Metastable phase separation and crystalline orientation feature of electromagnetic levitation processed CoCrCuFeNi high entropy alloy

The metastable liquid phase separation and rapid solidification kinetics of CoCrCuFeNi high entropy alloy (HEA) has been investigated by electromagnetic levitation (EML) technique. The maximum liquid undercooling attained 452 K (0.27T_L), and the critical undercooling to initiate phase separation was determined as 172 K. By modulating the degree of alloy undercooling, the overall macrosegragation pattern achieved a transition from homogeneous dendrites into dispersed structures and finally into core-shell structures. Both microstructure and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) characterizations revealed that liquid undercooling played a crucial role in the modulation of dendritic anisotropy correlated with crystalline orientations. Coarse high entropy face-centered cubic (HEF) dendrites were produced with 〈100〉 preferred orientation at small undercoolings. Once undercooling exceeded the threshold of 172 K, the previously uniform liquid alloy was separated into Cu-depleted and Cu-rich zones. Numerous equiaxed HEF grains of relatively random orientation together with some twin crystals were displayed in Cu-depleted zone, whereas in Cu-rich zone HEF phase solidified into many slender dendrites. Theoretical analyses indicated that equiaxed grains were produced in the regime of thermal diffusion-controlled dendritic growth with actual solidifying velocity up to 42.7 m s⁻¹. Furthermore, physical properties examinations demonstrated that large liquid undercoolings enhanced the alloy microhardness and low temperature saturated magnetization but reduced its electrical resistivities.