Impact of Beam Deflection Geometry on the Surface Architecture and Mechanical Properties of Electron-Beam-Modified TC4 Titanium Alloy

This paper aims to investigate the impact of beam deflection geometry on the structure, surface architecture, and friction coefficient of electron-beam-modified TC4 titanium alloys. During the experiments, the electron beam was deflected in the form of different scanning geometries, namely linear, circular, and matrix. The structure of the treated specimens was investigated in terms of their phase composition by employing X-ray diffraction experiments. The microstructure was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The surface architecture was examined by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The friction coefficient was studied by a mechanical wear test. It was found that the linear and circular deflection geometries lead to a transformation of the phase composition, from double-phase α + β to α’ martensitic structure. The application of a linear manner of scanning leads to a residual amount of beta phase. The use of a matrix does not tend to structural changes on the surface of the TC4 alloy. In the case of linear geometry, the thickness of the modified zone is more than 800 μm while, in the case of EBSM using circular scanning, the thickness is about 160 μm. The electron-beam surface modification leads to a decrease in the surface roughness to about 27 nm in EBSM with linear deflection geometry and 31 nm in circular deflection geometry, compared to that of the pure TC4 substrate (about 160 nm). The electron-beam surface modification of the TC4 alloy leads to a decrease in the coefficient of friction (COF), with the lowest COF values obtained in the case of linear deflection geometry (0.32). The results obtained in this study show that beam deflection geometry has a significant effect on the surface roughness and friction coefficient of the treated surfaces. It was found that the application of a linear manner of scanning leads to the formation of a surface with the lowest roughness and friction coefficient.