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A low-density high-entropy dual-phase alloy with hierarchical structure and exceptional specific yield strength

一种低密度耐高温高比强度多层次结构双相高熵合金

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Abstract

A high-entropy dual-phase AlTiVCoNi alloy with a low density of ∼6.24 g cm−3 is developed, and it consists of a hierarchical structure, including an ordered L21 phase, a disordered body-centered-cubic (BCC) solid-solution phase, and nano-sized L21 precipitates embedded in the BCC phase. It is found that this new alloy shows phase stability after the heat treatment at 1200°C for 24 h, and the compressive yield strength of this annealed alloy is approximately equal to that of the as-cast condition, ∼1.6 GPa. This alloy displays an exceptional compressive strength at room temperature and at 600°C, with the specific yield strengths of ∼261 and ∼210 MPa g−1 cm3, respectively. The semi-coherent interface of the L21 and the BCC phases makes the alloy phase stable and regulates the work-hardening mechanism. Local dynamic-recrystallization behavior and grain evolution are observed in the as-prepared alloy during compression at 800 and 1000°C, which results in the high-temperature softening. This alloy with a muti-phase hierarchical structure would provide a new paradigm for the development of next-generation low-density, high-entropy structural materials for high-temperature applications.

摘要

本文研究了一种新型低密度(~6.24 g cm−3)双相AlTiVCoNi高熵合金, 其组织结构由有序L21 高熵金属间化合物、无序体心立方结构和纳米L21 相多层次结构构成. 该合金在1200°C + 24 h热处理下未发生相结构转变, 在此条件下具有优异的高温相结构稳定性, 其铸态和热处理态的压缩屈服强度相当, 达到~1.6 GPa. 另外, 该合金在室温和600°C条件下表现出了优异的强塑性匹配和优异的比屈服强度, 分别达到了约261和210 MPa g−1cm3. 该合金的超高强度主要源于有序L21 相与体心立方相的半共格界面导致的一种强相结构稳定性和多层次结构的复合强化机制. 该合金在800和1000°C压缩过程中出现了动态再结晶软化,使得其高温强度有所降低. 这种“具有半共格界面L21 + 体心立方+ 纳米L21颗粒”的多层次结构设计为开发新型低密度耐高温高熵合金提供了一种新设计思路.

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Acknowledgements

Zhang Y appreciated the supports from the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (FRF-MP-19-013), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2019B1515120020), the State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, the University of Science and Technology Beijing (2020Z-08), and the Funds for Creative Research Groups of China (51921001) Liao WB thanked the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51801128), and Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2021A1515012278 and 2022A1515010288) He Z appreciated the supports from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51871015 and 52171151) Liaw PK appreciated the supports from the National Science Foundation (DMR-1611180 and 1809640) with program directors, Drs J Yang, G. Shiflet, and D. Farkas and the US Army Research Office (W911NF-13-1-0438 and W911NF-19-2-0049) with program managers, Drs. M.P. Bakas, S.N. Mathaudhu, and D.M. Stepp.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Beijing Advanced Innovation Center of Materials Genome Engineering, State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Yasong Li  (李亚耸), Zhanbing He  (何占兵) & Yong Zhang  (张勇)

  2. Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Devices and Systems of Ministry of Education and Guangdong Province, College of Physics and Optoelectronic Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, China

    Wei-Bing Liao  (廖卫兵)

  3. Spallation Neutron Source Science Center, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dongguan, 523803, China

    Huaican Chen  (陈怀灿), Wenli Song  (宋温丽) & Wen Yin  (殷雯)

  4. Energy and Transportation Science Division, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA

    Jamieson Brechtl

  5. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA

    Peter K. Liaw

  6. Beijing Key Laboratory for Magneto-Photoelectrical Composite and Interface Science, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Yong Zhang  (张勇)

  7. Shunde Graduate School of University of Science and Technology Beijing, Foshan, 528399, China

    Yong Zhang  (张勇)

Authors
  1. Yasong Li  (李亚耸)
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  2. Wei-Bing Liao  (廖卫兵)
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  3. Huaican Chen  (陈怀灿)
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  4. Jamieson Brechtl
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  5. Wenli Song  (宋温丽)
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  6. Wen Yin  (殷雯)
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  7. Zhanbing He  (何占兵)
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  8. Peter K. Liaw
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  9. Yong Zhang  (张勇)
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Contributions

Li Y conducted the experiments and wrote the draft; Liao WB and Zhang Y conceived the idea and directed the whole project. Chen H, Brechtl J, Song W, Yin W, He Z, and Liaw PK provided valuable suggestions. All authors contributed to the general discussion.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Wei-Bing Liao  (廖卫兵) or Yong Zhang  (张勇).

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Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Supplementary information

Calculation details and supporting data are available in the online version of the paper.

Yasong Li is a PhD student at the State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, University of Science & Technology Beijing (USTB), under Prof. Yong Zhang’s supervision. His research interest is on high-entropy alloys.

Wei-Bing Liao received his PhD degree in materials science and engineering from USTB in 2013. He did postdoctoral work at Peking University from 2013 to 2015, and the City University of Hong Kong from 2015 to 2017. Then, he jointed Shenzhen University as an assistant professor in 2017. His research interest focuses on bulk-metallic glasses and high-entropy alloys.

Yong Zhang has been a professor of materials science at the USTB since 2004. He has published over 200 papers and authored a book entitled “High-Entropy Materials, A Brief Introduction” by Springer-Nature publisher. He proposed a parameter to evaluate the configurational entropy effect over the enthalpy effect in the liquid state. It has been verified to be effective in predicting the phase formation for the multicomponent materials.

Peter K. Liaw obtained his BSc degree in physics from Tsing Hua University, Taiwan, and his PhD degree in materials science and engineering from the Northwestern University, in 1980. After working at Westinghouse Research and Development (R&D) Center for thirteen years, he joined the faculty and became an Endowed Ivan Racheff Chair of Excellence at the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The University of Tennessee (UT), Knoxville in March 1993. He is working in the areas of fatigue, fracture, nondestructive evaluation, and life-prediction methodologies of structural alloys and composites.

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Li, Y., Liao, WB., Chen, H. et al. A low-density high-entropy dual-phase alloy with hierarchical structure and exceptional specific yield strength. Sci. China Mater. 66, 780–792 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-022-2178-x

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