The clinical efficacy of mRNA-based therapeutics is critically dependent on the structural integrity of the mRNA molecule,which in turn is governed by the efficiency and robustness of its manufacturing process.Unlike ...The clinical efficacy of mRNA-based therapeutics is critically dependent on the structural integrity of the mRNA molecule,which in turn is governed by the efficiency and robustness of its manufacturing process.Unlike conventional small-molecule synthesis,mRNA manufacturing relies on complex enzymatic cascades involving biomacromolecules with dynamic conformations as templates,intermediates,and catalysts.Key enzymatic modules,including plasmid linearization for DNA template preparation(Module 1),in vitro transcription(IVT)synthesis(Module 2),capping modification(Module 3)of mRNA,and different nucleases-aided removal of impurities(Module 4),are highly interdependent,each with specific catalytic enzymes and auxiliary cofactors.These modules present major engineering challenges of low efficiency and lack of modular compatibility across the multi-step enzymatic processes.Moreover,traditional approaches such as multienzyme immobilization or compartmentalization often fail to meet the demands of high-throughput,continuous and scalable manufacturing.This review systematically summarizes recent advances in the engineering of enzymatic modules for mRNA manufacturing,emphasizing challenges in catalytic regulation,module integration and process intensification.The potential strategies for improving reaction compatibility and enabling process integration and intensification are discussed,providing insights into future directions for engineering mRNA synthesis at scale.展开更多
Conventional strategies to strengthen alloys are usually accompanied by drastic sacrifice in ductility,which is known as the strength-ductility trade-off.New metallurgical processing approaches are required to defeat ...Conventional strategies to strengthen alloys are usually accompanied by drastic sacrifice in ductility,which is known as the strength-ductility trade-off.New metallurgical processing approaches are required to defeat this longstanding dilemma.Here we report a novel solid-state powder manufacturing route to overcome this challenge enabling the architecting of a complex multiphase constituent composite using readily available metal powder as a feedstock.The materials design philosophy is successfully verified in a system mixing conventional austenitic stainless steel and ferritic steel powder and consolidating it by hot isostatic pressing.Significant strengthening and work hardenability are achieved at no expense of ductility compared to the ferrite and austenite on their own.Such extraordinary strength-ductility synergy is attributed to the well-architected compositional gradients across different phases resulting in soft and hard regions at the scale of the original powder without sharp interfaces.Accordingly,plasticity progresses from soft to hard regions during mechanical loading,which is the key to mitigating the deformation incompatibility and enabling remarkable ductility.Our study provides a new concept for materials design with synergistic properties that used to be trade-offs in conventional materials,which is applicable to a broad range of material systems with unprecedented multifunctionality.展开更多
Poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT)is one of the most promising hole-transporting materials in the pursuit of efficient and stable perovskite solar cells due to its outstanding stability and low cost.However,the intrinsic lo...Poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT)is one of the most promising hole-transporting materials in the pursuit of efficient and stable perovskite solar cells due to its outstanding stability and low cost.However,the intrinsic low carrier density of P3 HT and poor contact between the P3HT/perovskite interface always lead to a low performance of the solar cell,while conventional chemical doping always makes the films unstable and limits the scalability.In this work,for the first time,we simultaneously enhanced the hole transporting properties of P3HT film and the interface of perovskite by doping it with a judiciously designed oxidized small molecule organic semiconductor.The organic salt not only can promote the lamellar crystallinity of P3HT to obtain better charge transport properties,but also reduce the defects of perovskite.As a result,we achieved champion efficiencies of 23.0%for small-area solar cells and 18.8%for larger-area modules(48.0 cm2).This efficiency is the highest value for P3HT-based perovskite modules.Moreover,the solar cells show excellent operational stability,retaining over 95%of their initial efficiencies after1200 h of continuous operation.展开更多
Multi-principal element alloys(MPEAs),inclusive of high entropy alloys(HEAs),continue to attract significant research attention owing to their potentially desirable properties.Although MPEAs remain under extensive res...Multi-principal element alloys(MPEAs),inclusive of high entropy alloys(HEAs),continue to attract significant research attention owing to their potentially desirable properties.Although MPEAs remain under extensive research,traditional(i.e.empirical)alloy production and testing are both costly and timeconsuming,partly due to the inefficiency of the early discovery process which involves experiments on a large number of alloy compositions.It is intuitive to apply machine learning in the discovery of this novel class of materials,of which only a small number of potential alloys have been probed to date.In this work,a proof-of-concept is proposed,combining generative adversarial networks(GANs)with discriminative neural networks(NNs),to accelerate the exploration of novel MPEAs.By applying the GAN model herein,it was possible to directly generate novel compositions for MPEAs,and to predict their phases.To verify the predictability of the model,alloys designed by the model are presented and a candidate produced-as validation.This suggests that the model herein offers an approach that can significantly enhance the capacity and efficiency of development of novel MPEAs.展开更多
The competitive effect of microstructural features including primaryα(αp),secondaryα(αs),grain boundaryα(αGB) and β grain size on mechanical properties of a near β Ti alloy were studied with two heat ...The competitive effect of microstructural features including primaryα(αp),secondaryα(αs),grain boundaryα(αGB) and β grain size on mechanical properties of a near β Ti alloy were studied with two heat treatment processes.The relative effect of β grain size and STA(solution treatment and ageing)processing parameters on mechanical properties were quantitatively explored by the application of Taguchi method.These results were further explained via correlating microstructure with the fracture toughness and tensile properties.It was found that large numbers of fine as precipitates and continuous αs played greater roles than other features,resulting in a high strength and very low ductility(<2%)of STA process samples.The β grain size had a negative correlation with fracture toughness.In the samples prepared by BASCA( β anneal slow cooling and ageing)process,improved ductility and fracture toughness were obtained due to a lower density ofα;precipitates,a basket-weave structure and zigzag morphology of αGB.For this heat treatment,an increase in prior β grain size had an observable positive effect on fracture toughness.The contradictory effect of β grain size on fracture toughness found in literature was for the first time explained.It was shown that the microstructure obtained from different processes after β solution has complex effect on mechanical properties.This complexity derived from the competition between microstructure features and the overall sum of their effect on fracture toughness and tensile properties.A novel table was proposed to quasi-quantitatively unravel these competitive effects.展开更多
