Microstructure and Phase Composition of the Cr-Mn-Fe-Co-Ni High-Entropy Alloy Obtained by Wire-Arc Additive Manufacturing

The work intends to study the microstructure, chemical and phase composition and homogeneity of chemical elements distribution in the Co-Cr-Fe-Mn-Ni high-entropy alloy produced via wire-arc additive manufacturing technology. The study has revealed three structure types in the alloy: (1) a smooth shagreen-type structure (an orange peel), which turns into a stripe-like structure (2) in some areas, and a grain structure (3) to appear as lengthy thin layers with the width of 50-80 μm and an average grain size of 12.5 μm, the most probable size of grains is detected to be in the range from 10 to 15 μm, a preferred number of such grains is 31%. The chemical composition of the produced alloy is assessed using X-ray microspectroscopy. The elements identified rank in descending order of concentration: Fe (38.88 wt. %), Co (26.08 wt. %), Ni (17.34 wt. %), Cr (14.33 wt. %), Mn (3.37 wt. %). The mapping of the alloy structure demonstrates the homogeneous and uniform distribution of chemical elements.