of HNO3 and
98 ml of ethanol) during 5 s. A Zeiss scanning electron micro-
scope (SEM), model EVO MA10, was used for microstructural
characterization of the nitrided layers and the formed phases
were identified using a Bruker diffractometer, model D2phaser.
2.4. Vickers hardness test
To determine the hardness profiles of the nitrided layers, Vick-
ers hardness tests were performed using a Shimadzu DUH-211S
dynamic ultra-microhardness tester. All measurements were
made in the cross section of the samples, starting from the
nitrided surface towards the core of the material. Indentations
were performed at spacings of 25, 50, 100, 150 and 200 ␮m, with
a test load of 500 mN, for 20 s.

2. Materials and methods

2.5. Micro-scale abrasive wear test

2.1. Material
Samples 3 cm long, 2 cm wide and 4 mm thick were cut from
an API 5L X70 microalloyed steel pipeline [14]. The microstruc-
ture is composed of bands of pearlite in a ferrite matrix, and
its grain size is ASTM no. 10. Previously to PN, samples were
grounded and polished using 1.0 ␮m alumina.
2.2. Plasma nitriding
PN treatments were conducted in a pulsed plasma reactor,
named SDS soluções mod Thor NP 500. Prior to nitriding, the
samples were cleaned by cathodic sputtering at 150 ◦ C and
1 Torr under H2 atmosphere for 30 min. For PN treatments,
the following conditions were used: temperatures of 410 and
440 ◦ C, in the interval of 3 h, in gas atmosphere composed of
20% of H2 and 80% of N2 , with a flow-rate of 400 sccm and dif-
ferent pressures of nitriding, as shown in Table 1. After the
treatments all the samples were cooled to room temperature
under vacuum pressure.
Wear tests were performed using a CSM CALOWEAR “free ball”
micro-abrasion apparatus with a 25.4 mm diameter AISI 52100
martensitic steel ball. The rotation of the drive shaft, which
causes the sphere to move, was set at 150 rpm, the applied load
was 0.27 N and the abrasive slurry was made of silicon carbide
(SiC), with particles of size of about 5 ␮m at a concentration
of 0.75 g/cm3 (75 g of SiC dissolved in 100 ml of distilled water)
and with approximately 24 drops per minute.
The wear coefficient (K) were established using Eq. (1)
(Archard equation) [15,16]:
V
K= (1)
LFN
where V is the volume of worn material, FN is the normal
force applied to the surface of the sphere and L is the sliding
distance.
The values for the wear coefficient were obtained when
steady-state wear regime was reached.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Substrate characterization

As shown in Fig. 1, the microstructure of non-nitrided API

Table 1 – Conditions used for PN experiments.
Experiment # Pressure (Torr)
1 2.5
2 3.9
3 4.6
4 2.5
5 3.9
6 4.6
5L X70 microalloyed steel consisted of ferrite, evidenced by
the X-ray result, and banded pearlite. The average hardness
Temperature (◦ C)
measured was 240 ± 34 HV. This microstructure is in agree-
ment with the expected one, because the tube material is a
410 controlled-rolled steel [17,18]. Ferrite microstructures are not
recommended for nitriding, because this phase promotes the
rapid formation of nitrides at the beginning of the process, cre-
440 ating a barrier to the diffusion of the nitrogen atoms, resulting
in low depths of nitrided layers [19–22]. Recent works, how-
ever, had reported that PN treatment can improve the wear

Please cite this article in press as: Ramos HE, et al. Influence of plasma nitriding pressure on microabrasive wear resistance of a microalloyed
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10.0

Wear coefficient, K (10-13 m2/N)

9.5

9.0

8.5

8.0 API 5L X70

7.5

7.0 2.5 Torr

6.5 3.9 Torr

4.6 Torr
6.0

100 150 200 250 300 350 400

Sliding distance (m)
100 μm
Fig. 3 – Variation of wear coefficient (K) as a function of
α sliding distance for API 5L X70 microalloyed steel nitrided
Intensity (a.c)

at 410 ◦ C and pressures of 2.5–4.6 Torr.

