{"title":"Preface to the Special Issue: Thermoelectric Materials and Devices","authors":"Gangjian Tan","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01850-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01850-0","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 5","pages":"705 - 706"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143892624","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yuanxiao Dai, Yue Zhang, Mei Wang, Jie Liu, Yaobo Hu, Bin Jiang
{"title":"Three-Point Bending Deformation Behavior of a High Plasticity Mg–2.6Er–0.6Zr Alloy Sheet","authors":"Yuanxiao Dai, Yue Zhang, Mei Wang, Jie Liu, Yaobo Hu, Bin Jiang","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01843-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01843-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Bending is a crucial deformation process in metal sheet forming. In this study, the microstructural evolution of a highly ductile Mg–Er–Zr alloy sheet was examined in various bending regions under different bending strains using electron backscatter diffraction and optical microscopy. The results show that the Mg–Er–Zr extruded sheet has excellent bending properties, with a failure bending strain of 39.3%, bending yield strength, and ultimate bending strength of 75.1 MPa and 250.5 MPa, respectively. The exceptional bending properties of the Mg–Er–Zr extruded sheets are primarily due to their fine grain size and the formation of rare-earth (RE) textures resulting from Er addition. Specifically, the in-grain misorientation axes (IGMA) and the twinning behaviors in various regions of the specimen during bending were thoroughly analyzed. Due to the polarity of the tensile twins and their low activation stress, a significant number of tensile twins are activated in the compression zone to regulate plastic deformation. The addition of Er weakens the basal texture of the sheet and reduces the critical resolved shear stress difference between non-basal slip and basal slip. Consequently, in the tensile zone, the basal and non-basal slips co-operate to coordinate the plastic deformation, effectively impeding crack initiation and propagation, and thereby enhancing the bending toughness of the Mg–Er–Zr sheet.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 7","pages":"1109 - 1126"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145160628","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Baocheng Yuan, Yi Wen, Lei Wang, Zhihao Li, Hong-Chao Wang, Cheng Chang, Li-Dong Zhao
{"title":"Impact of CuFeS2 on the Thermoelectric Performance of SnTe","authors":"Baocheng Yuan, Yi Wen, Lei Wang, Zhihao Li, Hong-Chao Wang, Cheng Chang, Li-Dong Zhao","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01831-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01831-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Thermoelectric materials possess tremendous potential in energy regeneration owing to their capacity to produce power directly from heat. SnTe, a lead-free compound, is a prospective thermoelectric material. However, because of its elevated thermal conductivity, the thermoelectric performance of undoped SnTe remains at a low level. In this work, we induce ternary compounds CuFeS<sub>2</sub> into the SnTe matrix by ball milling. We observe the decomposition of CuFeS<sub>2</sub>, which decomposes into FeS, Cu<sub>2</sub>S, and other binary compounds. These newly generated binary compounds form micropores and secondary phases in the matrix. Combined with the natural grain boundaries in the polycrystal, they form all-scale hierarchical structures within the material, resulting in reduced lattice thermal conductivity. Overall, the produced SnTe + 2 wt% CuFeS<sub>2</sub> composites show the peak dimensionless figure of merit (<i>ZT</i>) up to 0.33 at 673 K, an increase of ~ 100% compared to the undoped SnTe.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 5","pages":"803 - 810"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143892622","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Yang Zhao, Bo He, Jinliang Yang, Yongxiang Liu, Tao Zhang, Fuhui Wang
{"title":"Critical Role of Intermetallic Particles in the Corrosion of 6061 Aluminum Alloy and Anodized Aluminum Used in Semiconductor Processing Equipment","authors":"Yang Zhao, Bo He, Jinliang Yang, Yongxiang Liu, Tao Zhang, Fuhui Wang","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01841-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01841-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The effect of intermetallic particles on the corrosion of 6061 aluminum alloy and its coating used in semiconductor processing systems was systematically studied via liquid and gas experiments and micromorphology characterization. The results revealed that a huge difference of corrosion resistance between imported and domestic 6061 aluminum alloys in HCl solution and gas acid mist experiments mainly was attributed to the different size and amount of Al<sub>15</sub>(Fe,Mn)<sub>3</sub>Si<sub>2</sub>. The corrosion resistance of domestic 6061 alloy in dry/wet semiconductor electronic special gas environments was worse than that of imported aluminum alloy, and there are great differences in the corrosion mechanism of 6061 alloy caused by the second phase in the two dry/wet environments. And the corrosion resistance of the hard anodized alumina film was closely related to the microscopic morphology of holes. The vertical and elongated <i>α</i>-Al<sub>15</sub>(Mn,Fe)<sub>3</sub>Si<sub>2</sub> phase was formed in the rolled aluminum alloy that has been rolled perpendicular to the surface of the substrate. Compared to the horizontal long hole, the longitudinal long holes generated by the vertical <i>α</i>-Al<sub>15</sub>(Mn,Fe)<sub>3</sub>Si<sub>2</sub> phase will enable the corrosive medium to reach the substrate rapidly, which significantly weakens the corrosion resistance of the hard anodized film.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 6","pages":"904 - 924"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145171424","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Qi Zhou, Yufeng Xia, Yu Duan, Baihao Zhang, Yuqiu Ye, Peitao Guo, Lu Li
