A high-throughput ab initio study of elemental segregation and cohesion at ferritic-iron grain boundaries

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Mai, Han Lin, Cui, Xiang-Yuan, Hickel, Tilmann, Neugebauer, Jörg, Ringer, Simon
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Mai, Han Lin
Cui, Xiang-Yuan
Hickel, Tilmann
Neugebauer, Jörg
Ringer, Simon
author_facet Mai, Han Lin
Cui, Xiang-Yuan
Hickel, Tilmann
Neugebauer, Jörg
Ringer, Simon
contents Segregation of alloying elements and impurities at grain boundaries (GBs) critically influences material behavior by affecting cohesion. In this study, we present an ab initio high-throughput evaluation of segregation energies and cohesive effects for all elements in the periodic table (Z: 1 to 92, H to U) across six model ferritic iron GBs using density functional theory (DFT). From these data, we construct comprehensive elemental maps for solute segregation tendencies and cohesion at GBs, providing guidance for segregation engineering. We systematically assess the cohesive effects of different elements in all segregating positions along multiple fracture paths with a quantum-chemistry bond-order method as well as a modified Rice-Wang theory of interfacial cohesion. The effects of segregants on the cohesion of GBs are shown to vary drastically as a function of site character, and hence their induced cohesive effects must be considered as a thermodynamic average over the spectral energy distribution. Thus, models that overlook these aspects may fail to accurately predict the impacts of varying alloying concentrations, thermal processing conditions, or GB types. The insights presented here, along with our accompanying dataset, are expected to advance our understanding of GB segregation in steels and other materials.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2503_05640
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A high-throughput ab initio study of elemental segregation and cohesion at ferritic-iron grain boundaries
Mai, Han Lin
Cui, Xiang-Yuan
Hickel, Tilmann
Neugebauer, Jörg
Ringer, Simon
Materials Science
Segregation of alloying elements and impurities at grain boundaries (GBs) critically influences material behavior by affecting cohesion. In this study, we present an ab initio high-throughput evaluation of segregation energies and cohesive effects for all elements in the periodic table (Z: 1 to 92, H to U) across six model ferritic iron GBs using density functional theory (DFT). From these data, we construct comprehensive elemental maps for solute segregation tendencies and cohesion at GBs, providing guidance for segregation engineering. We systematically assess the cohesive effects of different elements in all segregating positions along multiple fracture paths with a quantum-chemistry bond-order method as well as a modified Rice-Wang theory of interfacial cohesion. The effects of segregants on the cohesion of GBs are shown to vary drastically as a function of site character, and hence their induced cohesive effects must be considered as a thermodynamic average over the spectral energy distribution. Thus, models that overlook these aspects may fail to accurately predict the impacts of varying alloying concentrations, thermal processing conditions, or GB types. The insights presented here, along with our accompanying dataset, are expected to advance our understanding of GB segregation in steels and other materials.
title A high-throughput ab initio study of elemental segregation and cohesion at ferritic-iron grain boundaries
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.05640