Direct aging treatment is an important post-processing procedure,yet little research has been done on how it balances the mechanical properties and the stress removal for selective laser melted(SLMed)AlSi10Mg alloys.H...Direct aging treatment is an important post-processing procedure,yet little research has been done on how it balances the mechanical properties and the stress removal for selective laser melted(SLMed)AlSi10Mg alloys.Here,we proposed a typical direct aging treatment on SLMed AlSi10Mg alloys,and studied the effects on their microstructure,properties and residual stress evolution.The results indi-cate that the as-built microstructure is mainly composed of fine cellularα-Al and reticulated Si phases,and some pre-existing precipitates and dislocations are found in these cells.The direct aging treatment promotes the precipitation of nano-scaled Si phases and preserves a network-like Si structure.Therefore,the strength of the peak-aged alloy increases while the ductility decreases.As the aging temperature in-creases from 160 to 200℃,aging hardening behavior was accelerated significantly.Aging at 160℃ for 4-9 h removes 32.0%-43.0%of the residual stress,which is attributed to the decomposition of the su-persaturatedα-Al matrix,the precipitation of the nano-Si phase and the exposure of low-angle grain boundaries(LAGBs).Considering the overal alloy performance obtained,over-aging at 160℃ for 4 h is the optimized heat treatment regime.Under this condition,the yield strength(YS),ultimate tensile strength(UTS)and elongation(EL)of the alloy in the transverse and longitudinal direction are 309.5 MPa,464.4 MPa and 8.3%and 286.4 MPa,464.9 MPa and 5.1%,respectively.展开更多
Magnesium and its alloys are the most investigated materials for solid-state hydrogen storage in the form of metal hydrides,but there are still unresolved problems with the kinetics and thermodynamics of hydrogenation...Magnesium and its alloys are the most investigated materials for solid-state hydrogen storage in the form of metal hydrides,but there are still unresolved problems with the kinetics and thermodynamics of hydrogenation and dehydrogenation of this group of materials.Severe plastic deformation(SPD)methods,such as equal-channel angular pressing(ECAP),high-pressure torsion(HPT),intensive rolling,and fast forging,have been widely used to enhance the activation,air resistance,and hydrogenation/dehydrogenation kinetics of Mg-based hydrogen storage materials by introducing ultrafineanoscale grains and crystal lattice defects.These severely deformed materials,particularly in the presence of alloying additives or second-phase nanoparticles,can show not only fast hydrogen absorption/desorption kinetics but also good cycling stability.It was shown that some materials that are apparently inert to hydrogen can absorb hydrogen after SPD processing.Moreover,the SPD methods were effectively used for hydrogen binding-energy engineering and synthesizing new magnesium alloys with low thermodynamic stability for reversible lowoom-temperature hydrogen storage,such as nanoglasses,high-entropy alloys,and metastable phases including the high-pressureγ-MgH2 polymorph.This work reviews recent advances in the development of Mg-based hydrogen storage materials by SPD processing and discusses their potential in future applications.展开更多
The Al-3.40Mg-1.08Sc alloy plates were manufactured by selective laser melting(SLM) at platform temperatures of 35 ℃ and 200 ℃, respectively, and the corrosion performance of them was studied along height direction....The Al-3.40Mg-1.08Sc alloy plates were manufactured by selective laser melting(SLM) at platform temperatures of 35 ℃ and 200 ℃, respectively, and the corrosion performance of them was studied along height direction. The results show that the corrosion resistance of the alloy plate built at platform temperature of 35 ℃ along height direction is basically the same due to a uniform microstructure;While the corrosion resistance of the alloy plate built at platform temperature of 200 ℃ along height direction is different. The evolution of microstructure and the distribution of secondary phases are investigated, and the results show that the Cu-rich phases in alloy play a key role on corrosion performance. At higher platform temperature, the cooling rate is relative slow and a certain degree of in situ ageing leads to the significantly different distribution of Cu-rich phases along grain boundary. Specimens built at the platform temperature of 200 ℃ are inclined to locate at the crossed grain boundary, rather than continuous segregation of Cu-rich phases along grain boundary that is built at platform temperature of 35 ℃. Therefore, the corrosion resistance of Al-3.40Mg-1.08Sc alloy plate manufactured at platform temperature of 200 ℃ is higher, and presents a gradually decreasing trend along height direction.展开更多
Rotary swaging(RS)of alloy Mg-1.03Zn-0.66Ca(ZX11)was shown to refine the average grain size to 4.5±1.2μm in a longitudinal section and 4.8±0.9μm in a transverse section.In addition,a small amount of Mg2Ca ...Rotary swaging(RS)of alloy Mg-1.03Zn-0.66Ca(ZX11)was shown to refine the average grain size to 4.5±1.2μm in a longitudinal section and 4.8±0.9μm in a transverse section.In addition,a small amount of Mg2Ca particles about 300nm in size and Mg6Zn3Ca2 particles with a size of about lOOnm was detected.This resulted in pronounced strengthening:the yield strength and the ultimate tensile strength rose to 210±8 MPa and 276±6 MPa,respectively,while the elongation hardly decreased(22.0±1.8%and 18.3±2.9%before and after RS).Furthermore,RS led to an increase in the fatigue limit of the alloy from 120 MPa to 135 MPa and did not impair its resistance to chemical corrosion.The studies in vitro showed that ZX11 induces hemolysis without inhibiting the viability of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and has a more pronounced cytotoxic effect on tumor cells in comparison with non-transformed cells.No significant difference of the latter effect between the initial and the deformed states was observed.展开更多
Theoretically,cooling rate decreases exponentially as solidification thickness increases.This leads to coarse second-phase particles in Zn alloys,which not only impairs mechanical properties but also exacerbates degra...Theoretically,cooling rate decreases exponentially as solidification thickness increases.This leads to coarse second-phase particles in Zn alloys,which not only impairs mechanical properties but also exacerbates degradation nonuniformity.To address this common issue,we have developed accumulative-cooling and interface-fusion(ACIF) technology that maintains a high cooling rate regardless of increased solidification thickness.Using Zn-0.4Fe as a model alloy,the accumulative-cooling process achieves an average cooling rate of 817℃ min-1,approximately 68 times that of air cooling.After extrusion,the average size of FeZn13 particles is refined from 29.4 to 0.4 μm,reaching the highest level of refinement in Zn alloys.As a result,a quadruple enhancement of Zn-0.4Fe model alloy has been achieved:Ultimate tensile strength enhanced 1.6-fold to 265 MPa(the highest among Zn-Fe alloys),elongation enhanced from 29% to 48%,corrosion uniformity improved 3 times,and cell viability of mouse embryonic osteoblast precursor cells(MC3T3-E1)increased by 20%.A long rod is obtained via ACIF,overcoming the limitation that fast-cooled Zn alloys could only be produced in thin plate form.This enables the possibility of fabricating bone screws and vascular stents using bulk Zn alloys with fine second-phase particles.From a technical standpoint,this technique can be widely applied to a variety of metallic materials.展开更多
This paper aims to propose an explicit formulation of the macroscopic strength criterion for porous media with spherical voids.The matrix is assumed rigid and perfectly plastic with yield surface described by the thre...This paper aims to propose an explicit formulation of the macroscopic strength criterion for porous media with spherical voids.The matrix is assumed rigid and perfectly plastic with yield surface described by the three-parameter strength criterion,which is Lode angle and pressure dependent and capable of accounting for distinct values of the uniaxial tensile strength,uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)and equal biaxial compressive strength(eBCS).An exact upper bound of the macroscopic strength is derived for porous media subjected to purely hydrostatic loading.Besides,an estimate of the macroscopic strength profile of porous media under axisymmetric loading is obtained in parametric form.Moreover,a heuristic strength criterion in explicit form is further developed by examining limit cases of the parametric strength criterion.The developed strength criteria are assessed by finite-element based numerical solutions.Compared with the parametric strength criterion which involves cumbersome functions,the heuristic one is convenient for practical applications.For specific values of the matrix’s strength surface,the proposed heuristic strength criterion can recover the well-known Gurson criterion.The present work also addresses the effect of the ratio of matrix’s eBCS to UCS on the macroscopic strength of porous media.For matrix with distinct values of eBCS and UCS,neglecting the difference between eBCS and UCS would result in an underestimation of the macroscopic strength,especially when the pressure is large.展开更多
