SURFACE ENGINEERING

PR7891
 Introduction
An engineering component usually fails when its surface cannot
adequately withstand the external forces or environment to which
it is subjected.
The choice of a surface material with the appropriate thermal,
optical, magnetic and electrical properties and sufficient resistance
to wear, corrosion and degradation, is crucial to its functionality.
Sometimes technological progress and manufacturing efficiency
may be constrained solely by surface requirements. For example,
the fuel efficiency and power output of gas turbines or diesel
engines are limited by the ability of key components to withstand
high temperatures. 
Surface degradation is defined as loss of surface
material or functioning of the material which proceeds
gradually with the environmental exposure. The various
causes of surface degradation are,
 Wear

 Corrosion

 Fatigue

 Creep
Fatigue is the weakening of a material caused
by cyclic loading that results in progressive and
localized structural damage and the growth of
cracks. Most materials seem to experience
some sort of fatigue-related failure such as
metals, composites, plastics and ceramics…
Eg.Sudden failure of the metal railway axles
due to cyclic load.To predict the fatigue life of
a component, fatigue tests are carried out.
Fatigue testing is a specialised
form of mechanical testing that is performed b
y applying cyclic loading to a 
coupon
 or structure to measure the rate of crack growt
h. The resulting crack growth is averaged for cr
ack growth over thousand cycles.
 Creep
creep (sometimes called cold flow) is the
tendency of a solid material to move slowly or
deform permanently under the influence of
persistent mechanical stresses.
Creep is more severe in materials that are
subjected to heat for long periods and generally
increases as they near their melting point.
Depending on the magnitude of the applied
stress and its duration, the deformation may
become so large that a component can no
longer perform its function — for example
creep of a turbine blade will cause the blade to
contact the casing, resulting in the failure of
the blade.
Wear
 Wear is the damaging, gradual removal or deformation of material at solid
surfaces.
 The study of wear and related processes is referred to as tribology.
  Causes of wear can be mechanical (e.g., erosion) or chemical (e.g., 
corrosion).
 Erosive wear, commonly known as sand/silt erosion, is caused by impacts
of solid or liquid particles against the solid surface. These particles are
contained in the flow medium and possess very high kinetic energy that will
be sufficient to damage even metallic target surfaces.
 Corrosive Wear also known as oxidation or chemical wear, caused by
chemical and electrochemical reactions between the surface and the
environment.
 Types of wear
Adhesive wear
Adhesive wear is a phenomenon which occurs when two
metals rub together with sufficient force to cause the
removal of material from the less wear-resistant
surface.
 Abrasive wear
Abrasive wear, sometimes called cutting wear, occurs
when hard & sharp particles slide and roll under
pressure, across the material surface.
 Fretting wear
Fretting is wear that occurs as two or more materials are
repeatedly moved against one another under a load.
Vibration is one of the most common causes of fretting.
Corrosion
Corrosion is a natural process by which the gradual
destruction of materials (metals)occurs by chemical
and/or electrochemical reaction with their
environment.
Dry corrosion-chemical corrosion
It is due to the direct chemical attack of metal surfaces
by the atmospheric gases..(oxygen, oxides of sulphur,
oxides of nitrogen, hydrogen sulphide, halogens..)
Oxidation corrosion is the direct attack of oxygen gas
on the metal surface in the absence of moisture.
 Metal + Oxygen Metal oxide (corrosion product)
Alkali metals (Li , Na, K.. ) & alkaline earth metals
(Mg, Ca, Sr..) are rapidly oxidised at low temperature.
At high temperature almost all metals (except Au, Pt,
Ag) are oxidised.
Dry corrosion on metal surface can takes place by the attack of other gases also, eg., Decarburisation
Liquid metal corrosion
Wet corrosion- Electrochemical corrosion
This type of corrosion involves movement of electrons from metal surface anodic area
to cathodic area through a conducting solution
 Galvanic corrosion-bimetallic corrosion
Galvanic corrosion takes place when two different
metals like Zn & Cu are in contact and jointly exposed
to corrosive environment.
Eg... Steel screws in brass marine hardware.
 steel propellar shaft in bronze bearing
 steel pipe connected to copper plumbing.
The difference in reduction potential
of the metal forms the basis of galvanic
corrosion.
The metal having the lower reduction
potential acts as anode, undergoes
oxidation and get corroded.
Corrosion occurs at the anodic part
while cathodic part is protected.
Concentration cell corrosion
It is due to the electrochemical attack on the metal
surface, exposed to an electrolyte of varying
concentrations or of varying aeration.
It occurs when one part of the metal is exposed to a
different air concentration from the other part. This
causes a difference in potential between differently
aerated parts.
Eg., metal part immersed in water or in conducting
liquid is called water line corrosion.
 The metal part partially immersed in soil.
Corrosion occurs