α α
20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
2θ (deg)

3.2. Microstructure and wear resistance of the steel

Fig. 1 – Microstructure of API-5L X70 microalloyed steel
plasma nitrided at 410 ◦ C
before PN treatments.

The wear coefficient as a function of the sliding distance for

10.0 the API 5L X70 microalloyed steel nitrided at temperature of
410 ◦ C and different pressures is shown in Fig. 3. It is veri-
Wear coefficient, K (10-13 m2/N)

9.5
9.0
8.5
8.0
7.5
100 150
Fig. 2 – Microabrasive wear coefficient as a function of the
sliding distance for API 5L X70 microalloyed steel before PN
treatments.
resistance of ferrite steels and, consequently, their lifespan
[23,24].
Fig. 2 shows the variation in wear coefficient as a function
of the sliding distance for API steel before PN experi-
ments. After about 300 m, the wear coefficient, K, reaches
the steady-state wear regime with an approximated value of
7.9 × 10−13 m2 /N.
The measured values for the wear coefficient are affected
by the test parameters, such as the applied load, the vol-
umetric fraction of the abrasive slurry, the abrasive type,
the diameter and the condition of the surface of the used
sphere [25–27]. Therefore, comparisons with results reported
in the literature must be established considering above-
mentioned experimental conditions, being necessary to check
whether the tests were performed using the same or similar
parameters.
fied that the steady-state wear regime occurs when sliding
distances between 250 and 300 m are used.
PN promoted a significant reduction in the wear coefficient
of the steel, as inferred in Fig. 3. Increasing pressures led to a
decrease in the wear coefficient and the best result was found
when a pressure of 4.6 Torr is used. In this case, the value
for K is near 6.4 × 10−13 m2 /N, which is equivalent to a reduc-
tion of about 21.5%. This suggests that improvements in wear
resistance when PN treatments are performed at 410 ◦ C may
200 250 300 350 400 be associated with the structure and hardness of the nitrided
layer.
Sliding distance (m)
Fig. 4 shows the results of XRD and the microstructures of
the nitrided layers formed at 410 ◦ C and different PN pressures.
All the nitrided layers formed are basically ␥ -Fe4 N iron nitride
type (Fig. 4a). At lower pressure (2.5 Torr), ␥ nitride presents
diffraction peaks with lower intensity due to smaller thickness
of white layer (Fig. 4b). At the pressures of 3.9 and 4.5 Torr, the
nitrided layers consist not only of iron nitride type ␥ -Fe4 N, but
also of iron nitride type ␧-Fe2–3 N, which has a higher concen-
tration of nitrogen than the first.
When Fig. 4b is compared with Fig. 4c and d, in addition to
the formation of nitride needles, it can be seen that increasing
pressures led to the thickening of the white layer
Grün and Günther [28] reported that the width of the
cathodic sheath that is formed around the surface of the sam-
ple is strongly affected by the pressure. Low-sheaths have
a high atomic nitrogen density than high-sheaths and the
first type covers the entire surface of the sample, resulting in
nitrided layers with better uniformity and greater thickness
[29,30].
Therefore, the less the pressure is, lower and more uni-
form is the plasma sheath and, consequently, greater is the
thickness of white layer.

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4.6 Torr

3.9 Torr White layer

Inrensity (a.c)
2.5 Torr
Nitride needle

API 5L X70
b
2 μm*
40 60 80
a 2θ (deg)

c d
2 μm* 2 μm*

Fig. 4 – XRD (a) and microstructures of API 5L X70 microalloyed steel after PN at 410 ◦ C under pressures of 2.5 Torr (b),
3.9 Torr (c), and 4.6 Torr (d).