Zinc(Zn)and its alloys have emerged as promising candidates for biomedical materials,owing to their controlled degradation kinetics,intrinsic biocompatibility,and the release Zn2+ions which are known to promote bon...Zinc(Zn)and its alloys have emerged as promising candidates for biomedical materials,owing to their controlled degradation kinetics,intrinsic biocompatibility,and the release Zn2+ions which are known to promote bone regeneration and tissue healing.Despite their potential,the widespread clinical adoption of Zn alloys has been hindered by insufficient mechanical properties,design limitations of traditional manufacturing,and limited clinical validation.Recent advances in additive manufacturing(AM),particularly laser powder bed fusion(LPBF),are revolutionizing the production of Zn alloy implants.LPBF enables unprecedented design freedom and accuracy,allowing the fabrication of patient-specific,geometric allyintricate and porous structures with unique functionality that are previously unattainable.This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest progress in LPBF processing of Zn alloys,focusing on structure design,fabrication,micro structural characteristics,and mechanical and biological properties—critical factors for real applications of functional implants,particularly in cardiovascular and orthopedic fields.Additionally,this review examines the role of post-processing treatments,such as heat treatments and surface modifications,in adjusting degradation rate,controlling Zn2+ion release,and improving cell viability,proliferation and differentiation,all of which are vital for achieving predictable and reliable in vivo outcomes.Further,the review seeks to synthesize these advances and their interplays to provide a strategic insight for translating patient-specific,biodegradable Zn implants into clinical practice.展开更多
The 2xxx(Al-Cu-Mg)alloy is widely used in transportation fields due to its excellent strength-to-weight ratio.However,conventional heat treatments such as peak aging(PA)often result in a pronounced strength-ductility ...The 2xxx(Al-Cu-Mg)alloy is widely used in transportation fields due to its excellent strength-to-weight ratio.However,conventional heat treatments such as peak aging(PA)often result in a pronounced strength-ductility trade-off and limited fatigue resistance.To address these limitations,this work presents a comprehensive study on the mechanical properties and fatigue behavior of Al-Cu-Mg alloy subjected to a cyclic plasticity treatment.The cyclic strengthened(CS)samples exhibit a well-balanced combination of strength and ductility due to the formation of nanoscale solute clusters.A systematic and quantitative analysis of the strengthening mechanisms is performed to evaluate the contributions of key microstructural features to the mechanical response.Moreover,the CS samples also demonstrate a significantly higher fatigue ratio and fatigue strength compared to the PA sample,despite exhibiting comparable tensile strength.These improvements are attributed to the absence of weak precipitate-free zones(PFZs)induced as a result of cyclic plasticity,which completely eliminates the pronounced strength differential between the grain interiors and the PFZs observed in the PA state.This microstructural uniformity effectively suppresses strain localization under cyclic loading,promotes a more homogeneous strain partitioning,and consequently delays fatigue crack initiation.These findings highlight cyclic plasticity treatment as a promising microstructure design strategy for simultaneously enhancing the mechanical and fatigue properties of high-strength Al alloys.展开更多
Coarse columnar β grains result in anisotropic mechanical properties in Ti alloys deposited by additive manufacturing. This study reports that Ti-6Al-4V alloy fabricated by coaxial electron beam wire feeding additive...Coarse columnar β grains result in anisotropic mechanical properties in Ti alloys deposited by additive manufacturing. This study reports that Ti-6Al-4V alloy fabricated by coaxial electron beam wire feeding additive manufacturing presents a weak anisotropy, high strength and ductility. The superior tensile property arises from a microstructure with fine equiaxed β grains(EGβ), discontinuous grain boundary α phase and short intragranular α lamellae. A large region of fine EGβ arises from a special combination of the temperature gradient and solidification rate, and attractive α morphology is caused by solid phase transformations during interpass thermal cycling and post heat treatments.展开更多
Noble nanometals are of significance in both scientific interest and technological applications,which are usually obtained by conventional wet-chemical synthesis.Organic surfactants are always used in the synthesis to...Noble nanometals are of significance in both scientific interest and technological applications,which are usually obtained by conventional wet-chemical synthesis.Organic surfactants are always used in the synthesis to prevent unexpected overgrowth and aggregation of noble nanometals.However,the surfactants are hard to remove and may interfere with plasmonic and catalytic studies,remaining surfactant-free synthesis of noble nanometals a challenge.Herein,we report an approach to epitaxial growth of sizecontrolled noble nanometals on MXenes.As piloted by density functional theory calculations,along with work function experimental determination,kinetic and spectroscopic studies,epitaxial growth of noble nanometals is initiated via a mechanism that involves an in situ redox reaction.In the redox,MXenes as two-dimensional solid reductants whose work functions are compatible with the reduction potentials of noble metal cations,enable spontaneous donation of electrons from the MXenes to noble metal cations and reduce the cations into nanoscale metallic metals on the outmost surface of MXenes.Neither surfactants nor external reductants are used during the whole synthesis process,which addresses a long-standing interference issue of surfactant and external reductant in the conventional wet-chemical synthesis.Moreover,the MXenes induced noble nanometals are size-controlled.Impressively,noble nanometals firmly anchored on MXenes exhibit excellent performance towards surface enhanced Raman scattering.Our developed strategy will promote the nanostructure-controlled synthesis of noble nanometals,offering new opportunities to further improve advanced functional properties towards practical applications.展开更多
Laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)is one of the typical additive manufacturing techniques that enables the fabrication of complex-shaped structures with great freedom of design.Due to the challenges encoun-tered in LPBF pr...Laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)is one of the typical additive manufacturing techniques that enables the fabrication of complex-shaped structures with great freedom of design.Due to the challenges encoun-tered in LPBF processing of Al alloys,most studies have focused on AlSi alloys which are much easier to process but are not inherently designed for high-strength applications.In recent years,however,signif-icant progress has been made to develop Sc-containing Al alloys that are designed specifically for LPBF production.These alloys display excellent processability and superior mechanical properties that open up a range of possible applications in industries that require high specific strength,good thermal stability,and increased functionality.As such,this paper reviews the available literature on how Sc additions in-fluence the microstructure and properties of Al alloys when processed via LPBF and thus,aims to shed light on the considerations that have been made to achieve remarkable material consolidation alongside excellent mechanical properties,with the latter achieved through a high degree of Sc supersaturation and a great potential for nanoprecipitation.展开更多
