High-entropy ceramics (HECs) have attracted much attention due to their huge composition space,unique microstructure,and desirable properties.In contrast to previous studies,which have primarily focused on HECs with one anion,herein,we report a new family of ceramics with both multi-cationic and-anionic structures,i.e.,high-entropy carbide-nitrides (Ti0.33Zr0.33Hf0.33)(C0.5N0.5),(Ti0.25Zr0.25Hf0.25-Nb0.25)(C0.5N0.5) and (Ti0.2Zr0.2Hf0.2Nb0.2Ta0.2)(C0.5N0.5).These as-synthesized HECs are mainly comprised of a face-centered cubic solid-solution phase accompanied by minor inevitable oxide phases.The formation mechanism of the solid-solution phase is discussed in terms of the lattice size difference and thermodynamic competition between configurational entropy and mixing enthalpy.It is found that the increment in the configurational entropy can effectively lower the sintering temperature and increase the fracture toughness.Particularly,the newly developed (Ti0.2Zr0.2Hf0.2Nb0.2Ta0.2)(C0.5N0.5) exhibits a decent fracture toughness of 8.4 MPa m1/2and a low sintering temperature of 1750°C,making it promising for ultra-high temperature applications.Our work not only enriches knowledge regarding the HECs categories,but also opens a new pathway for developing HECs with multi-cationic and-anionic structures.
Pan ZhangXiongjun LiuAnhui CaiQing DuXiaoyuan YuanHui WangYuan WuSuihe JiangZhaoping Lu
The coupling effects of the metastable austenitic phase and the amorphous matrix in a transformation-induced plasticity(TRIP)-reinforced bulk metallic glass(BMG)composite under compressive loading were investigated by employing the digital image correlation(DIC)technique.The evolution of local strain field in the crystalline phase and the amorphous matrix was directly monitored,and the contribution from the phase transformation of the metastable austenitic phase was revealed.Local shear strain was found to be effectively consumed by the displacive phase transformation of the metastable austenitic phase,which relaxed the local strain/stress concentration at the interface and thus greatly enhanced the plasticity of the TRIP-reinforced BMG composites.Our current study sheds light on in-depth understanding of the underlying deformation mechanism and the interplay between the amorphous matrix and the metastable crystalline phase during deformation,which is helpful for design of advanced BMG composites with further improved properties.
In this study, mechanical tests were conducted oil a face-centered cubic FeCoNiCrMn high-entropy alloy, both in tension and compression, in a wide range of strain rates （10^-4-10^4 s^-1） to systematically investigate its dynamic response and underlying deformation mechanism. Materials with different grain sizes were tested to understand the effect of grain size, thus grain boundary volume, on the mechanical prop-erties. Microstructures of various samples both before and after deformation were examined using elec-tron backscatter diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. The dislocation structure as well as deformation-induced twins were analyzed and correlated with the measured mechanical properties. Plastic stability during tension of the current high-entropy alloy （HEA）, in particular, at dynamic strain rates, was discussed in lights of strain-rate sensitivity and work hardening rate. It was found that, under dynamic conditions, the strength and uniform ductility increased simultaneously as a result of the mas-sive formation of deformation twins. Specifically, an ultimate tensile strength of 734 MPa and uniform elongation of-63% are obtained at 2.3×10^3 s^-1, indicating that the alloy has great potential for energy absorption upon impact loading.
Several body-centered-cubic(BCC)refractory high entropy alloys(HEAs),i.e.,Hf Nb Ta Ti Zr,Nb Ta Ti Zr,Hf Nb Ti Zr and Nb Ti Zr,were annealed at intermediate temperatures for 100 h,and their microstructures and aging behaviors were studied in detail.All these HEAs start to decompose into multiple phases at around 500°C,but reenter the single-phase region at significantly different temperatures which were determined to be 900,1000,1100 and above 1300°C for Hf Nb Ti Zr,Nb Ti Zr,Hf Nb Ta Ti Zr and Nb Ta Ti Zr,respectively.Our analysis indicates that the onset decomposition temperature in these four HEAs is closely related to the elemental diffusion rates while the ending decomposition temperature is strongly dependent on the elemental melting points.Our findings are important not only for understanding phase stability of HEAs in general,but also for adjusting processing parameters to optimize mechanical properties of these HEAs.
