Short-term Creep Properties and Fracture Surface of 18 Ni (300) Maraging Steel Plasma Nitrided

The surface microhardness reached 1,140 HV, producing 50 µm layer composed of ε-Fe3N and γ'-Fe4N nitrides at the uppermost sample layer. The inner core remained unaltered presenting typical plate-like martensite microstructure of maraging steels with average microhardness of 604 HV.

Surface RMS roughness in the nanometric scale increase from 52 nm to 71 nm. The continuous layer of iron nitrides seems to behave as a barrier for oxidation and for inward oxygen diffusion improving the creep resistance by reducing the steady-state creep rate (εs) in 52-65% when compared with the literature results. Dominant creep mechanism is controlled by dislocations climb.