Nickel-based superalloy IN738LC produced by selective laser melting(SLM)exhibits inferior hightemperature creep properties than its cast counterparts due to relatively smaller grain size,particularly for the plane nor...Nickel-based superalloy IN738LC produced by selective laser melting(SLM)exhibits inferior hightemperature creep properties than its cast counterparts due to relatively smaller grain size,particularly for the plane normal to the building direction.This work studied effects of post heating strategy on the microstructure and especially the grain size to improve the high temperature creep resistance.The asbuilt microstructure exhibited a fine grain size and large quantities of MC carbides that could effectively hinder grain growth.It was found that unconventional two-step heat treatments could lead to substantial grain growth,and the effect is particularly prominent at a specific temperature.The ease of grain growth was explained after classifying the microstructural evolution(boundary carbide transformation)during each heating step and related to the reduced grain boundary pinning force from MC carbides.Creep tests validated the effect of the new heat treatment scheme on the SLM-processed IN738LC at 850℃.An extended creep fracture life(1.5 to 4 times improvement)and lower secondary creep rates were achieved with samples subjected to the newly optimized two-step heat treatment.The complete creep curves are also firstly presented for SLM-IN738LC,confirming the effectiveness of grain growth and highlighting the importance of dedicated heat treatment for SLM superalloys.展开更多
The Al-Mn-Sc-based alloys specific for additive manufacturing(AM)have been recently developed and can reach ultrahigh strength and adequate elongation.However,these alloys commonly exhibit nonuniform plasticity during...The Al-Mn-Sc-based alloys specific for additive manufacturing(AM)have been recently developed and can reach ultrahigh strength and adequate elongation.However,these alloys commonly exhibit nonuniform plasticity during tensile deformation,which is a critical issue hindering their wider application.In this work,the origin of this non-uniform plasticity of the alloys produced by laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)has been systematically investigated for the first time.The results show that the loss of uniform plasticity in the alloy originates from microstructural regions containing equiaxed fine-grains(FGs)(~650nm in size)at the bottom of the melt pools.In micro-tensile tests,the strength of these FG regions can reach a peak of~630 MPa.After this,an apparent yield drop occurs,followed by rapid strain softening.This FG behavior is associated with intermetallic particles along grain boundaries and a lack of uniform mobile dislocations during deformation.The columnar coarse-grain(CG)regions in the remaining melt pools show uniform plasticity and moderate work hardening.Furthermore,the quantitative calculations indicate that the solid solution strengthening in these two regions is similar.Nevertheless,secondary Al3Sc precipitates contribute to~260 MPa strength in the FG,compared to 310 MPa in the CG due to their different number density.In addition,grain boundary strengthening can reach 230 MPa in the FG region;nearly double the CG region value.展开更多
The influence of minor Ag on the precipitation evolution of the Al-4.2Zn-2.8Mg-1.0Cu(wt.%)alloy from early stages to over-aged stages at 150°C was investigated.Surprisingly,co-precipitation of strengthening phase...The influence of minor Ag on the precipitation evolution of the Al-4.2Zn-2.8Mg-1.0Cu(wt.%)alloy from early stages to over-aged stages at 150°C was investigated.Surprisingly,co-precipitation of strengthening phases T′andη′are found in both Ag-free and Ag-added alloys.With Ag addition,precipitation of both T′andη′is refined and increased,such that the age-hardening capabilities and peak-aged tensile strength are improved.In addition,the quantitative proportion ofη′precipitates increases with the increase of Ag content due to the increase in the(Zn+Cu)/Mg ratio of nucleating particles.The narrowed precipitate-free zones(PFZs)are considered responsible for the undiminished fracture elongation in Ag-added alloys.Essentially,these effects of Ag are closely related to the strong Ag-vacancy and Ag-solute interactions.In over-aged stages,the Ag-added alloys still possess higher hardness values compared to the Ag-free alloy,which is related to precipitate coarsening mechanisms.The Ag-free alloy follows classical coarsening behavior by solid solution mediated diffusion,while the Ag-added alloy follows two possible coarsening mechanisms,coalescence of aggregates and diffusion of atoms.The smaller average size and higher residual number density of precipitates benefited from the slow diffusion-controlled coarsening behavior depending on the precipitate composition characteristics of the two-stage differentiation and the precipitate distribution characteristics of high-density dispersion in early-aged stages could explain why the hardness of Ag-added alloy keeps at a higher level than that of Ag-free alloy even after 1000 h ageing.Meanwhile,the transformation of metastable phases to stable phases is inhibited due to the addition of Ag,such that GP zones,T′,η′,ηand T phases coexist even after 14 d of ageing.In terms of phase composition,the addition of Ag decreases the ratio of Mg/(Al+Zn)in T-type phase.For the Ag-added alloy,the sum concentration of Zn+Mg inη′phase is about 10 at.%higher compared to T′phase,andηphase continues to have a high sum concentration of Zn+Mg,besides,the Zn/Mg ratio and Cu concentration exhibit obvious differences from T phase.展开更多
The interaction between twins and grain boundaries(GB) has an important influence on the deformation and fracture behavior of materials. In the present work, {332} twinning transfer(TT) behavior and its effect on the ...The interaction between twins and grain boundaries(GB) has an important influence on the deformation and fracture behavior of materials. In the present work, {332} twinning transfer(TT) behavior and its effect on the twin shape in a deformed β-type Ti-23.1 Nb-2.0 Zr-1.0 O Ti alloy were investigated experimentally and with molecular dynamics simulation. The crystallographic alignment factor of the two twinning systems in the neighboring grains and the misorientation angle of the grain pairs were found to influence the occurrence of TT. This further determines the twin shape: twins present a ruler shape when TT occurs but are in a lenticular shape otherwise. Such different twin shapes are attributed to the local stress states related to TT occurring or not. Both ruler-shaped paired twinning and lenticular twinning would provide effective mechanisms to release or reduce the stress concentration in front of the twin tips in different grain pairs.展开更多
摘要The clinical efficacy of mRNA-based therapeutics is critically dependent on the structural integrity of the mRNA molecule,which in turn is governed by the efficiency and robustness of its manufacturing process.Unlike conventional small-molecule synthesis,mRNA manufacturing relies on complex enzymatic cascades involving biomacromolecules with dynamic conformations as templates,intermediates,and catalysts.Key enzymatic modules,including plasmid linearization for DNA template preparation(Module 1),in vitro transcription(IVT)synthesis(Module 2),capping modification(Module 3)of mRNA,and different nucleases-aided removal of impurities(Module 4),are highly interdependent,each with specific catalytic enzymes and auxiliary cofactors.These modules present major engineering challenges of low efficiency and lack of modular compatibility across the multi-step enzymatic processes.Moreover,traditional approaches such as multienzyme immobilization or compartmentalization often fail to meet the demands of high-throughput,continuous and scalable manufacturing.This review systematically summarizes recent advances in the engineering of enzymatic modules for mRNA manufacturing,emphasizing challenges in catalytic regulation,module integration and process intensification.The potential strategies for improving reaction compatibility and enabling process integration and intensification are discussed,providing insights into future directions for engineering mRNA synthesis at scale.
