Effect of severe cold-rolling and annealing on microstructure and mechanical properties of AlCoCrFeNi 2.1 eutectic high entropy alloy

Paper in proceeding, 2017

The possibility of microstructural refinement and improvement of mechanical properties by severe cold-rolling was investigated in an AlCoCrFeNi2.1 lamellar eutectic high entropy alloy (EHEA). The as-cast alloy revealed fine scale eutectic mixture of L12 (ordered FCC) and B2 (ordered BCC) phases. During severe cold-rolling up to 90% reduction in thickness the B2 phase maintained the ordered structure, while the L12 phase showed the evolution of a nanocrystalline structure and progressive disordering. Annealing of the severely cold-rolled material resulted in the formation of duplex microstructures composed of two different phases with equiaxed morphologies and significant resistance to grain growth up to 1200°C. Annealing at 1000°C resulted in an optimum strength-ductility balance with the tensile strength of 1175 MPa and the total elongation of 23%. The present results showed that severe cold-rolling and annealing can impart very attractive mechanical properties in complex EHEAs.