Simulation of Core-Shell Structure Evolution of Cu-Co Immiscible Alloys

doi:10.11900/0412.1961.2023.00089

Acta Metall Sin

2024, Vol. 60

Issue (9): 1239-1249 DOI: 10.11900/0412.1961.2023.00089

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Simulation of Core-Shell Structure Evolution of Cu-Co Immiscible Alloys

WANG Lin¹, WEI Chen¹, WANG Lei², WANG Jun¹(

), LI Jinshan¹

^1.State Key Laboratory of Solidification Processing, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an 710072, China
^2.School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi'an University of Technology, Xi'an 710048, China

Cite this article:

WANG Lin, WEI Chen, WANG Lei, WANG Jun, LI Jinshan. Simulation of Core-Shell Structure Evolution of Cu-Co Immiscible Alloys. Acta Metall Sin, 2024, 60(9): 1239-1249.

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Abstract

Cu-Co alloys demonstrate immense potential for industrial applications due to their excellent properties, including high electrical conductivity and giant magnetoresistance effect. As typical immiscible alloys, Cu-Co alloys are prone to liquid-phase separation during their preparation; as a result, their components undergo severe segregation, limiting their applicability. Thus, investigating and elucidating the evolution mechanism of solidification structures of the Cu-Co alloys is imperative. However, liquid-phase separation in these alloys occurs on miniscule time and space scales, and complex physical processes such as diffusion, convection, and heat transfer are also involved. Hence, investigating the kinetic characteristics of alloy solidification and the mechanisms of microstructure formation solely by experimental methods using the existing technology is challenging. Nevertheless, with the continuous advancement of theoretical foundations and computational capabilities of materials, numerical simulations have emerged as an effective tool for investigating the microstructure evolution of immiscible alloys. This study investigates the mechanisms involved in the formation of core-shell structures during the solidification of Cu-Co alloys using a combination of experimental and numerical simulation techniques. Based on the phase-field method, three parallel simulations, incorporating fluid flow and Marangoni motion, were conducted. The microstructure evolution at various stages and under different conditions was systematically analyzed. The simulation results indicated that the fluid flow resulting from liquid-phase separation could expedite the coarsening of the second-phase droplets. Furthermore, Marangoni motion driven by temperature gradients resulted in the coalescence of second-phase droplets at the center (high temperatures), accelerating the coarsening process. The Ostwald ripening phenomenon and coagulation process between the second-phase droplets were simulated, and the growth kinetic mechanisms of the second phase were revealed. In addition, three Cu-Co alloys were used for simulations to investigate the impact of the volume fraction of Co-rich phase on the microstructure evolution. The validity of the simulation results was confirmed by comparing the simulated solidification structures with those obtained experimentally.

Key words: liquid phase separation solidification numerical simulation microstructure evolution

Received: 03 March 2023

ZTFLH:

TG146

Fund: National Natural Science Foundation of China(52174375);Innovation Capability Support Program of Shaanxi(2020KJXX-073);Independent Project of State Key Laboratory of Solidification Processing(2023-TS-13)

Corresponding Authors: WANG Jun, professor, Tel: (029)88460568, E-mail: nwpuwj@nwpu.edu.cn

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	WANG Lin
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	WANG Lei
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	LI Jinshan

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https://www.ams.org.cn/EN/10.11900/0412.1961.2023.00089 OR https://www.ams.org.cn/EN/Y2024/V60/I9/1239

Fig.1 Positions of three alloys selected from Cu-Co binary system (x_Cu—molar fraction of Cu, T_liquidus—liquidus temperature of the alloy, T_C—critical temperature of spinodal decomposition)

Fig.2 Simulated core-shell microstructure formed by liquid phase separation of Cu₆₅Co₃₅ alloy (Different colors represent different phase field values. It indicates Cu-rich phase when the colors approach blue and Co-rich phase when the colors approach red. The same in Figures below. t—time)
(a) t = 0.007 s (d) t = 0.005 s (g) t = 0.007 s
(b) t = 0.25 s (e) t = 0.1 s (h) t = 0.024 s
(c) t = 1.4 s (f) t = 0.825 s (i) t = 0.22 s

Fig.3 Ostwald ripening process showing the evolution of the second phase droplets at different time
(a) t = 0.001 s (b) t = 0.13 s (c) t = 0.25 s (d) t = 0.35 s (e) t = 0.45 s (f) t = 0.5 s

Fig.4 Condensation process of the second phase showing the formation and evolution of the liquid bridge at different time during the condensation process
(a) t = 0.002 s (b) t = 0.015 s (c) t = 0.02 s (d) t = 0.035 s (e) t = 0.1 s (f) t = 0.56 s

Fig.5 Simulated microstructures of Cu₃₅Co₆₅ alloy during liquid phase separation
(a) t = 0.0014 s (b) t = 0.005 s (c) t = 0.01 s (d) t = 0.0375 s (e) t = 0.095 s (f) t = 0.19 s

Fig.6 Co concentration vs radial distance during liquid phase separation for Cu₃₅Co₆₅ alloy at different time

Fig.7 Simulated microstructures of Cu₅₀Co₅₀ alloy during liquid phase separation
(a) t = 0.001 s (b) t = 0.004 s (c) t = 0.02 s (d) t = 0.04 s (e) t = 0.14 s (f) t = 0.2 s

Fig.8 Co concentration vs radial distance during liquid phase separation for Cu₅₀Co₅₀ alloy at different time

Fig.9 Simulated microstructures of Cu₆₅Co₃₅ alloy during liquid phase separation
(a) t = 0.0035 s (b) t = 0.007 s (c) t = 0.01 s (d) t = 0.015 s (e) t = 0.024 s (f) t = 0.22 s

Fig.10 Co concentration vs radial distance during liquid phase separation for Cu₆₅Co₃₅ alloy at different time

Fig.11 Comparison between simulation and experimental results of Cu₅₀Co₅₀ alloy
(a) non-equilibrium solidification microstructure^[26]
(b) simulated microstructure by liquid phase sepa-ration of Cu₅₀Co₅₀ alloy (t = 0.54 s)

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