High entropy alloy MoNbTaVW synthesized by metal-oxide reduction in a microwave plasma

A unique approach was used to synthesize the high entropy alloy MoNbTaVW via reduction of metal-oxide precursors in a microwave plasma. The metal-oxides underwent ball milling and consolidation before plasma annealing at 1800 degree celsius for 1 h with hydrogen as feedgas. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive x-ray analysis, and Vickers hardness testing reveal characteristics of the high-entropy alloy. This includes a predominantly single-phase body-centered cubic structure, homogeneous distribution of all five metals, and 6.8 +/- 0.9 GPa hardness, comparable with other reports for the same five-metal high entropy alloy configuration. Localized microwave plasma particle sintering is evident from the microstructure. These results highlight the promising potential of microwave plasma as a fast, economical, and flexible processing tool for high entropy alloys.