Microstructure evolution during rapid solidification of hypoeutectic Al-Ag alloys near absolute stability

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that the absolute stability limit during rapid solidification of hypoeutectic Al-Ag alloys can be achieved at growth rates below 1 m/s, enabling microstructure control in additive manufacturing.

Contribution

It combines experimental DTEM observations with phase-field simulations and stability analysis to accurately predict the absolute stability limit in Al-Ag alloys.

Findings

V_abs follows a trend similar to the miscibility gap, increasing then decreasing with Ag concentration.

Predicted V_abs values agree with phase-field simulations across concentrations.

Experimental measurements confirm the predicted V_abs in concentrated alloys.

Abstract

Microsegregation-free microstructures can form by solidifying at velocities beyond the absolute stability limit ($V_{\text{abs}}$), where solute partitioning is suppressed by a stable, planar solid-liquid interface. Producing such microstructures is of considerable practical interest; however, $V_{\text{abs}}$ typically exceeds the ${\sim}1$ m/s growth rates encountered in additive manufacturing (AM). Here we demonstrate the absolute stability limit can be reached in sufficiently concentrated hypoeutectic Al-Ag alloys at growth rates well below the 1~m/s typically encountered in additive manufacturing. Dynamic Transmission Electron Microscopy (DTEM) of rapid solidification front evolution -- following laser spot melting of Al-Ag thin films -- combined with postmortem microstructural characterization, enables detailed quantitative comparison with both phase-field (PF) simulations and a sharp-interface linear stability analysis that uses a non-equilibrium, velocity-dependent phase diagram extracted from the PF model. The analysis predicts that $V_{\text{abs}}$ follows a trend similar to that of the miscibility gap, first increasing and then decreasing with Ag concentration. Predicted values of $V_{\text{abs}}$ are in good quantitative agreement with PF simulations over the entire hypoeutectic concentration range and with experiments for three concentrated alloys. These results inform the prediction and control of microstructural development in concentrated alloys near the absolute stability limit under AM conditions.