{"title":"Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Yb-Containing AZ80 Cast Alloys","authors":"Qi Zhou, Yufeng Xia, Yu Duan, Baihao Zhang, Yuqiu Ye, Peitao Guo, Lu Li","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01835-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01835-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of Mg–8.0Al–<i>x</i>Yb–0.5Zn (wt%, <i>x</i> = 0, 1, 2) cast alloys were investigated. With increasing Yb content, a significant grain refinement was observed, accompanied by the continuous refinement and fragmentation of the initial <i>β</i>-Mg<sub>17</sub>Al<sub>12</sub> phase network. Concurrently, the Al<sub>3</sub>Yb phase formed and coarsened. Calculations including formation enthalpy and lattice misfit, confirm that the Al<sub>3</sub>Yb phase, which nucleates prior to the <i>α</i>-Mg and <i>β</i>-Mg<sub>17</sub>Al<sub>12</sub> phases and exhibits a low lattice misfit with their low-index planes, serves as an effective heterogeneous nucleation site, significantly contributing to the observed microstructural refinement. Furthermore, Yb addition fundamentally suppresses constitutional supercooling by consuming Al atoms, which possess a high growth restriction factor, for the formation of Al–Yb phases. Subsequent tensile testing reveals that Yb solute promotes the generation of extension twins and the accumulation of dislocations during deformation, leading to a marked enhancement in the work-hardening capacity of the Yb-containing alloys. Benefiting from the refined microstructure and enhanced work hardening, the Mg–8.0Al–1.0Yb–0.5Zn alloy exhibits a favorable balance between mechanical strength and ductility, achieving an ultimate tensile strength of ~ 249.8 MPa and an elongation of ~ 11.70%, respectively.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 7","pages":"1095 - 1108"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145171095","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Revealing the True Thermoelectric Properties of SnTe through Removing SnO2 Contamination","authors":"Yicheng Wang, Rongcheng Li, Bowen Jin, Chenghao Xie, Xinfeng Tang, Gangjian Tan","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01838-w","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01838-w","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Previous studies on SnTe have indicated that its low <i>ZT</i> value is associated with a high carrier concentration of up to 10<sup>20</sup>–10<sup>21</sup> cm<sup>−3</sup> and an excessively high lattice thermal conductivity. However, the high carrier concentration and lattice thermal conductivity observed in SnTe are not solely attributable to the presence of numerous intrinsic tin vacancies and a simple crystal structure. Additionally, the oxides formed through the oxidation of Sn and SnTe exert a partial influence on these properties. In this study, by pretreating the raw Sn material and isolating it from oxygen during preparation, we achieve a significant improvement in the thermoelectric performance of binary SnTe at high temperatures, with a peak <i>ZT</i> of approximately 0.83 at 800 K. This approach effectively reduces the content of SnO<sub>2</sub> in the matrix, enhancing the electrical and thermal transport properties of the samples. Specifically, the high-thermal conductivity of SnO<sub>2</sub> facilitates the formation of channels at grain boundaries that are more conducive to heat transfer, while its poor electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient diminish the intrinsic electrical transport behavior of SnTe. The removal of SnO<sub>2</sub> reflects the true thermoelectric performance of SnTe, making the samples prepared by this method stand out compared to other reported binary SnTe materials.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 5","pages":"754 - 762"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143892656","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Effect of Intercritical Annealing Prior to Quenching and Partitioning on Impact Abrasive Wear Properties of Medium-Manganese Steel","authors":"Shaolong Zhang, Wen Zhou, Feng Hu, Kaiming Wu, Serhii Yershov","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01847-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01847-9","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Medium-manganese steel exhibits excellent strength and toughness, which are essential features in wear resistance applications. This study examines the impact of annealing temperature on impact abrasive wear. The results have indicated that samples annealed at different temperatures display plowing and fatigue wear effects. In the initial wear stage, the high-temperature annealed steel outperforms samples annealed at a lower temperature in terms of anti-plowing wear performance. This phenomenon is mainly due to the lower initial hardness of the samples subjected to low-temperature annealing. However, with prolonged wear time, the low-temperature annealed samples exhibit improved plowing wear performance, which is ascribed to a refinement of the lamellar microstructure and an increased residual austenite (RA), which enhances the work hardening effect, improving the hardness of the worn surface. The low-temperature annealed samples consistently delivered superior fatigue wear performance when compared with samples annealed at the higher temperature. The latter effect may be attributed to two factors. Firstly, the finer lamellar microstructure in the low-temperature annealed samples, coupled with greater RA, results in transformation-induced plasticity or twin-induced plasticity effect that hinders crack formation and propagation. Secondly, the low-temperature annealed samples form nanoscale equiaxed grains near the worn surface during the wear process. These grains can withstand crack driving forces in fine-grained regions, suppressing the formation and propagation of cracks.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 6","pages":"1041 - 1056"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145169931","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Meisa Zhou, Kun-Ming Pan, Xiao-Ye Zhou, Shulong Ye, Shaojie Du, Hong-Hui Wu
