Rapid dendrite growth in quaternary Ni-based alloys

The high undercooling and rapid solidification of Ni-10%Cu-10%Fe-10%Co quaternary alloy were achieved by electromagnetic levitation and glass fluxing techniques. The maximum undercooling of 276 K (0.16TL) was obtained in the experiments. All the solidified samples are determined to be α-Ni single-phase solid solutions by DSC thermal analysis and X-ray diffraction analysis. The microstructure of the α-Ni solid solution phase transfers from dendrite to equiaxed grain with an increase in undercooling, accompanied by the grain refinement effect. When the undercooling is very large, the solute trapping effect becomes quite significant and the microsegregation is suppressed. The experimental measurement of α-Ni dendrite growth velocity indicates that it increases with undercooling according to the relation, V=8×10^-2×ΔT ^1.2.