Author(s) |
Samuel B. Inman, Jie Qi, Mark Wischhusen, Carol Glover, Junsoo Han, Sean Agnew, Joseph Poon, John R Scully |
Abstract Scope |
This project seeks to design lightweight, low cost, compositionally complex alloys with combinations of strength, ductility, and corrosion resistance in marine environments. Corrosion resistance depends on balancing phase composition to enable natural passivation and minimize solute depletion near phase interfaces. High throughput, machine learning-based methods were used to select alloying elements favorable for synthesis based on cost, density, passivation ability, and phase stability. Alloys were synthesized, characterized, and experimentally examined for nanostructure, phase stability, and mechanical properties. Selected alloys were experimentally verified to have an FCC matrix and B2 secondary phase regions with XRD. Potentiodynamic polarization experiments were performed in dilute NaCl solutions of varying concentrations and pH. Passive film compositions were investigated with ex-situ XPS. Corrosion resistance surpassing stainless steel may be attributable to Al, Cr, and Ti enriched oxide formation. Single-element composition adjustments suggested trade-offs between improving corrosion resistance and promoting microstructural stability, establishing foundations for compositional optimization. |