Tribocorrosion behavior of 420 martensitic stainless steel in extracts of allium cepa

The article presents a study of tribocorrosion resistance of AISI 420 steel in extracts of allium cepa (onion juice). The tests were conducted for 3 variants of heat treatment and two ball pressures of 4.5 and 14 N on a ball-on- plate test stand. For all AISI 420 martensitic steel specimens tested in tribocorrosion tests, a clear friction- corrosion synergy effect was found, ranging from 30 to 60 % of total tribocorrosion wear. The lowest mechanical wear was found for samples after low-temperature tempering at 200 degrees C (54 HRC). Under tribocorrosion conditions, samples after medium-temperature tempering at 400 C-degrees (51 HRC) were more resistant to wear. The results of the tests were used to make an onion-cutting blade, which found industrial application in one of the food industry factories.