基金financially supported by the National Key R&D Program of China(No.2023YFB3712703)the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council(EPSRC)Rolls-Royce Plc.Michael Preuss would like to acknowledge the start-up fund from Monash University.
摘要Conventional strategies to strengthen alloys are usually accompanied by drastic sacrifice in ductility,which is known as the strength-ductility trade-off.New metallurgical processing approaches are required to defeat this longstanding dilemma.Here we report a novel solid-state powder manufacturing route to overcome this challenge enabling the architecting of a complex multiphase constituent composite using readily available metal powder as a feedstock.The materials design philosophy is successfully verified in a system mixing conventional austenitic stainless steel and ferritic steel powder and consolidating it by hot isostatic pressing.Significant strengthening and work hardenability are achieved at no expense of ductility compared to the ferrite and austenite on their own.Such extraordinary strength-ductility synergy is attributed to the well-architected compositional gradients across different phases resulting in soft and hard regions at the scale of the original powder without sharp interfaces.Accordingly,plasticity progresses from soft to hard regions during mechanical loading,which is the key to mitigating the deformation incompatibility and enabling remarkable ductility.Our study provides a new concept for materials design with synergistic properties that used to be trade-offs in conventional materials,which is applicable to a broad range of material systems with unprecedented multifunctionality.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(52472248 and 22075221)the Key Research and Development Project of Shanxi Province(202202060301003 and 202202060301015)the Innovation Program of Wuhan-Shuguang Project(2023010201020367)。
摘要Poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT)is one of the most promising hole-transporting materials in the pursuit of efficient and stable perovskite solar cells due to its outstanding stability and low cost.However,the intrinsic low carrier density of P3 HT and poor contact between the P3HT/perovskite interface always lead to a low performance of the solar cell,while conventional chemical doping always makes the films unstable and limits the scalability.In this work,for the first time,we simultaneously enhanced the hole transporting properties of P3HT film and the interface of perovskite by doping it with a judiciously designed oxidized small molecule organic semiconductor.The organic salt not only can promote the lamellar crystallinity of P3HT to obtain better charge transport properties,but also reduce the defects of perovskite.As a result,we achieved champion efficiencies of 23.0%for small-area solar cells and 18.8%for larger-area modules(48.0 cm2).This efficiency is the highest value for P3HT-based perovskite modules.Moreover,the solar cells show excellent operational stability,retaining over 95%of their initial efficiencies after1200 h of continuous operation.
摘要Multi-principal element alloys(MPEAs),inclusive of high entropy alloys(HEAs),continue to attract significant research attention owing to their potentially desirable properties.Although MPEAs remain under extensive research,traditional(i.e.empirical)alloy production and testing are both costly and timeconsuming,partly due to the inefficiency of the early discovery process which involves experiments on a large number of alloy compositions.It is intuitive to apply machine learning in the discovery of this novel class of materials,of which only a small number of potential alloys have been probed to date.In this work,a proof-of-concept is proposed,combining generative adversarial networks(GANs)with discriminative neural networks(NNs),to accelerate the exploration of novel MPEAs.By applying the GAN model herein,it was possible to directly generate novel compositions for MPEAs,and to predict their phases.To verify the predictability of the model,alloys designed by the model are presented and a candidate produced-as validation.This suggests that the model herein offers an approach that can significantly enhance the capacity and efficiency of development of novel MPEAs.
基金the financial support from Baosteel Australia Joint Research Centre(BA16003)ARC Research Hub for Computational Particle Technology(IH140100035)funded by Australian Research Council grant LE0882821。
摘要The competitive effect of microstructural features including primaryα(αp),secondaryα(αs),grain boundaryα(αGB) and β grain size on mechanical properties of a near β Ti alloy were studied with two heat treatment processes.The relative effect of β grain size and STA(solution treatment and ageing)processing parameters on mechanical properties were quantitatively explored by the application of Taguchi method.These results were further explained via correlating microstructure with the fracture toughness and tensile properties.It was found that large numbers of fine as precipitates and continuous αs played greater roles than other features,resulting in a high strength and very low ductility(<2%)of STA process samples.The β grain size had a negative correlation with fracture toughness.In the samples prepared by BASCA( β anneal slow cooling and ageing)process,improved ductility and fracture toughness were obtained due to a lower density ofα;precipitates,a basket-weave structure and zigzag morphology of αGB.For this heat treatment,an increase in prior β grain size had an observable positive effect on fracture toughness.The contradictory effect of β grain size on fracture toughness found in literature was for the first time explained.It was shown that the microstructure obtained from different processes after β solution has complex effect on mechanical properties.This complexity derived from the competition between microstructure features and the overall sum of their effect on fracture toughness and tensile properties.A novel table was proposed to quasi-quantitatively unravel these competitive effects.
基金This work was financially supported by Ji Hua Laboratory“Development of additive manufactured core process and special equipment for key parts of aero-engines”(No.X190351TM190)the Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province(No.2022A1515011597).
摘要Direct aging treatment is an important post-processing procedure,yet little research has been done on how it balances the mechanical properties and the stress removal for selective laser melted(SLMed)AlSi10Mg alloys.Here,we proposed a typical direct aging treatment on SLMed AlSi10Mg alloys,and studied the effects on their microstructure,properties and residual stress evolution.The results indi-cate that the as-built microstructure is mainly composed of fine cellularα-Al and reticulated Si phases,and some pre-existing precipitates and dislocations are found in these cells.The direct aging treatment promotes the precipitation of nano-scaled Si phases and preserves a network-like Si structure.Therefore,the strength of the peak-aged alloy increases while the ductility decreases.As the aging temperature in-creases from 160 to 200℃,aging hardening behavior was accelerated significantly.Aging at 160℃ for 4-9 h removes 32.0%-43.0%of the residual stress,which is attributed to the decomposition of the su-persaturatedα-Al matrix,the precipitation of the nano-Si phase and the exposure of low-angle grain boundaries(LAGBs).Considering the overal alloy performance obtained,over-aging at 160℃ for 4 h is the optimized heat treatment regime.Under this condition,the yield strength(YS),ultimate tensile strength(UTS)and elongation(EL)of the alloy in the transverse and longitudinal direction are 309.5 MPa,464.4 MPa and 8.3%and 286.4 MPa,464.9 MPa and 5.1%,respectively.
