Effect of microplasma discharges on aluminum surfaces

Excitation of microplasma discharges on the surfaces of V95 aluminum alloy samples placed in a uniform pulsed plasma flow was studied experimentally. Strong localized interaction of microplasma discharges with aluminum leads to the melting and subsequent fast cooling of micrometer-size regions on the sample surface. Due to the multiple action of microplasma discharges, a continuous remelted layer with a thickness of up to 20 μm forms on the aluminum surface. The physical, structural, and tribotechnical properties of this layer differ substantially from those before microplasma processing.