Treatment with a High-Temperature Pulsed Plasma and Laser Radiation for Die Steel Surface Layer Hardening

Comparative analysis is provided for features of structure and phase composition formation, hardness, roughness, and wear resistance of die steel 4Kh5MFS surface treated with a high-temperature pulsed plasma and laser radiation. It is established that after plasma treatment surface roughness Ra was 0.42–0.78 μm, and after laser treatment it was 1–1.17 μm. It is shown that after plasma treatment surface wear resistance is better than after laser treatment. Plasma treatment makes it possible to obtain surface hardness of the order of 840 HV that is 10% higher than after laser treatment. The data obtained indicate that pulsed sources of high-temperature plasma based on plasma accelerators may be considered as a promising tool for forming improved operating properties for a die steel 4Kh5MFS surface.