基金supported in part by the Light Metals Educational Foundation of Japan,and in part by the MEXT,Japan through Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas(Nos.JP19H05176&JP21H00150)the Challenging Research Exploratory(Grant No.JP22K18737)+6 种基金W.J.Botta is grateful to the Brazilian agencies FAPESP(Grant No.2013/05987-8)CNPq(Grant Nos.421181-2018-4 and 307397-2019-0)the financial support and to the Laboratory of Structural Characterization(LCE-DEMa-UFSCar)for general electron microscopy facilities.R.Floriano thanks for the financial support from FAPESP(Grant No.2022/01351-0)support from the French State through the ANR-21-CE08-0034-01 project as well as the program“Investment in the future”operated by the National Research Agency(ANR)referenced under No.ANR-11-LABX-0008-01(Labex DAMAS)support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52171205)support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52071157).
摘要Magnesium and its alloys are the most investigated materials for solid-state hydrogen storage in the form of metal hydrides,but there are still unresolved problems with the kinetics and thermodynamics of hydrogenation and dehydrogenation of this group of materials.Severe plastic deformation(SPD)methods,such as equal-channel angular pressing(ECAP),high-pressure torsion(HPT),intensive rolling,and fast forging,have been widely used to enhance the activation,air resistance,and hydrogenation/dehydrogenation kinetics of Mg-based hydrogen storage materials by introducing ultrafineanoscale grains and crystal lattice defects.These severely deformed materials,particularly in the presence of alloying additives or second-phase nanoparticles,can show not only fast hydrogen absorption/desorption kinetics but also good cycling stability.It was shown that some materials that are apparently inert to hydrogen can absorb hydrogen after SPD processing.Moreover,the SPD methods were effectively used for hydrogen binding-energy engineering and synthesizing new magnesium alloys with low thermodynamic stability for reversible lowoom-temperature hydrogen storage,such as nanoglasses,high-entropy alloys,and metastable phases including the high-pressureγ-MgH2 polymorph.This work reviews recent advances in the development of Mg-based hydrogen storage materials by SPD processing and discusses their potential in future applications.
基金Project(51901207) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaProject(2018M632796) supported by the China Postdoctoral Science FoundationProjects(19A430024, 21A430037) supported by the Plan of Henan Key Scientific Research Project of Universities,China。
摘要The Al-3.40Mg-1.08Sc alloy plates were manufactured by selective laser melting(SLM) at platform temperatures of 35 ℃ and 200 ℃, respectively, and the corrosion performance of them was studied along height direction. The results show that the corrosion resistance of the alloy plate built at platform temperature of 35 ℃ along height direction is basically the same due to a uniform microstructure;While the corrosion resistance of the alloy plate built at platform temperature of 200 ℃ along height direction is different. The evolution of microstructure and the distribution of secondary phases are investigated, and the results show that the Cu-rich phases in alloy play a key role on corrosion performance. At higher platform temperature, the cooling rate is relative slow and a certain degree of in situ ageing leads to the significantly different distribution of Cu-rich phases along grain boundary. Specimens built at the platform temperature of 200 ℃ are inclined to locate at the crossed grain boundary, rather than continuous segregation of Cu-rich phases along grain boundary that is built at platform temperature of 35 ℃. Therefore, the corrosion resistance of Al-3.40Mg-1.08Sc alloy plate manufactured at platform temperature of 200 ℃ is higher, and presents a gradually decreasing trend along height direction.
基金Funding support of investigations of microstructure,mechanical properties,corrosion resistance,biocompatibility and cytotoxicity was provided by the Russian Science Foundation(project#18-45-06010)Part of this work relating to studies of fatigue behavior was carried out within the governmental task#075-00947-20-00.
摘要Rotary swaging(RS)of alloy Mg-1.03Zn-0.66Ca(ZX11)was shown to refine the average grain size to 4.5±1.2μm in a longitudinal section and 4.8±0.9μm in a transverse section.In addition,a small amount of Mg2Ca particles about 300nm in size and Mg6Zn3Ca2 particles with a size of about lOOnm was detected.This resulted in pronounced strengthening:the yield strength and the ultimate tensile strength rose to 210±8 MPa and 276±6 MPa,respectively,while the elongation hardly decreased(22.0±1.8%and 18.3±2.9%before and after RS).Furthermore,RS led to an increase in the fatigue limit of the alloy from 120 MPa to 135 MPa and did not impair its resistance to chemical corrosion.The studies in vitro showed that ZX11 induces hemolysis without inhibiting the viability of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and has a more pronounced cytotoxic effect on tumor cells in comparison with non-transformed cells.No significant difference of the latter effect between the initial and the deformed states was observed.
基金financially supported by the National Key R&D Program of China(No.2023YFB3812903)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52231010)+1 种基金Beijing Outstanding Young Scientist Program(No.JWZQ20240101016)the Research Funding Project for Talents from University of Science and Technology Beijing(No.00007864)
摘要Theoretically,cooling rate decreases exponentially as solidification thickness increases.This leads to coarse second-phase particles in Zn alloys,which not only impairs mechanical properties but also exacerbates degradation nonuniformity.To address this common issue,we have developed accumulative-cooling and interface-fusion(ACIF) technology that maintains a high cooling rate regardless of increased solidification thickness.Using Zn-0.4Fe as a model alloy,the accumulative-cooling process achieves an average cooling rate of 817℃ min-1,approximately 68 times that of air cooling.After extrusion,the average size of FeZn13 particles is refined from 29.4 to 0.4 μm,reaching the highest level of refinement in Zn alloys.As a result,a quadruple enhancement of Zn-0.4Fe model alloy has been achieved:Ultimate tensile strength enhanced 1.6-fold to 265 MPa(the highest among Zn-Fe alloys),elongation enhanced from 29% to 48%,corrosion uniformity improved 3 times,and cell viability of mouse embryonic osteoblast precursor cells(MC3T3-E1)increased by 20%.A long rod is obtained via ACIF,overcoming the limitation that fast-cooled Zn alloys could only be produced in thin plate form.This enables the possibility of fabricating bone screws and vascular stents using bulk Zn alloys with fine second-phase particles.From a technical standpoint,this technique can be widely applied to a variety of metallic materials.