{"title":"Surface Wear Behavior of Nanograined NbMoTaW Refractory High-Entropy Alloys via Nano-scratching Simulations","authors":"Meisa Zhou, Kun-Ming Pan, Xiao-Ye Zhou, Shulong Ye, Shaojie Du, Hong-Hui Wu","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01832-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01832-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Surface nanocrystallization is a practical approach to enhance surface wear resistance, whereas the specific mechanism of how surface nanocrystallization affects the wear resistance of NbMoTaW refractory high-entropy alloys (RHEAs) remains unclear. Herein, we performed molecular dynamics simulations to explore the wear behaviors of nanograined NbMoTaW RHEA during surface scratching. The wear resistance of nanograined models was significantly enhanced compared to the single-crystalline counterpart. As the grain size increases, the dominant plastic deformation mechanism switches from grain boundary deformation to dislocation movement. Notably, the model with a grain size of 20 nm exhibits the highest dislocation density, local stress, and degree of work hardening. At elevated temperatures, the dynamic recrystallization becomes a crucial plastic deformation mechanism and hinders the formation of dislocations, resulting in a decrease in dislocation density and consequently a decline in the wear resistance of NbMoTaW RHEAs. The current study provides insight into the mechanism underlying the enhanced wear resistance of NbMoTaW RHEAs.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 6","pages":"946 - 960"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145169932","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Corrosion Evolution Behavior of Ti/Zr/Oligomeric Epoxy Silane Composite Chemical Conversion Coatings on Multi-metals","authors":"Yunhu Ding, Yingpeng Li, Hongfang Liu, Wenhao Wang, Yijun Wei, Haitao Duan, Wen Zhan","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01842-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01842-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The new energy vehicle body composed of multi-metals requires a synchronous chemical conversion coating to exhibit excellent corrosion resistance. Herein, we prepared a titanium/zirconium/water-based oligomeric epoxy silane composite chemical conversion coating on multi-metals, and conducted an investigation into its electrochemical behavior and micro-zone structural characteristics upon immersion in a 3.5% NaCl solution. The electrochemical results combined with characterization results revealed that the corrosion evolution characteristics of the composite coatings could be categorized into three stages of mild corrosion, synergistic protection, and substrate damage. Besides, Si–OH groups interact with Me–OH at the defect on the multi-metal surface to form an organic monolayer coating. This organic monolayer coating, in conjunction with the synergistic inorganic conversion layer comprising Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>, TiO<sub>2</sub>·2H<sub>2</sub>O, ZrO<sub>2</sub>·2H<sub>2</sub>O, effectively cooperates with the corrosion products to hinder the erosion by the corrosive medium and suppresses the progression of the anodic reaction.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 6","pages":"889 - 903"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145168651","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Discoloration Process of Minted Copper–Nickel Alloys in Chloride Ion-Containing Environments: Experimental and DFT Research","authors":"Chenzhi Xing, Ming-Hsien Lee, Gongwang Cao, Yuwei Liu, Quanzhong Guo, Zhenyao Wang, Chuan Wang","doi":"10.1007/s40195-025-01819-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s40195-025-01819-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>A corrosion discoloration model for copper–nickel alloys in Cl<sup>−</sup> environments was established using CIE-Lab, UV–VIS absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The corrosion discoloration process and the corresponding main corrosion products can be summarized as follows: silver-white (Cu + Ni) → green (NiO) → reddish-brown (NiO + Cu<sub>2</sub>O) → black (NiO + Cu<sub>2</sub>O + CuO). Density functional theory was employed to explain the corrosion process of copper–nickel alloys and the detrimental effect of Cl<sup>−</sup>. The results indicate that adsorbates preferentially bind to nickel, leading to the preferential formation of NiO, which imparts a green appearance to the surface. Furthermore, the difficulty in forming nickel cation vacancies and the higher diffusion barrier for nickel inhibit the migration of species within the oxide layer. Notably, nickel also suppresses carrier migration within the oxide layer, reducing the charge transfer rate. In contrast, the promotion of corrosion by Cl<sup>−</sup> is primarily attributed to the reduction in surface work function and the formation energy of cation vacancies.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":457,"journal":{"name":"Acta Metallurgica Sinica-English Letters","volume":"38 6","pages":"925 - 945"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145168653","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}