Effects of plasma cleaning and conservation treatment on the corrosion layer of corroded steel: XRD evaluation

The application of hydrogen plasma on corroded steel and excavated iron artefacts was studied. Transformations of the corrosion layer due to the plasma effect were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction analysis. The reduction of iron oxides to the stable iron oxide, magnetite, was observed for all the samples. In the case of excavated objects, the reduction to magnetite did not occur throughout the whole of the bulk of the oxides, as it does (for example) in the case of steel corroded in the laboratory. Nevertheless, excavated objects, in which a metallic core remained, were stabilized against subsequent corrosion. However, objects that are completely oxidized must be treated carefully, because treatment may result in the formation of a brittle outer layer and there is a risk of disintegration of such items, if treated using the plasma conditioning and restoration procedure. (Original abstract)