基金partially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.51804203)。
摘要This paper aims to propose an explicit formulation of the macroscopic strength criterion for porous media with spherical voids.The matrix is assumed rigid and perfectly plastic with yield surface described by the three-parameter strength criterion,which is Lode angle and pressure dependent and capable of accounting for distinct values of the uniaxial tensile strength,uniaxial compressive strength(UCS)and equal biaxial compressive strength(eBCS).An exact upper bound of the macroscopic strength is derived for porous media subjected to purely hydrostatic loading.Besides,an estimate of the macroscopic strength profile of porous media under axisymmetric loading is obtained in parametric form.Moreover,a heuristic strength criterion in explicit form is further developed by examining limit cases of the parametric strength criterion.The developed strength criteria are assessed by finite-element based numerical solutions.Compared with the parametric strength criterion which involves cumbersome functions,the heuristic one is convenient for practical applications.For specific values of the matrix’s strength surface,the proposed heuristic strength criterion can recover the well-known Gurson criterion.The present work also addresses the effect of the ratio of matrix’s eBCS to UCS on the macroscopic strength of porous media.For matrix with distinct values of eBCS and UCS,neglecting the difference between eBCS and UCS would result in an underestimation of the macroscopic strength,especially when the pressure is large.
基金financially supported by Australian Research Council(No.FT230100180)financial support from the Monash Graduate Scholarship
摘要Zinc(Zn)and its alloys have emerged as promising candidates for biomedical materials,owing to their controlled degradation kinetics,intrinsic biocompatibility,and the release Zn2+ions which are known to promote bone regeneration and tissue healing.Despite their potential,the widespread clinical adoption of Zn alloys has been hindered by insufficient mechanical properties,design limitations of traditional manufacturing,and limited clinical validation.Recent advances in additive manufacturing(AM),particularly laser powder bed fusion(LPBF),are revolutionizing the production of Zn alloy implants.LPBF enables unprecedented design freedom and accuracy,allowing the fabrication of patient-specific,geometric allyintricate and porous structures with unique functionality that are previously unattainable.This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the latest progress in LPBF processing of Zn alloys,focusing on structure design,fabrication,micro structural characteristics,and mechanical and biological properties—critical factors for real applications of functional implants,particularly in cardiovascular and orthopedic fields.Additionally,this review examines the role of post-processing treatments,such as heat treatments and surface modifications,in adjusting degradation rate,controlling Zn2+ion release,and improving cell viability,proliferation and differentiation,all of which are vital for achieving predictable and reliable in vivo outcomes.Further,the review seeks to synthesize these advances and their interplays to provide a strategic insight for translating patient-specific,biodegradable Zn implants into clinical practice.
基金the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China(52371103)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(2242023K40028)+1 种基金the support of the Research Fund of Shihezi Key Laboratory of Aluminum-Based Advanced Materials(2023PT02)the support of the National Natural Science Foundation for Young Scholars of China(52301161)。
摘要The 2xxx(Al-Cu-Mg)alloy is widely used in transportation fields due to its excellent strength-to-weight ratio.However,conventional heat treatments such as peak aging(PA)often result in a pronounced strength-ductility trade-off and limited fatigue resistance.To address these limitations,this work presents a comprehensive study on the mechanical properties and fatigue behavior of Al-Cu-Mg alloy subjected to a cyclic plasticity treatment.The cyclic strengthened(CS)samples exhibit a well-balanced combination of strength and ductility due to the formation of nanoscale solute clusters.A systematic and quantitative analysis of the strengthening mechanisms is performed to evaluate the contributions of key microstructural features to the mechanical response.Moreover,the CS samples also demonstrate a significantly higher fatigue ratio and fatigue strength compared to the PA sample,despite exhibiting comparable tensile strength.These improvements are attributed to the absence of weak precipitate-free zones(PFZs)induced as a result of cyclic plasticity,which completely eliminates the pronounced strength differential between the grain interiors and the PFZs observed in the PA state.This microstructural uniformity effectively suppresses strain localization under cyclic loading,promotes a more homogeneous strain partitioning,and consequently delays fatigue crack initiation.These findings highlight cyclic plasticity treatment as a promising microstructure design strategy for simultaneously enhancing the mechanical and fatigue properties of high-strength Al alloys.
基金supported by the internal funding source from University of Shanghai for Science and Technology.
摘要Coarse columnar β grains result in anisotropic mechanical properties in Ti alloys deposited by additive manufacturing. This study reports that Ti-6Al-4V alloy fabricated by coaxial electron beam wire feeding additive manufacturing presents a weak anisotropy, high strength and ductility. The superior tensile property arises from a microstructure with fine equiaxed β grains(EGβ), discontinuous grain boundary α phase and short intragranular α lamellae. A large region of fine EGβ arises from a special combination of the temperature gradient and solidification rate, and attractive α morphology is caused by solid phase transformations during interpass thermal cycling and post heat treatments.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51972310)the Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science,Institute of Metal Research,Chinese Academy of Sciences(CAS)+1 种基金the Youth Innovation Promotion Association,CAS(No.2011152)the Special Program for Applied Research on Super Computation of the NSFC-Guangdong Joint Fund(the second phase)(No.U1501501).
摘要Noble nanometals are of significance in both scientific interest and technological applications,which are usually obtained by conventional wet-chemical synthesis.Organic surfactants are always used in the synthesis to prevent unexpected overgrowth and aggregation of noble nanometals.However,the surfactants are hard to remove and may interfere with plasmonic and catalytic studies,remaining surfactant-free synthesis of noble nanometals a challenge.Herein,we report an approach to epitaxial growth of sizecontrolled noble nanometals on MXenes.As piloted by density functional theory calculations,along with work function experimental determination,kinetic and spectroscopic studies,epitaxial growth of noble nanometals is initiated via a mechanism that involves an in situ redox reaction.In the redox,MXenes as two-dimensional solid reductants whose work functions are compatible with the reduction potentials of noble metal cations,enable spontaneous donation of electrons from the MXenes to noble metal cations and reduce the cations into nanoscale metallic metals on the outmost surface of MXenes.Neither surfactants nor external reductants are used during the whole synthesis process,which addresses a long-standing interference issue of surfactant and external reductant in the conventional wet-chemical synthesis.Moreover,the MXenes induced noble nanometals are size-controlled.Impressively,noble nanometals firmly anchored on MXenes exhibit excellent performance towards surface enhanced Raman scattering.Our developed strategy will promote the nanostructure-controlled synthesis of noble nanometals,offering new opportunities to further improve advanced functional properties towards practical applications.
基金the financial support from the Monash Postgraduate Publications Award(PPA)the Monash Center for Additive Manufacturing for the technical and funding supports.