protected
Intergranular corrosion
Intergranular corrosion occurs when
the grain boundaries of the metal acts
as anode and the interior of the metal
as cathode.
This type of corrosion is highly
prevalent in stainless steel and it also
seen in other metals.
In stainless steel , the problem occurs
when the material is heated between
420 to 850oC (eg.during welding.)
During heat treatment , chromium in
stainless steel reacts with carbon and
get precipitated as chromium carbide.
As a result the grain boundaries are
depleted of chromium and become
more sensitive and more susceptible to
intergranular corrosion.
This process is often termed as weld
decay.
Intergrannular corrosion of an alloy may be caused by,
 Impurities at the grain boundaries
 Enrichment of one of the alloying elements
 Depletion of one of the alloying elements.
Prevention
 Use low carbon grade of stainless steel (304L ,316L)
 Use stabilised grades alloyed with titanium(321) , niobium (347).
Titanium and niobium are strong carbide formers.They react with
carbon and forms their respective carbides, thereby preventing
depletion of chromium.
 Use post-weld heat treatment.
Pitting corrosion
Pitting corrosion
Pitting corrosion is a localized form of corrosion by
which cavities or "holes" are produced in the material.
Pitting is considered to be more dangerous than
uniform corrosion damage because it is more difficult
to detect, predict and design against.
 Corrosion products often cover the pits. A small,
narrow pit with minimal overall metal loss can lead to
the failure of an entire engineering system
Pitting corrosion
Localised physical or mechanical damage on the material
surface.
Low dissolved oxygen concentration, which makes the
protective oxide film less stable.
High concentration of chloride in sea water.
Poor application of protective coating
 The presence of non-uniformities in the metal structure
of the component, e.g. nonmetallic inclusions
 Passivity
 Some normally active metals and alloys, under particular environmental
conditions, lose their chemical reactivity and become extremely inert.This
phenomenon is termed as passivity, is displayed by chromium, iron , nickel,
titanium and other alloys.
 It is felt that this passive behaviour results from the formation of highly
adherent and very thin oxide film on the metal surface which serves as a
protective barrier to further corrosion.
 For eg, Aluminium , stainless steels are highly corrosion resistive in many
environmental conditions because of their passive behavior.
 If damaged, the protective film normally reforms very rapidly.
 however, a change in character of the environment ( alteration in the
concentration of active corrosive species) may cause a passivated material to
revert to its activated state. subsequent damage to the pre-existing passive
film could result in a substantial increase in a corrosion rate, by as much as
100, 000 times.
Passivity although difficult to
define , can be understood by
analysing the characteristics of
metals.
 Let us consider a normal metal
(does not show passivity) dipped
in a acid free solution with the
oxidising power corresponds to
A and a corrosion rate
corresponds to this point.
If the oxidising power of the solution is increased by
adding oxygen or ferric ions , the corrosion rate of the
matal increases rapidly. Hence for these metals the
corrosion rate increases with the increase in oxidising
power of the solution. (Linear curve).
 The behaviour of the metal or alloy which shows
passivity is shown in fig 2.8,
 These metals or alloys are divided into three regions,
Active , Passive and Transpassive regions.
 In the active region , the behaviour is similar to that of
normal metals. i.e, with the increase in oxidising power
of the solution corrosion rate increases.
 If more oxidising agent is added, there is a sudden
drop in corrosion rate, this corresponds to the
beginning of passive region.
 Further increase in oxidising agent will produce a little
or no effect in corrosion. i.e, the material is passive
( inert)
 Finally in the presence of high concentration of
oxidisers or powerfull oxidisers , the corrosion rate
again increases at high rate - Transpassive region.
It is important to note the during the transition from
active to passive, a 103 to 10 6 reduction is usually observed.
 The reason for this behaviour of passivity by certain metals
or alloys is due to the formation of surface film or protective
barrier that is stable over a considerable range of oxidising
agents and eventually destroyed in strong oxidising solutions.
 To summarise , the metals showing active - passive
transitions become passive or corrosion resistant in
moderately to strong oxidising environments.
Under extremely strong oxidising conditions, these
materials lose their corrosion resistant properties.
 These characteristics have been used to develop new
methods for preventing corrosion and to predict
corrosion resistance.
Corrosion control
Five different main principles can be used to prevent
corrosion:
1. Appropriate materials selection
2. Change of environment
3. Suitable design
4. Electrochemical, i.e. cathodic and anodic
protection
5. Application of coatings
Materials Selection
When selecting materials, each component must be
considered with respect to design, manufacture and its
effect on the total geometry.

