Abnormal variation of magnetic properties with Ce content in(PrNdCe)_2Fe_(14)B sintered magnets prepared by dual alloy method

Resource-saving（PrNdCe）_2Fe_（14）B sintered magnets with nominal composition（PrNd）_（15-x）Ce_xFe_（77）B_8（x=0–10）were prepared using a dual alloy method by mixing（PrNd）_5Ce_（10）Fe_（77）B_8 with（PrNd）_（15）Fe_（77）B_8 powders. For Ce atomic percent of 1% and 2%, coercivity decreases dramatically. With further increase of Ce atomic percent, the coercivity increases, peaks at 6.38 kOe in（PrNd）_（11）Ce_4Fe_（77）B_8, and then declines gradually. The abnormal dependence of coercivity is likely related to the inhomogeneity of rare earth chemical composition in the intergranular phase, where Pr Nd concentration is strongly dependent on the additive amount of（PrNd）_5Ce_（10）Fe_（77）B_8 powders. In addition, for Ce atomic percent of 8%,7%, and 6% the coercivity is higher than that of magnets prepared by the conventional method, which shows the advantage of the dual alloy method in preparing high abundant rare earth magnets.

Dual alloying improves the corrosion resistance of biodegradable Mg alloys prepared by selective laser melting

Mg alloys have been regarded as revolutionary metallic biomaterials for biodegradable bone implants,but their applications are mainly blocked by the too rapid degradation in physiological environment.This study explores the dual alloying effects of Mn and/or Sn on the performance of Mg alloys prepared by selective laser melting.The observed microstructure indicated remarkable refinement of both the grains and intermetallic phases in the Mn-and/or Sn-containing alloys during the rapid solidification process.Moreover,approximately a half decrease in corrosion rate was observed for AZ61-0.4Mn-0.8Sn alloy with respect to AZ61 alloy.The improved corrosion behavior was primarily due to the enhanced protective effects of surface layers,in which Mn-and/or Sn-rich phases acted as a helpful barrier against medium penetration and thereby alleviated the current exchange with the matrix.In addition,the solute Mn and/or Sn positively shifted the corrosion potential,which also brought about a better corrosion resistance.Furthermore,the strength and hardness of the alloys were also effectively improved and comparable to those of cortical bone.This could be ascribed to the dissolved Mn and/or Sn atoms and the finely dispersed intermetallic phases,which might cause lattice distortion and precipitation hardening.Besides,the Mn-and/or Sn-containing alloys showed good cytocompatibility as indicated by the normal morphology and increased viability of MG-63 cells.These findings suggest that the developed AZ61-Mn-Sn alloy is a promising candidate for biodegradable bone implants.

Magnetic properties of misch-metal partially substituted Nd–Fe–B magnets sintered by dual alloy method

The misch-metal （MM） partially substituted Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets were fabricated by the dual alloy method, and the crystal structure, microstructure, and magnetic properties were analyzed comprehensively. X-ray diffraction （XRD） reveals that the increasing content of the MM has an inconsiderable effect on the crystallographic alignment of the magnets. Grains of the two main phases are uniformly distributed, and slightly deteriorate on the grain boundary. Due to the diffusion between the adjacent grains, the MM substituted Nd-Fe-B magnets contain three types of components with different Ce/La concentrations. Moreover, the first-order reversal curve （FORC） diagram is introduced to analyze the magnetization reversal process, coercivity mechanism, and distribution of reversal field in magnetic samples. The analysis indicates that there are two major reversal components, corresponding to the two different main phases. The domain nucleation and growth are determined to be the leading mechanism in controlling the magnetization reversal processes of the magnets sintered by the dual alloy method.

Microstructure refinement of a dual phase titanium alloy by severe room temperature compression

Microstructure refinement of a dual phase titanium alloy, Ti-3AI-4.5V-5Mo, by severe room temperature compression was investigated. Nanocrystalline grains were observed in the sample with 75% reduction, in which the grain sizes of a phase and β phase were approximately 50 and 100 nm. Conversely, the average thicknesses of a phase and β phase in as-received microstructure were measured to be 0.7 and 0.5 μm, respectively. TEM and XRD methods were used to analyze the microstructure and texture changes after severe deformation. Microstructure refinement was deduced to the complex interaction among slip dislocations in the a phase, the complex interaction among slip dislocations and martensites in the β phases. In addition, the interaction between the a phase and the β phase also contributed to the microstructure refinement.

Extraordinary simultaneous enhancement of the coercivity and remanence of dual alloy HRE-free Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets by post-sinter annealing

Post-sinter annealing process plays an important role in the microstructures and magnetic properties of the Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets.In this paper,systematically investigated are the magnetic properties and microstructures of the as-sintered and post-sinter annealed Nd-Fe-B magnets with Pr-Fe-Ga boundary addition.Two choice consecutive annealing methods are adopted at high and low temperatures,namely the 1 st annealing at 880℃ for 2 h and then the 2^(nd) annealing at 440℃ for 3 h.It is exceptional to find out that both the remanence and coercivity are improved after 2^(nd) annealing process for this type of magnet.The coercivity is hugely increased from 10.09 kOe for the as-sintered sample to 17.19 kOe for the 2^(nd) annealed magnet,with a significant increment of 70.37%in coercivity.The extraordinary magnetic properties of B_(r)=14.44 kGs,H_(cj)=17.19 kOe and(BH)_(max)=51.08 MGOe are obtained for the designated Nd-Fe-B sintered magnets without heavy rare earth(HRE)elements manufactured by dual alloy method.The Curie temperature is monotonically decreased from 634 K to 602 K while the c-axis alignment degree is optimized after annealing.Microstructural observation and analysis indicate that the elemental distribution patterns are altered after the 2^(nd) annealing.The diffusion of the aggregate(Pr,Nd,Cu,Ga)-rich phase from triple junctions into the grain boundary regions is ascribed to the formation of thin and continuous grain boundary layer,which is critical to improve the microstructures and magnetic properties.