Enhancing steel properties through in situ formation of ultrahard ceramic surface

Abrasion and corrosion resistant steel has attracted considerable interest for industrial application as a means of minimising the costs associated with product/component failures and/or short replacement cycles. These classes of steels contain alloying elements that increase their resistance to abrasion and corrosion. Their benefits, however, currently come at a potentially prohibitive cost; such high performance steel products are both more technically challenging and more expensive to produce. Although these methods have proven effective in improving the performance of more expensive, high-grade steel components, they are not economically viable for relatively low cost steel products. New options are needed. In this study, a complex industrial waste stream has been transformed in situ via precisely controlled high temperature reactions to produce an ultrahard ceramic surface on steel. This innovative ultrahard ceramic surface increases both the hardness and compressive strength of the steel. Furthermore, by modifying the composition of the waste input and the processing parameters, the ceramic surface can be effectively customised to match the intended application of the steel. This economical new approach marries industry demands for more cost-effective, durable steel products with global imperatives to address resource depletion and environmental degradation through the recovery of resources from waste.