However, it is also important that the materials (screws,

bolts..)in adjacent components are compatible. With
regard to corrosion, compatibility often means that
detrimental galvanic elements must be avoided
Not only the main structural materials, but also
insulation and other secondary materials must be taken
into account to prevent galvanic corrosion.
The most common method of preventing corrosion is
the selection of metal or alloy for a particular service.
For e.g., Stainless steel shows excellent corrosion
resistance to nitric acid environments.
Tin or tin coatings are used as containers or in piping
lines for distilled water. Since tantalum ( tin )
materials are the excellent corrosion resistant
materials even in acid or alkaline conditions, they are
used as implants in human body,
The following combination of metal and corrosive environment shows
maximum amount of corrosion resistance,
Nitric acid- Stainless steels
Caustic solutions- Nickel and nickel alloys
Hydrofluoric acid- Monel
Hot hydrochloric acid -Hastelloys (Chlorimets)
Dilute sulphuric acid- Lead
Non-staining atmospheric exposure- Aluminium
Distilled water- Tin
Hot, strongly oxidizing solutions- Titanium
Ultimate resistance- Tantalum
Concentrated sulphuric acid- Steel
Alteration of environment
Altering environment provides the versatile means of
reducing corrosion. Typical changes in medium often
employed are,
Lowering the temperature
Decreasing the corrosion velocity
Removing the oxygen or oxidisers
Changing the concentration of corrosive agents.
 Cathodic protection

The principles of cathodic protection can be explained by

considering the corrosion of a typical metal M in an acid
environment.
M -> M n+ + ne- ( metal dissolution)
2H+ + 2e-  H2 ( Hydrogen evolution)
From the reaction it is clear that cathodic protection
can be achieved by supplying electrons to the metal
structure .
Mn+ + ne- -> M
As a result metal ions are reduced to metal i.e , metal
dissolution is prevented.
There are two ways to cathodically protect a metal
structure,
 By an external power supply ( impressed current
 By appropriate galvanic coupling
Cathodic protection by impressed current
Here an external Dc power
supply is connected to the
underground tank, i,e, the
negative terminal is connected
to the tank (metal structure to
be protected ) and positive
terminal is connected to the
inert electrode ( graphite ). As
the current passest to the metal
structure it is prevented from
corrosion.

Anode – oxidation occurs

( active towards corrosion )
Cathode – Reduction occurs
( passive towards corrosion )
 Cathodic protection- by Galvanic coupling
The principle of cathodic
protection is by connecting an
external anode to the metal
structure to be protected.
The selection of anode metal
should be based on the metal
activity series(electrochemical
series ). The chosen anode is
called Sacrificial anode. Since
it get corroded and protects the
metal surface. Commonly used
sacrificial anodes – Zinc,
magnesium, aluminium alloy..

Metal with high oxidation

potential acts as anode
Metal with less oxidation
potential acts as cathode
Applications
Cathodic protection is used in,
 Protection of steel in seawater or soil
 oil platforms in steel and concrete
 subsea pipelines
 Concrete bridges placed in seawater
 Pipelines burried in soil
 vessels / tanks burried in soil
Corrosion control – Anodic protection
Here the metal surface is protected from corrosion by making
it as anode and controlling its electrode potential at which it is
passive.
Hence this technique is applicable to only to metals showing
active – passive behaviour.
The metal structure is maintained at constant electrode
potential by using a potentiostat. The potentiostat shift the
potential of the metal from corrosive to passive state, hence
corrosion is prevented.
This method is extensively applied to protect equipments used
to store and handle suphuric acid.
INHIBITORS
An inhibitor is a substance that, when added in small
concentrations to an environment, decreases the
corrosion rate
 Types

