Nanostructured Oxide‐Dispersion‐Strengthened CoCrFeMnNi High‐Entropy Alloys with High Thermal Stability
Xiang Zhang, Fei Wang, Xueliang Yan, Xingzhong Li, Khalid Hattar, Bai Cui
Abstract
A nanostructured oxide‐dispersion‐strengthened (ODS) CoCrFeMnNi high‐entropy alloy (HEA) is synthesized by a powder metallurgy process. The thermal stability, including the grain size and crystal structure of the HEA matrix and oxide dispersions, is carefully investigated by X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and electron microscopy characterizations after annealing at 900 °C. The limited grain growth may be attributed to Zener pinning of yttria dispersions that impede the grain boundary mobility and diffusivity. The high hardness is caused by both the fine grain size and yttria dispersions, which are also retained after annealing at 900 °C. Herein, it is implied that the combination of ODS and HEA concepts may provide a new design strategy for the development of thermally stable nanostructured alloys for extreme environments.