10.0 and ␧-Fe2–3 N. These results keep a similarity with those

reported for PN treatment conducted at 410 ◦ C (Fig. 4a). How-
Wear coefficient, K (10-13 m2/N)

9.5

9.0 ever, as shown in Fig. 6b–d, the microstructures of the nitrided

8.5 layers produced at 440 ◦ C are quite different from those pro-
8.0 duced at 410 ◦ C (Fig. 4b–d.
API 5L X70
7.5 At 440 ◦ C, no nitride needles were found in the structure
7.0 of the nitrided layer. Additionally, different from 410 ◦ C, the
6.5
3.9 Torr thicknesses of the white layers, which have a high uniformity,
6.0 2.5 Torr do not grow proportionally with the increase in pressure. The
5.5
white layer produced at 3.9 Torr is about twice as thick as that
4.6 Torr
produced at 4.6 Torr, which in turn has practically the same
5.0
100 150 200 250 300 350 400 thickness as that produced at 2.5 Torr. However, the nitrided
Sliding distance (m)
layer produced at 3.9 Torr and 440 ◦ C shows the best result of
wear resistance, suggesting that the improvement is not asso-
Fig. 5 – Variation of wear coefficient (K) as a function of ciated with the increase in the thickness of the white layer.
sliding distance for API 5L X70 microalloyed steel nitrided
at 440 ◦ C and pressures of 2.5–4.6 Torr.
3.4. Surface hardness and hardness profiles of the
nitrided layers

3.3. Microstructure and wear resistance of the steel Fig. 7 shows the hardness profiles for nitrided layers produced
plasma nitrided at 440 ◦ C at 410 ◦ C and 440 ◦ C, and different nitriding pressures.
From these hardness profiles, one can verify that nitrided
Fig. 5 shows the wear coefficient as a function of sliding layers produced at 440 ◦ C and pressures of 3.9 and 4.6 Torr have
distance for API 5L X70 microalloyed steel nitrided at tem- not only higher surface hardness but also are deeper or thicker
peratures of 440 ◦ C and different pressures. Similar to the than those produced at 410 ◦ C.
observed PN treatments at 410 ◦ C, significant reductions in the Higher values for diffusion coefficient of nitrogen at 440 ◦ C
wear coefficient were obtained and the best result for K (about than at 410 ◦ C can explain the greater depths found for nitrided
5.5 × 10−13 m2 /N) is obtained when using a pressure of 4.6 Torr. layers obtained at 440 ◦ C.
Fig. 6 shows the results of XRD and the microstructures of The best wear resistance (5.5 × 10−13 m2 /N) is presented by
the nitrided layers formed at 440 ◦ C and different PN pressures. the layer produced at 440 ◦ C and 4.6 Torr. Although the layer
Fig. 6a suggests that the white layers produced at low produced at 440 ◦ C and 3.9 Torr is as hard and deep as that
pressure (2.5 Torr) are single phased, consisting of ␥ -Fe4 N produced at 4.6 Torr, it exhibits a low wear resistance. This
type iron nitrides, whereas those produced at 3.9 and 4.6 Torr indicates that the wear resistance behaviour is associated not
are dual phased, consisting of iron nitrides type ␥ -Fe4 N only with the surface hardness and thickness of the nitrided

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4.6 Torr

3.5 μm
3.9 Torr
White layer

Inrensity (a.c) 2.5 Torr

API 5L X70

b
2 μm*
a 40 60 80
2θ (deg)

3.4 μm

7.1 μm

c d
2 μm* 2 μm*

Fig. 6 – XRD (a) and microstructures of API 5L X70 microalloyed steel after PN at 440 ◦ C under pressures of 2.5 Torr (b),
3.9 Torr (c), and 4.6 Torr (d).

950 2.5 Torr - 7.1 m2/N Plasma sheath

900 3.9 Torr - 6.5 m2/N
410 ºC
850 4.6 Torr - 6.2 m2/N 410 ºC 410 ºC 410 ºC
800 API 5L X70 - 7.9 m2/N 2.5 Torr 3.9 Torr 4.6 Torr
Hardness HV0.1 (kgf/mm2)

750 2.5 Torr - 6.1 m2/N

700
440 ºC 3.9 Torr - 6.7 m2/N
650 4.6 Torr - 5.5 m2/N
600
550 440 ºC 440 ºC 440 ºC
500 2.5 Torr 3.9 Torr 4.6 Torr
450
400
350
300
250
P

