Phase-field Modeling of Phase Transformations in Multicomponent Alloys: A Review

• Published in: Journal of the Indian Institute of Science Vol. 102; no. 1; pp. 39 - 57
• Main Author: Lahiri, Arka
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New Delhi Springer India 01.01.2022
• Subjects: Chemistry and Materials Science; Chemistry/Food Science; Engineering; Materials Science; Physics; Review Article; ICME; Phase-field; Multicomponent alloy; Microstructure; Multiphase
• ISSN: 0970-4140; 0019-4964
• DOI: 10.1007/s41745-022-00288-y

Almost all alloys of engineering importance are multicomponent in character. Multicomponent alloys are subject to complex interplay of thermodynamic and kinetic parameters and display a rich variety of microstructural features which are not seen in binary alloys. Achieving microstructural control of multicomponent alloys is central to their efficacy in specific applications. Unraveling the chemistry-thermomechanical processing-microstructure relationships in multicomponent alloys only through experiments have been proven to be a resource intensive approach. Quantitative simulations of microstructural evolution in multicomponent alloys using the technique of phase-field modeling can significantly offset the experimental burden and provide an energy efficient and sustainable framework for alloy design. In this review, we focus on those phase-field models which can consider the evolution of multiple phases simultaneously in a multicomponent system and attempt to understand the history of their emergence as tools of predictive value. We briefly review the studies conducted with such multiphase, multicomponent phase-field models and conclude with a commentary on the future role of phase-field modeling towards the sustainable development of novel multicomponent alloys.