**5. References**

El-Magd, E. & Dünnwald, J. (1996). Influence of constitution on the high-temperature creep behavior of AlCuMg alloy. *Metallkunde*, Vol.506, pp.411-414

Hirth, J.P. & Lothe, J. (1968). Theory of dislocations. McGraw-Hill, New York-London Martin, J.W. Preciptation Hardening. (1968). Pergamon Press, Oxford

Mrówka-Nowotnik, G., Wierzbińska, M., & Sieniawski J. Analysis of intermetallic particles in AlSi1MgMn aluminium alloy. (2007). *Journal of Archieves in Materials and Manufacturing Engineering*, Vol.1-2, No.20, pp.155-158

**8** 

*México* 

Régulo López-Callejas et al.\*

*A.P. 18-1027, 11801, México D. F.* 

**PIII for Aluminium Surface Modification** 

*Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Plasma Physics Laboratory* 

Aluminium is the third more abundant element in the Earth crust. The metal exhibits useful properties such as low density, high strength, good formability and a high resistance to corrosion. Aluminium can gain significant mechanical strength by means of alloying, whereby it is the most used metal after steel. In this sense, aluminium properties depend on

Aluminium is, among other characteristics, malleable, easily machined and very ductile. Its high sensitivity to oxidation endows it with a waterproof passivation layer, typically 5-20μm thick according to the prevailing humidity, considerably adherent, which contributes to corrosion tolerance and general durability. The passivation layer consists of the amphoteric aluminium oxide Al2O3, often known as *alumina* or *aloxite* in mining and materials science. As corrosion is a major source of failure in Materials Engineering, aluminium is an obvious

Aluminium as a pure element has a low mechanical resistance which prevents its application under deformation and fracture conditions. Thus, low density combined with good resistance make aluminium alloys very attractive in design considerations. The properties of these alloys depend on a complex interaction among chemical composition, microstructural failures in solidification, thermal treatments, etc. although an increase in the alloy content tends, in general, to diminish the tolerance to corrosion. That is why quenching processes have been developed to improve the response to corrosion of highly alloyed materials. It is essential to select the precise alloy to match the resistance, ductibility,

Modifying aluminium composition by the adding nitrogen in an ion implantation process provides the treated samples with surface hardness and improved tribological properties by heating them in a nitrogen rich atmosphere. In this way, at low doses, aluminium nitride (AlN) becomes structured in the shape of clusters, the nitride content clearly increasing with the dose. Ion implantation is applied to pieces subjected to major friction and load forces such as rolling tracks, cylinder sleeves, etc., which require some core plasticity enabling

\* Raúl Valencia-Alvarado1, Arturo Eduardo Muñoz-Castro1, Rosendo Peña-Eguiluz1, Antonio Mercado-Cabrera1, Samuel R. Barocio1, Benjamín Gonzalo Rodríguez-Méndez1 and Anibal de la Piedad-Beneitez2 *1Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares, Plasma Physics Laboratory A.P. 18-1027, 11801, México 2Instituto Tecnológico de Toluca A.P. 890, Toluca, México*

its purity and its crystalline structure is face centred cubic [Wang et al, 1999].

choice to face aggressive environments, including the atmospheric one.

formability, solubility, corrosion tolerance, etc., required by an application.

**1. Introduction** 

