Displacive transformation as pathway to prevent micro-cracks induced by thermal stress in additively manufactured strong and ductile high-entropy alloys

The micro-cracking behaviors of two high-entropy alloys (HEAs) of the FeMnCoCrNi family prepared by selective laser melting were systematically studied. Residual stresses were also analyzed by X-ray diffraction technique. Results show that the equiatomic FeMnCoCrNi HEAs with a relatively stable single-phase face-centered cubic (FCC) structure suffered from micro-cracking with residual tensile stress after laser melting. In contrast, the metastable non-equiatomic FeMnCoCr HEAs with reduced stacking fault energy are free of micro-cracks with residual compressive stress at various volumetric energy densities (VEDs). The displacive transformation from the FCC matrix to the hexagonal close-packed (HCP) phase during cooling prevents the micro-cracking via consuming thermal stress related internal energy. Further, the displacive transformation during tensile deformation contributes to the higher strength and ductility of the metastable dual-phase HEA compared to that of the stable single-phase HEA. These findings provide useful guidance for the design of strong, ductile, and crack-free alloys for additive manufacturing by tuning phase stability.