Roughness Reduction in AISI 316L Stainless Steel after Surface Mechanical Attrition Treatment (SMAT)

Abstract

Surface mechanical attrition treatment (SMAT) enhances the strength of metals by generating nanocrystallites at the surface layer. During the treatment, multiple impacts of milling balls are subjected to the treated surface. Consequently, the structure and roughness of the treated surface are also modified. In this paper, the effect of SMAT on the surface structure and roughness of an initially rough AISI 316L stainless steel is investigated. The SMAT was conducted for 0–20 minutes. The surface morphology, roughness, and volume loss due to the SMAT were studied. The result shows a decreasing roughness by the SMAT. An apparently deformed structure is also observed after 15 minutes of the treatment. However, no significant change in the volume loss is reported due to this treatment. Deformation by the multiple impacts is proposed to be the mechanism of the roughness reduction instead of microcutting by the milling balls during the SMAT.