0 50 100 150 200

Depth (μm) Fig. 8 – Schematic illustration showing the effect of

pressure both on the width and the coating of the cathodic
Fig. 7 – Hardness profiles for the nitrided layers formed at sheaths formed around the samples during the PN
410 ◦ C and 440 ◦ C and different pressures. treatments performed at 410 ◦ C and 440 ◦ C.

layer, but also with the presence of the white layer in the or polyphased. During the formation of these layers, tensile
nitrided layer structure. stresses are generated, resulting in cracks and increased worn
As shown in Fig. 6c, the white layer on the sample nitrided volume.
at 440 ◦ C and 3.9 Torr is about twice as thick as that pro-
duced at 440 ◦ C and 2.5 Torr (Fig. 6b), or at 440 ◦ C and 4.6 Torr 3.5. Uniformity and width of the plasma sheath
(Fig. 6d). Therefore, the layer produced at 440 ◦ C and 3.9 Torr
has low wear resistance due to a high thickness of white Built based on visual observations during the PN treatments
layer. The behaviour fairly agrees with what has been reported carried out in this work, Fig. 8 shows schematically the
by several works in the literature; on the one hand showed effect of pressure on the width and the uniformity of the
that wear resistance is increased with thickening of the cathodic sheaths formed around the samples during the PN
nitrided layer (diffusion zone) and, on the other hand, is treatments.
decreased with thickening of the white layer [19–23]. Gener- As one can see, for both temperatures, pressure can affect
ally, these papers argue that the white layers are hard, but the characteristics of the plasma sheath that forms around
brittle, and are more easily detached when they are dual the samples. The use of high pressures led to the generation of

Please cite this article in press as: Ramos HE, et al. Influence of plasma nitriding pressure on microabrasive wear resistance of a microalloyed
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cathodic sheaths that have low width and dark purple coloura-
tion, while low pressures allow to form high width sheaths but
with light purple colouration. According to Collins and Tendys
[29], the low width sheaths are characterized by high density
of atomic nitrogen and, consequently, the resulting nitrided
layers are thicker.
Grün and Günther [28] demonstrated the importance of
pressure in controlling the PN process. Very low pressures
have allowed the formation of a wide width and wide-spread
plasma sheath. As a result, the process temperature is not
reached and the growth of the nitrided layer is impaired.
Likewise, very high pressures can hinder the development of
the nitrided layer due to covered problems, since the plasma
sheath becomes very thin.
Fig. 8 also shows that the effect of pressure is more
significant at 440 ◦ C than 410 ◦ C. At 4.6 Torr, the plasma
sheath is very thin and in some regions of the sam-
ple surface, coating becomes so poor that the plasma
can be extinguished (switched off). As a result, PN treat-
ments are impossible to execute when trying to use high
pressures.
The non-uniformity of the plasma sheath, therefore, jus-
tifies a low thickness of the white layer obtained at 4.6 Torr
and 440 ◦ C which is practically the same as that produced at
2.5 Torr and 440 ◦ C.
4. Conclusions
The following conclusions can be drawn after the PN treat-
ments of API 5L X70 steel performed at different working
pressures:
– All PN conditions used in this work improved wear resis-
tance compared with non-nitrided steel.
– The uniformity and width of the plasma sheath have a pri-
mary effect on the structure and thickness of the formed
nitrided layers and, consequently, the wear resistance of the
steel.
– Treatments performed at high pressures led to the gener-
ation of plasma sheaths characterized by low width and
a dark purple staining, whilst low pressures produce high
width plasma sheaths and light purple staining.
– The treatments performed with higher pressures and tem-
peratures, consequently with more uniform plasma sheath
and smaller width, offer the best wear resistance result.
In this case, the nitrided layer formed has a thinner white
layer, is more uniform and deeper, although it consists of
dual phase nitrides.
Conflicts of interest
The authors are gratefully acknowledges the FINEP, CAPES,
CNPq and FAPES (Brazilian Research Funding Agencies) for
financial support.
Please cite this article in press as: Ramos HE, et al. Influence of plasma nitriding pressure on microabrasive wear resistance of a microalloyed
steel. J Mater Res Technol. 2018. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2018.07.025
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledged the Fundação de Amparo
à Pesquisa do Espírito Santo, FAPES, for financial support.
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