Internationally renowned materials science magazine "Materials" (Acta
Materialia, 2006,54: 5599-5605) published by the Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics Prof. Xue team led by Professor Lv Jian France Troyes Technology University (now the latest results of the "Hong Kong Polytechnic University) cooperative research nano surface mechanical attrition Nitriding of the structure and properties "of AISI 321 stainless steel plasma.

    The study found that a surface mechanical attrition (SMAT) nano-alloy materials processing has extensive engineering applications - austenitic stainless steel, the surface modified layer of nanocrystalline structure. The results show that at low temperatures with a pulsed-DC glow plasma technology for stainless steel nitriding treatment, compared with samples not treated nano, nano treatment significantly enhanced the effect of nitriding of stainless steel, effectively reducing the nitriding temperature, obtained nitrided layer and higher surface hardness thick.

    At the same time, the surface of the nano pretreatment solution to shallow stainless steel nitrided layer, brittleness problem. 3-10 times improved wear resistance, load carrying capacity is also significantly improved. This is due to a rear surface of nano-temperature plasma nitriding, AISI
321 stainless steel surface to form a "S phase" and thicker nitrogen diffusion layer, improving surface hardness gradient distribution.

The study used a stainless steel engineering for the study, from the surface of the starting material of nano optimize the austenitic stainless steel plasma nitrided layer structure and performance. The results obtained not only show the nanostructure of low-temperature plasma nitriding has a decisive role, but also shows nano-technology in the field of engineering has an important value.