Micro-alloying effects of yttrium on the recrystallization behavior of an alumina-forming austenitic（AFA）stainless steel were investigated.It was found that the grain growth kinetics of the steels doped with different amounts of yttrium（i.e.,0,0.05 and 0.10mass% Y）could be described by an Arrhenius type empirical equation.Added Y could interact with carbon and influence the morphology of carbides both inside grains and on the grain boundaries,thus altering the grain boundary mobility and grain growth.The steel doped with 0.05mass% yttrium showed the highest activation energy of grain growth and the most retarded recrystallization behavior,which mainly resulted from the high density of fine carbides both inside grains and on the grain boundaries.However,excess addition of0.10mass% Y induced coarsening and then lowered density of carbides,which alleviated the yttrium effects.The results also manifest that micro-alloying of rare-earth elements such as yttrium is an effective way for controlling grain growth behavior during recrystallization of AFA steels,which may have great implications on engineering applications.
Wu-xin ZHAOYuan WUSui-he JIANGHui WANGXiong-jun LIUZhao-ping LU
As an increasing demand of advanced nuclear fission reactors and fusion facilities, the key requirements for the materials used in advanced nuclear systems should encompass superior high temperature property, good behavior in corrosive environment, and high irradiation resistance, etc. Recently, it was found that some selected high entropy alloys （HEAs） possess excellent mechanical properties at high temperature, high corrosion resistance, and no grain coarsening and self-healing abil- ity under irradiation, especially, the exceptional structural stability and lower irradiation-induced volume swelling, compared with other conventional materials. Thus, HEAs have been considered as the potential nuclear materials used for future fission or fusion reactors, which are designed to operate at higher temperatures and higher radiation doses up to several hundreds of displacement per atom （dpa）. An insight into the irradiation behavior of HEAs was given, including fundamental researches to investigate the irradiation-induced phase crystal structure change and volume swelling in HEAs. In summary, a brief overview of the irradiation behavior in HEAs was made and the irradiation-induced structural change in HEAs may be relatively insensi- tive because of their special structures.
Virtually,glass formation is to avoid crystallization during solidification,i.e.,a consequence of the competition between the undercooled liquid and primary crystalline phases.It is found that the crystallization resistance of the binary Ni-P system was drastically enhanced with alloying of Pd and correspondingly,the critical size for glass formation increased significantly from the micrometer to millimeter scale.Thermodynamically,the introduction of Pd could effectively increase the atomic size mismatch and heat of mixing,which are beneficial to stabilize the supercooled liquid.Kinetically,the introduction of Pd not only successfully suppresses the formation of metastable superlattice phase,which is prone to nucleation and growth in the supercooled liquid state,but also changes the crystallization mechanism from the primary to eutectic mode.The current finding sheds light on understanding glass formation of the most studied Pd-Ni-P system and the glass-forming ability in general.
Qing DuXiongjun LiuYihuan CaoYuren WenDongdong XiaoYuan WuHui WangZhaoping Lu
A continuous production process was developed for coating bulk metallic glasses on the metallic wire surface. The effects of processing parameters, including the drawing velocity and coating temperature, on the coating thickness were investigated. It is found that the coating thickness increases with the increase in drawing velocity but decreases with the increase in coating temperature. A fluid mechanical model was developed to quantify the coating thickness under various processing conditions. By using this theoretical model, the coating thickness was calculated, and the calculated values are in good agreement with the experimental data.
Searching for free-standing and cost-efficient hydrogen evolution reaction(HER)electrocatalysts with high efficiency and excellent durability remains a great challenge for the hydrogen-based energy industry.Here,we report fabrication of a unique hierarchically porous structure,i.e.,nanoporous Ni(NPN)/metallic glass(MG)composite,through surface dealloying of the specially designed Ni_(40)Zr_(40)Ti_(20)MG wire.This porous composite is composed of micrometer slits staggered with nanometer pores,which not only enlarges effective surface areas for the catalytic reaction,but also facilitates the release of H2 gas.As a result,the NPN/MG hybrid electrode exhibited the prominent HER performance with a low overpotential of 78 m V at 10 m A cm^(-2)and Tafel slope of 42.4 m V dec^(-1),along with outstanding stability in alkaline solutions.Outstanding catalytic properties,combining with their free-standing capability and cost efficiency,make the current composite electrode viable for HER applications.