 Adsorption- type inhibitors

 Hydrogen – evolution poisons

 Scavengers

 Oxidizers

 Vapor – phase inhibitors

Adsorption- type inhibitors
These are organic compounds which adsorb on the
metal surface and suppress the metal dissolution.
In most cases they also affect both the cathodic and
anodic process on the metal surface.
Examples.. Organic amines
Hydrogen- evolution poisons
These substances such as Arsenic and Antimony ions,
specially retard the hydrogen-evolution reaction.
Thus they are very effective in acid solutions but
ineffective in other corrosive environments like oxygen
reduction.
Scavengers
Thesee substances removes corrosive reagents from
the solution. For example sodium sulfite and
hydrazine removes dissolved oxygen from solutions.
 2Na2SO3 + O2 ---------> 2Na2SO4
 N2H4 + O2 ---------> N2 + 2H2O
These kind of inhibitors are effective in solutions where oxygen
reduction is the controlling corrosion cathodic reaction, but
will not be effective in strong acid solutions
OXIDIZERS
Substances such as chromate, nitrate and ferric salts
also act as inhibitors in many systems.
In general, they are primarily used to inhibit the
corrosion of metals and alloys that demonstrate active-
passive transitions, such as iron and its alloys and
stainless steel.
Vapor-phase inhibitors
These are very similar to the organic adsorption type
inhibitors and possess very high vapor pressure.
Hence they are used to inhibit atmospheric corrosion of
metals without being placed in direct contact with the
metal surface.
These are placed in the vicinity of the metal to be
protected and transferred by sublimation and
condensation to the metal surface.
The vapor phase inhibitors are usually effective only in
closed spaces such as packages or on the interior of
machinery during shipment.
Limitations
Although they had a great advantage of preventing
corrosion, it is not be possible to add inhibitors to all
corrosive systems, because they may contaminate the
environment
Further many inhibitors are toxic, and their application is
limited to those mediums related to food products.
E.g.. Arsenic salts, which exhibit powerful corrosion
inhibition in strong acids have limited application for this
reason.
Also inhibitors lose their effectiveness as the concentration
and temperature of the environment increase.
Coatings
Relatively thin coatings of metallic and inorganic
materials acts as a barrier between the metal surface
and corrosive environments. E.g., nickel plating,
chrome plating, paints , varnishes etc..
 Friction
Friction is a resistance force that slows down or prevents the motion of
an object over a surface. Since it causes material loss at the surface, and
produces heat , everyone try to eliminate it but it actually has important
uses.
We can able to walk due to the frictional force between our shoes and
ground.
 Also we can able to hold things by the frictional force between hand
and things.
Vehicles can move and stop because of the friction of brakes and tyres.
Train can run on the rail track due to the frictional force.
Airplanes can fly and move in the air because of friction in the called
air resistance.
Lubricants
A lubricant is a substance ( organic substance ) used to reduce
friction and wear between surfaces in mutual contact. The
property of reducing friction is known as lubricity.
The functions of lubricants are,
 It reduces friction and wear
 It removes or eliminates the dust particles or foreign particles on the
machine parts.
 It removes the heat generated during friction i.e, it acts as coolant.
 It acts as a protective cover against corrosion.
 It resist the mechanical shock
 In bioapplications on humans i.e, lubricants for artificial joints.
 In ultrsound examination and medical examination on humans.
 Types of lubricants
Oils
 Mineral oils like crude oil, petroleum fractions and silicones along with additives
( anti-oxidants, corrosion inhibitors and detergents ) are used in lubricating bearings ,
tool maintenence, sharpening blades etc..
Greases
 Greases are made by mixing mineral oil with thickeners like lithium based soaps. They
are used in lubricating gears , bearings , chains and linkages.
Penetrating lubricants
 Penetraning lubricants ( mixture of vegetable oil and acetone) are used for loosening
year back rust and debris in minute machine parts like screw threads , bolts etc..
Dry lubricants
 Dry lubricants ( graphite, molybdenum disulphide, silicone, polytetrafluro ethylene
etc..) are super slippery , hence they are used to reduce friction in 3d printer , locks,
hinges, theraded rods etc..