Influence of layer substrate hardening on nitrided carbon steels on their tribological properties

Nitriding of carbon steels does not allow for adequate hardening of the substrate of layers and core required in some applications. Such hardening can be achieved by using further heat treatment. As a result of this heat treatment, the zone of nitrides vanishes and a nitro-carbon martensite structure is formed, additionally hardened by ageing. The carried out tribological tests have shown that subjecting nitrided carbon steel to further hardening treatment significantly improves its wear resistance in comparison to nitrided steel, and the zone of good wear resistance goes deeper.