In-situ nano-reprecipitation enables superior cryogenic mechanical properties in a 3D printable medium-entropy alloy

Precipitates or second-phase particles effectively strengthen metallic materials. Their use in additive manufacturing (AM), however, is constrained by the narrow thermal window of laser processing, which restricts control over precipitate characteristics. Here, we overcome this problem by creating a novel cryogenically strong and ductile alloy by a size-dependent composite powder feedstock design consisting of CoCrNi medium-entropy alloy core powders and decorated TiC shell nanoparticles. We show that these compound particles can be completely dissolved into the alloy during the first laser pulse of AM and then reprecipitate in situ upon subsequent cyclic reheating. Consequently, we introduce a high number density of nanosized TiC precipitates, coherent with the matrix. Their strong resistance to dislocation glide increases tensile strength by ~312 MPa and promotes dislocation accumulation without inducing severe stress heterogeneity or premature cracking, yielding a high strength-ductility product at 87 K. Our in-situ nano-reprecipitation strategy is achieved by laser-induced melting of pre-assembled nanoparticles and their kinetically favorable reprecipitation, which is applicable to other AM alloy systems to enhance their cryogenic mechanical properties.

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Publication Details

Journal
Nature Communications
Published
2025-12-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-67279-2
Citations
2
Primary Topic
High Entropy Alloys Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
1.43
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article

In-situ nano-reprecipitation enables superior cryogenic mechanical properties in a 3D printable medium-entropy alloy

Zhongji Sun, Haitao Lu, Dierk Raabe, S.T. Tu et al.
2 citations
Nature Communications
High Entropy Alloys Studies
1.43
article

In-situ nano-reprecipitation enables superior cryogenic mechanical properties in a 3D printable medium-entropy alloy

Zhongji Sun, Haitao Lu, Dierk Raabe, S.T. Tu, Bingbing Wan, Yufei Chen, Binhan Sun, S. Scudino, Ning Yao, Alisson Kwiatkowski da Silva, Xian‐Cheng Zhang, Jianping Tan, Xiyu Chen, Xizhen Dong, Xiaofeng Yang, Tiwen Lu, Hongyu Chen
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Precipitates or second-phase particles effectively strengthen metallic materials. Their use in additive manufacturing (AM), however, is constrained by the narrow thermal window of laser processing, which restricts control over precipitate characteristics. Here, we overcome this problem by creating a novel cryogenically strong and ductile alloy by a size-dependent composite powder feedstock design consisting of CoCrNi medium-entropy alloy core powders and decorated TiC shell nanoparticles. We show that these compound particles can be completely dissolved into the alloy during the first laser pulse of AM and then reprecipitate in situ upon subsequent cyclic reheating. Consequently, we introduce a high number density of nanosized TiC precipitates, coherent with the matrix. Their strong resistance to dislocation glide increases tensile strength by ~312 MPa and promotes dislocation accumulation without inducing severe stress heterogeneity or premature cracking, yielding a high strength-ductility product at 87 K. Our in-situ nano-reprecipitation strategy is achieved by laser-induced melting of pre-assembled nanoparticles and their kinetically favorable reprecipitation, which is applicable to other AM alloy systems to enhance their cryogenic mechanical properties.

Nature CommunicationsVol. 17(1)
Ningbo University (CN), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (SG), East China University of Science and Technology (CN), Dongguan University of Technology (CN), Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research (DE), Max-Planck-Institut für Nachhaltige Materialien (DE), Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (SG)
Openalex Percentile: Top 16%
High Entropy Alloys Studies
1.43
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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