Soft-Magnetic and Mechanical Behaviors of Heterostructured FeCoNi Medium-Entropy Alloys
Received date: 2023-05-11
Revised date: 2023-12-08
Online published: 2024-01-08
Supported by
National Natural Science Foundation of China(51971248);Major Fundamental Research Program of Hunan Province(2024JC0003)
The equiatomic FeCoNi medium-entropy alloy (MEA) demonstrates promising attributes as a soft-magnetic material, including high saturation magnetization, high Curie temperature, and excellent ductility. However, its practical applications are constrained by relatively low yield and ultimate strengths. Recent studies explored strengthening FeCoNi alloy through the addition of other alloying elements or nanosized oxide particles (e.g., Al, Ti, Ta, and Y2O3). Although these additions often result in decreased saturation magnetization, they adversely affect the soft-magnetic properties. In this study, a heterostructured FeCoNi MEA, with approximately 49% (volume fraction) recrystallization, is achieved through annealing treatment. The influence of this heterostructure on mechanical and soft-magnetic behaviors of the MEA is systematically investigated. The results indicate that the heterostructured alloy maintains a specific saturation magnetization comparable to the fully-recrystallized version, approximately 152.5 A·m2/kg. Its coercivity, at 205.3 A/m, is lower than the non-recrystallized alloy (242.2 A/m) but higher than the fully recrystallized version (79.8 A/m). Magneto-optical Kerr analysis reveals that recrystallized zones in the heterostructure rapidly respond to external magnetic field changes, whereas non-recrystallized zones strongly interact with Bloch walls, pinning domain movement and thereby increasing coercivity. Furthermore, the heterostructured alloy exhibits enhanced mechanical properties: yield strength (σy) at 467 MPa, ultimate tensile strength (σu) at 610 MPa, and total elongation (δ) at 30%. This performance surpasses that of fully non-recrystallized (σy = 772 MPa, δ = 15%) and fully recrystallized (σy = 232 MPa, δ = 43%) alloys. These improved mechanical properties are partly attributable to long-range back stress, arising from the combination of soft recrystallized and strong non-recrystallized zones. This stress, produced by the strain gradient in the heterostructure, impedes geometrically necessary dislocations from slipping and enhances deformation compatibility, thereby preventing premature fracture. According to Ashby-type maps, the proposed heterostructured FeCoNi MEA bridges the gap between traditional soft-magnetic alloys and novel FeCoNi-based alloys in terms of soft-magnetic and mechanical properties.
GE Penghua , ZHANG Yong , LI Zhiming . Soft-Magnetic and Mechanical Behaviors of Heterostructured FeCoNi Medium-Entropy Alloys[J]. Acta Metall Sin, 2025 , 61(7) : 1119 -1128 . DOI: 10.11900/0412.1961.2023.00215
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