Improving the empirical model for plasma nitrided AISI 316L corrosion resistance based on Mössbauer spectroscopy

Traditional plasma nitriding treatments using temperatures ranging from approximately 650 to 730 K can improve wear, corrosion resistance and surface hardness on stainless steels. The nitrided layer consists of some iron nitrides: the cubic γ′ phase (Fe4N), the hexagonal phase ε (Fe2 − 3N) and a nitrogen supersatured solid phase γN. An empirical model is proposed to explain the corrosion resistance of AISI 316L and ASTM F138 nitrided samples based on Mössbauer Spectroscopy results: the larger the ratio between ε and γ′ phase fractions of the sample, the better its resistance corrosion is. In this work, this model is examined using some new results of AISI 316L samples, nitrided under the same previous conditions of gas composition and temperature, but at different pressure, for 3, 4 and 5 h. The sample nitrided for 4 h, whose value for ε/γ′ is maximum (= 0.73), shows a slightly better response than the other two samples, nitrided for 5 and 3 h (ε/γ′ = 0.72 and 0.59, respectively). Moreover, these samples show very similar behavior. Therefore, this set of samples was not suitable to test the empirical model. However, the comparison between the present results of potentiodynamic polarization curves and those obtained previously at 4 and 4.5 torr, could indicated that the corrosion resistance of the sample which only presents the γN phase was the worst of them. Moreover, the empirical model seems not to be ready to explain the response to corrosion and it should be improved including the γN phase.