Optimization of Surface Treatment of GrayIron with Atmospheric-Pressure Plasma Jet

In this study, for the first time to our knowledge, the effect of different operationalparameters of an argon atmospheric-pressure plasma jet (APPJ) onmicrostructure, hardness and wettability of grey cast iron is investigated. Thesamples were treated by three different methods of argon APPJ treatment tooptimize the operating conditions. For this purpose, the surface modification isexamined using analyzing techniques namely, water contact angle (WCA)measurements for the wettability, and a Brinell hardness tester for the hardnessmeasurements. The microstructures of the samples were studied by opticalmicroscopy as well. Experimental results show that the hardness of grey cast ironcan be enhanced significantly by increasing the gas flow rate and treatment timeof argon APPJ and were optimum at ۱۵ standard litter per minute (SLM) and ۱۵minute (min), respectively. Moreover, the APPJ nozzle-grey cast iron distancewas the most influencing parameter for reducing the intrinsic hydrophilicity of thegray cast and was optimum at ۲cm.

Keywords:

Gray iron , hardness , wettability , atmospheric-pressure plasma jet