以新型模具材料为应用背景,首先从多主元合金设计的角度,预测了CrMoTi中熵合金成分,并在实验中验证了其单相bcc结构。对CrMoTi中熵合金的硬度和热学性能进行了测试。结果表明,电弧熔炼样品在室温下硬度为520.6 HV_0.3,在600℃时硬度为356.0 HV_0.3；在室温下比热容为371 J/(kg·K),热导率为14.0 W/(m·K)。随后以金属元素粉为原材料,对比研究了直接激光沉积(DLD)和选区激光熔化(SLM) 2种增材制造技术在原位合金化成型CrMoTi中熵合金的加工适性。其中DLD样品在打印态密度最高达7.46 g/cm³,硬度达到634.6 HV_0.3。SLM的原位合金化加工适性相对较差,样品密度最高为7.27 g/cm³,硬度为605.9 HV_0.3,且在其内部残留有未熔Mo粉。相比较而言,在作为模具的性能方面,CrMoTi合金表现出略优于H13钢的硬度和高温热导率。在原位合金化方面,CrMoTi合金的原料包含了熔沸点差异较大的金属元素,且形成相为硬脆bcc结构相,对增材制造技术而言有较大的加工难度,而DLD技术相对SLM表现出更好的原位合金化加工适性。

This study verifies the body-centered cubic (bcc) formability of CrMoTi medium-entropy alloy (MEA) as a potential mold material via theoretical calculations based on the concepts of multiprincipal element alloys and practical experiments employing arc melting and additive manufacturing (AM) techniques. The hardness and thermal properties of arc-melted CrMoTi MEA were tested at room and elevated temperatures. At room temperature, the alloy possesses a hardness of 520.6 HV_0.3, thermal capacity of 371 J/(kg·K), and heat conductivity of 14.0 W/(m·K). Its hardness drops to 356.0 HV_0.3 at 600^oC, and its thermal capacity and heat conductivity increase to 446 J/(kg·K) and 28.4 W/(m·K), respectively, at 709^oC, exhibiting the characteristic of semimetals. AM techniques are efficient for fabricating highly customized molds and have been widely used. Moreover, in situ alloying can further improve the compositional flexibility in the AM process. The in situ alloying printability of two AM techniques, i.e., direct laser deposition (DLD) and selective laser melting (SLM), was investigated using a blend of elemental powders. The best densification within the AM approaches (7.46 g/cm³) is achieved using DLD, and the microhardness of DLDed samples reaches 634.6 HV_0.3. Conversely, the printability of SLM is relatively restricted. The optimal density and microhardness of the SLMed sample are 7.27 g/cm³ and 605.9 HV_0.3, respectively, which are lower than those of the DLDed samples. In the DLDed samples, the large melt pool can homogenize most elements but with a Cr burning loss. Mo melts insufficiently during the SLM process and remains a partially melted powder in as-built samples. Moreover, cracking is already inevitable in SLMed samples, indicating that homogenization can hardly be improved by applying excessive energy input. As a brittle bcc alloy, its matrix tends to fail under the thermal stress of the heat accumulation in the AM process. Furthermore, the phase transformation in a small melt pool also intrinsically harms printability for in situ alloying studies through AM. Results from this study reveal that DLD possesses advantages over SLM for the in situ alloying of brittle materials like CrMoTi MEA. Combining elements with adequate overlapping of the liquid zone could be essential for superior printability of AM in situ alloying, especially with a high ratio of introduced elements.