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Phase-field simulation of phase separation coupled with thermodynamic databases in FeNiCrCoCu high-entropy alloys

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Abstract

The simulation of microstructural evolution in multi-principal element alloys is still challenging although for alloy development it is of high importance. In the work, a phase-field model linked with CALPHAD thermodynamic databases is utilized to explore the microstructural evolution during diffusion-controlled phase separation in the Fe–Ni–Cr–Co–Cu high-entropy alloy system with elastic lattice misfit. The compositional fluctuation and temperature effect on the elemental distribution and the kinetics of Cu-enriched phase formation are systematically investigated. The simulated results show that the Cu-enriched phase has a complicated core–shell structure consisting of a Cu-enriched core and a Ni/Fe shell. The latter as a buffer layer possesses retardant effect on the formation of Cu-enriched precipitates. Furthermore, the high Ni/Fe concentration delays the phase separation, growth and coarsening of the Cu-enriched phase, leading to particle refinement and the increasing width of the Ni/Fe shell. Besides, high temperature accelerates the phase separation and simultaneously promotes the growth and coarsening of nanoscale Cu-enriched precipitates. The present work expands the knowledge of phase separation in multicomponent alloy systems and provides insights to optimize material microstructure and properties.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to deeply appreciate the support from the National Natural Sciences Foundation of China (U2067220 and 82000980) and the LingChuang Research Project of China National Nuclear Corporation and the Young Talent Project of China National Nuclear Corporation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Engineering Mechanics, Key Laboratory of Hydrodynamics, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China

    Tengwu He, Yuming Qi & Miaolin Feng

  2. School of Aeronautics & Astronautics Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China

    Xiuhua Chen

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  1. Tengwu He
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  4. Miaolin Feng
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TH contributed to conceptualization, methodology, writing, reviewing and editing. XC was involved in conceptualization, reviewing and editing. YQ contributed to conceptualization, methodology, reviewing and editing. MF was involved in conceptualization, methodology, funding acquisition and supervision.

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Correspondence to Yuming Qi or Miaolin Feng.

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Table 3 Interaction coefficients \(a_{i}\) (units: J/mol) in Eq. (8) for different temperatures
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He, T., Chen, X., Qi, Y. et al. Phase-field simulation of phase separation coupled with thermodynamic databases in FeNiCrCoCu high-entropy alloys. Appl. Phys. A 128, 987 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-022-06101-y

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