Microstructural and mechanical property enhancement of W-Zr alloys by nano-Al2O3, Y2O3, and La2O3 dispersions: A combined MD simulation and experimental approach

B Das and SK Sinha and A Patra and A Ghosh and S Kumar and B Choudhury and NK Mindi, JOURNAL OF ALLOYS AND COMPOUNDS, 1040, 183502 (2025).

DOI: 10.1016/j.jallcom.2025.183502

This study involves the fabrication of three tungsten-based alloys: W98.5Zr0.5(Al2O3)1 (alloy A), W98.5Zr0.5(Y2O3)1 (alloy B) and W98.5Zr0.5(La2O3)1 (alloy C) all in wt%. These compositions were prepared via mechanical alloying for 20 h, followed by conventional sintering at 1500 degrees C for 2 h under an argon atmosphere. The Molecular dynamics simulations were employed to optimise the sintering temperature and understand the sintering behavior for the three alloys at three different temperatures (1400, 1500 degrees C, and 1600 degrees C). The potential versus temperature graphs were used to establish a crucial link between melting behavior and sintering temperature. Milled powders and sintered alloys were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Among the samples, alloy B milled for 20 h exhibited the smallest crystallite size of 10.6 nm, along with the highest values of lattice strain (0.34 %) and dislocation density (4.037 x 1016 m-2). The lattice parameters of alloys A to C initially increased up to 5 h of milling, followed by a decrease with further milling time. The minimum average particle size of 398.35 nm, measured by dynamic light scattering (DLS) after dispersion in distilled water, was also observed in alloy B. Superior sinterability (91.06 %), compressive strength (1.52 GPa), and hardness (8.7 GPa) were achieved in alloy B, attributed to its refined microstructure, and fine oxide dispersion.

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