A new method of preparing high-performance high-entropy alloys through high-gravity combustion synthesis

A new method of high-gravity combustion synthesis (HGCS) followed by post-treatment (PT) is reported for preparing high-performance high-entropy alloys (HEAs), Cr(0.9)FeNi(2.5)V(0.2)Al(0.5)alloy, whereby cheap thermite powder is used as the raw material. In this process, the HEA melt and the ceramic melt are rapidly formed by a strong exothermic combustion synthesis reaction and completely separated under a high-gravity field. Then, the master alloy is obtained after cooling. Subsequently, the master alloy is sequentially subjected to conventional vacuum arc melting (VAM), homogenization treatment, cold rolling, and annealing treatment to realize a tensile strength, yield strength, and elongation of 1250 MPa, 1075 MPa, and 2.9%, respectively. The present method is increasingly attractive due to its low cost of raw materials and the intermediate product obtained without high-temperature heating. Based on the calculation of phase separation kinetics in the high-temperature melt, it is expected that the final alloys with high performance can be prepared directly across master alloys with higher high-gravity coefficients.