摘要Laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)is one of the typical additive manufacturing techniques that enables the fabrication of complex-shaped structures with great freedom of design.Due to the challenges encoun-tered in LPBF processing of Al alloys,most studies have focused on AlSi alloys which are much easier to process but are not inherently designed for high-strength applications.In recent years,however,signif-icant progress has been made to develop Sc-containing Al alloys that are designed specifically for LPBF production.These alloys display excellent processability and superior mechanical properties that open up a range of possible applications in industries that require high specific strength,good thermal stability,and increased functionality.As such,this paper reviews the available literature on how Sc additions in-fluence the microstructure and properties of Al alloys when processed via LPBF and thus,aims to shed light on the considerations that have been made to achieve remarkable material consolidation alongside excellent mechanical properties,with the latter achieved through a high degree of Sc supersaturation and a great potential for nanoprecipitation.
基金financially supported by"Industrial Transformation Research Hub for Transforming Australia’s Manufacturing Industry through High Value Additive Manufacturing"of the Australian Research Council(grant No.IH130100008)the use of instruments and scientific and technical assistance at the Monash Centre for Electron Microscopy,a Node of Microscopy Australiathe financial support from the Monash Graduate Research Scholarship(MGS)and International Monash Postgraduate Research Scholarship(IMPRS)from the Monash University。
摘要Nickel-based superalloy IN738LC produced by selective laser melting(SLM)exhibits inferior hightemperature creep properties than its cast counterparts due to relatively smaller grain size,particularly for the plane normal to the building direction.This work studied effects of post heating strategy on the microstructure and especially the grain size to improve the high temperature creep resistance.The asbuilt microstructure exhibited a fine grain size and large quantities of MC carbides that could effectively hinder grain growth.It was found that unconventional two-step heat treatments could lead to substantial grain growth,and the effect is particularly prominent at a specific temperature.The ease of grain growth was explained after classifying the microstructural evolution(boundary carbide transformation)during each heating step and related to the reduced grain boundary pinning force from MC carbides.Creep tests validated the effect of the new heat treatment scheme on the SLM-processed IN738LC at 850℃.An extended creep fracture life(1.5 to 4 times improvement)and lower secondary creep rates were achieved with samples subjected to the newly optimized two-step heat treatment.The complete creep curves are also firstly presented for SLM-IN738LC,confirming the effectiveness of grain growth and highlighting the importance of dedicated heat treatment for SLM superalloys.
基金financially supported by the“Industrial Transformation Research Hub for Transforming Australia’s Manufacturing Industry through High Value Additive Manufacturing”of the Australian Research Council(Grant No.IH130100008)。
摘要The Al-Mn-Sc-based alloys specific for additive manufacturing(AM)have been recently developed and can reach ultrahigh strength and adequate elongation.However,these alloys commonly exhibit nonuniform plasticity during tensile deformation,which is a critical issue hindering their wider application.In this work,the origin of this non-uniform plasticity of the alloys produced by laser powder bed fusion(LPBF)has been systematically investigated for the first time.The results show that the loss of uniform plasticity in the alloy originates from microstructural regions containing equiaxed fine-grains(FGs)(~650nm in size)at the bottom of the melt pools.In micro-tensile tests,the strength of these FG regions can reach a peak of~630 MPa.After this,an apparent yield drop occurs,followed by rapid strain softening.This FG behavior is associated with intermetallic particles along grain boundaries and a lack of uniform mobile dislocations during deformation.The columnar coarse-grain(CG)regions in the remaining melt pools show uniform plasticity and moderate work hardening.Furthermore,the quantitative calculations indicate that the solid solution strengthening in these two regions is similar.Nevertheless,secondary Al3Sc precipitates contribute to~260 MPa strength in the FG,compared to 310 MPa in the CG due to their different number density.In addition,grain boundary strengthening can reach 230 MPa in the FG region;nearly double the CG region value.
基金supported by the Chongqing Key Project for Technological Innovation and Application(No.CSTB2022TIAD-KPX0073)the Natural Science Foundation of Chongqing(No.CSTB2022NSCQ-LZX0002)+1 种基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51871033)the Opening Project of State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials(Nos.2022-Z03 and 2020-ZD02).
摘要The influence of minor Ag on the precipitation evolution of the Al-4.2Zn-2.8Mg-1.0Cu(wt.%)alloy from early stages to over-aged stages at 150°C was investigated.Surprisingly,co-precipitation of strengthening phases T′andη′are found in both Ag-free and Ag-added alloys.With Ag addition,precipitation of both T′andη′is refined and increased,such that the age-hardening capabilities and peak-aged tensile strength are improved.In addition,the quantitative proportion ofη′precipitates increases with the increase of Ag content due to the increase in the(Zn+Cu)/Mg ratio of nucleating particles.The narrowed precipitate-free zones(PFZs)are considered responsible for the undiminished fracture elongation in Ag-added alloys.Essentially,these effects of Ag are closely related to the strong Ag-vacancy and Ag-solute interactions.In over-aged stages,the Ag-added alloys still possess higher hardness values compared to the Ag-free alloy,which is related to precipitate coarsening mechanisms.The Ag-free alloy follows classical coarsening behavior by solid solution mediated diffusion,while the Ag-added alloy follows two possible coarsening mechanisms,coalescence of aggregates and diffusion of atoms.The smaller average size and higher residual number density of precipitates benefited from the slow diffusion-controlled coarsening behavior depending on the precipitate composition characteristics of the two-stage differentiation and the precipitate distribution characteristics of high-density dispersion in early-aged stages could explain why the hardness of Ag-added alloy keeps at a higher level than that of Ag-free alloy even after 1000 h ageing.Meanwhile,the transformation of metastable phases to stable phases is inhibited due to the addition of Ag,such that GP zones,T′,η′,ηand T phases coexist even after 14 d of ageing.In terms of phase composition,the addition of Ag decreases the ratio of Mg/(Al+Zn)in T-type phase.For the Ag-added alloy,the sum concentration of Zn+Mg inη′phase is about 10 at.%higher compared to T′phase,andηphase continues to have a high sum concentration of Zn+Mg,besides,the Zn/Mg ratio and Cu concentration exhibit obvious differences from T phase.
基金financially supported by the internal funding source from University of Shanghai for Science and Technologyfinancial support from the Frontier and Key Projects of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. QYZDJ-SSWJSC031–01)。
摘要The interaction between twins and grain boundaries(GB) has an important influence on the deformation and fracture behavior of materials. In the present work, {332} twinning transfer(TT) behavior and its effect on the twin shape in a deformed β-type Ti-23.1 Nb-2.0 Zr-1.0 O Ti alloy were investigated experimentally and with molecular dynamics simulation. The crystallographic alignment factor of the two twinning systems in the neighboring grains and the misorientation angle of the grain pairs were found to influence the occurrence of TT. This further determines the twin shape: twins present a ruler shape when TT occurs but are in a lenticular shape otherwise. Such different twin shapes are attributed to the local stress states related to TT occurring or not. Both ruler-shaped paired twinning and lenticular twinning would provide effective mechanisms to release or reduce the stress concentration in front of the twin tips in different grain pairs.