Microstructural, electrochemical, and hot corrosion analysis of CoCrFeCuTi high entropy alloy reinforced titanium matrix composites synthesized by microwave sintering

Abstract

CoCrFeCuTi High Entropy Alloy (HEA) is reinforced in Ti6Al6V2Sn alloy through microwave sintering-assisted powder metallurgy and its corrosion behaviour is investigated under different conditions. The ball-milled CoCrFeCuTi HEA powder exhibits 17 μm average particle size of irregular fragments with a single-phase BCC structure and is added as reinforcement in Ti alloy at 3, 6, 9, and 12 wt%. As more reinforcement is added, the α-Ti decreases and β-Ti increases which enhances the interfacial bonding. The pinning effects from reinforcements inhibit grain growth contributing to improved properties including higher relative density with less porosity. The 12 wt% composite showed remarkable microhardness of 734 HV which is increased by 43.8% over Ti alloy. The 12 wt% composite also achieved finer grains (0.345 μm) due to uniform internal heat generation from the process. Corrosion behaviour is assessed through electrochemical corrosion and hot corrosion analysis, with 12 wt% composite demonstrating better corrosion resistance compared to Ti alloy. The induced corrosion products, formation of passivation films, and their mechanism are examined by morphological analysis.