Nature of CoCrFeMnNi/Fe and CoCrFeMnNi/Al Solid/Solid Interface

To shed light into the application potential of high-entropy alloys as “interlayer” materials for Al-steel solid-state joining, we investigated the nature of the CoCrFeMnNi/Fe and CoCrFeMnNi/Al solid/solid interfaces, focusing on the bonding behavior and phase components. Good metallurgical bonding without the formation of hard and brittle IMC can be achieved for CoCrFeMnNi/Fe solid/solid interface. In contrast to the formation of Al5Fe2 phase at the Fe/Al interface, Al13Fe4-type IMC, in which the Fe site is co-occupied equally by Co, Cr, Fe, Mn and Ni, dominates the CoCrFeMnNi/Al interface. Although the formation of IMC at the CoCrFeMnNi/Al interface is not avoidable, the thickness and hardness of the Al13(CoCrFeMnNi)4 phase formed at the CoCrFeMnNi/Al interface are significantly lower than the Al5Fe2 phase formed at the Fe/Al interface. The activation energies for the interdiffusion of Fe/Al and CoCrFeMnNi/Al static diffusion couple are 341.6 kJ/mol and 329.5 kJ/mol, respectively. Despite this similarity, under identical static annealing condition, the interdiffusion coefficient of the CoCrFeMnNi/Al diffusion couple is significantly lower than that of the Fe/Al diffusion couple. This is thus mainly a result of the reduced atomic mobility/diffusivity caused by the compositional complexity in CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy.

Diffusion in Copper/Cobalt Systems under High Magnetic Fields

Comprehensive research on a high magnetic field’s effect on diffusion is lacking; hence, this study investigates the effect of the magnetization of such a field on diffusion using a copper/cobalt diffusion couple in the diamagnetic/ferromagnetic states, respectively. The diffusion couple was formed using explosive welding to avoid diffusion during manufacturing. The diffusion couple annealed within a temperature range of 1165 –1265 K under a 0–6-T high magnetic field. The angle between the diffusion and magnetic field directions was set as 0° and then 180°. The penetration profiles of cobalt volume diffusion in the copper and grain-boundary diffusion of copper in cobalt were constructed using an electron probe micro analyzer. The high magnetic field increased the volume diffusivity of cobalt in copper, but had no evident effect on the grain-boundary diffusivity of copper in cobalt, irrespective of the magnetic field direction. An Arrhenius plot of the cobalt volume diffusivity in copper demonstrated that the applied high magnetic field enhanced diffusion by changing the frequency factor rather than the activation energy; this can be attributed to the increased diffusion entropy caused by changing the vacancy concentration, which resulted from the introduction of magnetization under a high magnetic field.

Design of Low-Cost and High-Strength Titanium Alloys Using Pseudo-Spinodal Mechanism through Diffusion Couple Technology and CALPHAD

The high cost of development and raw materials have been obstacles to the widespread use of titanium alloys. In the present study, the high-throughput experimental method of diffusion couple combined with CALPHAD calculation was used to design and prepare the low-cost and high-strength Ti-Al-Cr system titanium alloy. The results showed that ultra-fine α phase was obtained in Ti-6Al-10.9Cr alloy designed through the pseudo-spinodal mechanism, and it has a high yield strength of 1437 ± 7 MPa. Furthermore, application of the 3D strength model of Ti-6Al-xCr alloy showed that the strength of the alloy depended on the volume fraction and thickness of the α phase. The large number of α/β interfaces produced by ultra-fine α phase greatly improved the strength of the alloy but limited its ductility. Thus, we have demonstrated that the pseudo-spinodal mechanism combined with high-throughput diffusion couple technology and CALPHAD was an efficient method to design low-cost and high-strength titanium alloys.

Supplemental Material: Confirmation of slow Ti diffusion in quartz by diffusion couple experiments and evidence from natural samples

Detailed description of the methods, supplemental figures and supplemental tables.<br>

Supplemental Material: Confirmation of slow Ti diffusion in quartz by diffusion couple experiments and evidence from natural samples

Detailed description of the methods, supplemental figures and supplemental tables.<br>