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Investigation on the thermodynamic stability of nanocrystalline W-based alloys: a combined theoretical and experimental approach

Investigation on the thermodynamic stability of nanocrystalline W-based alloys: a combined theoretical and experimental approach
Investigation on the thermodynamic stability of nanocrystalline W-based alloys: a combined theoretical and experimental approach

The stability of nanostructured metal alloys is currently being extensively investigated, and several mathematical models have been developed to describe the thermodynamics of these systems. However, model capability in terms of thermal stability predictions strongly relies on grain boundary-related parameters that are difficult to measure or estimate accurately. To overcome this limitation, a novel theoretical approach is proposed and adopted in this work to identify W-based nanocrystalline alloys which are potentially able to show thermodynamic stability. A comparison between model outcomes and experimental findings is reported for two selected alloys, namely W-Ag and W-Al. Experimental results clearly highlight that W-Ag mixtures retain a segregated structure on relatively coarse length scales even after prolonged mechanical treatments. Moreover, annealing at moderate temperatures readily induces demixing of the constituent elements. In contrast, homogeneous nanostructured W-Al solid solutions are obtained by ball milling of elemental powders. These alloys show enhanced thermal stability with respect to pure W even at high homologous temperatures. Experimental evidences agree with model predictions for both the investigated systems.

Nanocrystalline alloys, Thermal stability, Thermodynamics
Torre, Francesco
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Mingazzini, Claudio
32280a8f-f045-4821-8971-e739b5999034
Gattia, Daniele Mirabile
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Huminiuc, Teodor
b743b7ba-7541-4f2e-b4be-ea25b088e4c6
Rinaldi, Antonio
b6cc4b80-afd7-4e62-a6d1-93a076f044e2
Polcar, Tomas
c669b663-3ba9-4e7b-9f97-8ef5655ac6d2
Delogu, Francesco
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Locci, Antonio Mario
e050fbe8-4917-4580-a736-aadb9ee7a323
Torre, Francesco
6864b54e-ce9c-4a8a-8cdb-d42c758055a9
Mingazzini, Claudio
32280a8f-f045-4821-8971-e739b5999034
Gattia, Daniele Mirabile
734e7376-a842-4c39-a5fb-3af6d5f56d95
Huminiuc, Teodor
b743b7ba-7541-4f2e-b4be-ea25b088e4c6
Rinaldi, Antonio
b6cc4b80-afd7-4e62-a6d1-93a076f044e2
Polcar, Tomas
c669b663-3ba9-4e7b-9f97-8ef5655ac6d2
Delogu, Francesco
8b94d88d-d337-4f1f-bc29-61b853a7d6cf
Locci, Antonio Mario
e050fbe8-4917-4580-a736-aadb9ee7a323

Torre, Francesco, Mingazzini, Claudio, Gattia, Daniele Mirabile, Huminiuc, Teodor, Rinaldi, Antonio, Polcar, Tomas, Delogu, Francesco and Locci, Antonio Mario (2021) Investigation on the thermodynamic stability of nanocrystalline W-based alloys: a combined theoretical and experimental approach. Materials, 14 (23), [7179]. (doi:10.3390/ma14237179).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The stability of nanostructured metal alloys is currently being extensively investigated, and several mathematical models have been developed to describe the thermodynamics of these systems. However, model capability in terms of thermal stability predictions strongly relies on grain boundary-related parameters that are difficult to measure or estimate accurately. To overcome this limitation, a novel theoretical approach is proposed and adopted in this work to identify W-based nanocrystalline alloys which are potentially able to show thermodynamic stability. A comparison between model outcomes and experimental findings is reported for two selected alloys, namely W-Ag and W-Al. Experimental results clearly highlight that W-Ag mixtures retain a segregated structure on relatively coarse length scales even after prolonged mechanical treatments. Moreover, annealing at moderate temperatures readily induces demixing of the constituent elements. In contrast, homogeneous nanostructured W-Al solid solutions are obtained by ball milling of elemental powders. These alloys show enhanced thermal stability with respect to pure W even at high homologous temperatures. Experimental evidences agree with model predictions for both the investigated systems.

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materials-14-07179-v2 - Version of Record
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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 23 November 2021
e-pub ahead of print date: 25 November 2021
Published date: 1 December 2021
Additional Information: Funding Information: This work was performed in the frame of the ICARUS project. The ICARUS project has received funding from the European Union?s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 713514. T.P. was supported by EPSRC grant EP/R041768/1. The electron imaging was performed with the support of CEITEC Nano Research Infrastructure (ID LM2015041, MEYS CR, 2016-2019), CEITEC Brno University of Technology.
Keywords: Nanocrystalline alloys, Thermal stability, Thermodynamics

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 454753
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/454753
PURE UUID: 438d01c4-7719-4752-920b-07a861af8177
ORCID for Tomas Polcar: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-0863-6287

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 22 Feb 2022 17:41
Last modified: 06 Jun 2024 01:49

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Contributors

Author: Francesco Torre
Author: Claudio Mingazzini
Author: Daniele Mirabile Gattia
Author: Teodor Huminiuc
Author: Antonio Rinaldi
Author: Tomas Polcar ORCID iD
Author: Francesco Delogu
Author: Antonio Mario Locci

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