In this paper, an Nb alloying layer on a TC4 alloy was fabricated by using high-current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) irradiation to improve surface performance. X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy (OM), laser surface microscope (LSM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to characterize the phase composition and microstructure of the surface layer. The microhardness, wear tests and corrosion resistance were also examined. The results show that after HCPEB alloying, a Nb-alloyed layer was formed with about 3.6 μm in thickness on the surface of the sample, which was mainly composed of α’-Ti martensite, β-Ti equiaxial crystals, and NbTi₄ particles. After HCPEB irradiation, the surface hardness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance of Nb alloying layer on TC4 alloy were improved compared to the initial samples.

In this paper, the Ni-Nb coatings were successfully prepared onto the GH3039 alloys by High current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB). The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results confirmed that the Ni-Nb layer of 10-pulsed samples exhibited partial amorphization, which was consisted of γ-Ni particles, rod-like Ni₃Nb particles and nano Ni₃Nb with 30 nm in size. After 20-pulsed irradiation, the results show that only Ni₃Nb clusters with around 3 nm in size were dispersed in fully amorphization layer. With increased pulse number to 30, the nano-particles embedded into the amorphous layer were grown up, the size of which was about 8 nm. The microstructure evolution during HCPEB irradiation was from the partial amorphous to fully amorphous and then to nano-crystallization. The 20-pulsed samples possessed the best hardness and corrosion resistance. The ultrafine clusters uniformly embedded into amorphous layer were main reason for improving properties.

In this paper, a Cu–Mo alloying layer with improved properties was fabricated by high current pulsed electron beam (HCPEB) irradiation. The microstructure of the modified layer was investigated by x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The microhardness and friction properties were also measured. After HCPEB irradiation, nano Mo particles, solid solution, and long-period superlattice structures were generated on the surface of Cu–Mo alloys, together with the formation of defect structures. These microstructures led to a significant increase in the surface hardness. The results of sliding wear tests indicated that the HCPEB-irradiated samples exhibited better properties compared with the initial one, which was attributed to the ultrafine Mo particles and the hardened surface.