The Efremov Research Institute of Electrophysical Apparatus (NIIEFA), based in St Petersburg, has developed a technology to increase the wear and corrosion resistance and fatigue strength of different items from metals and alloys by 200–400%.
The technology also permits the annealing of materials after ion implantation and the formation of surface alloys and amorphous structures. The process works on the principle of the modification of a metal surface by pulsed electron beam.
The same technology can be applied after nitriding and induction hardening, which increases wear and corrosion resistance by 30%. More and more stringent requirements are being imposed on metal strength and sometimes even more than might be provided by its physical properties.