An autogenously dissimilar Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-high entropy alloy/stainless steel (i.e., AISI 304) weld joint was produced by an electron-beam welding technique. The weld metal followed mode A of solidification and resulted in a fully austenitic columnar dendritic microstructure due to rapid cooling and lower chromium equivalent to nickel equivalent (Cr_eq/Ni_eq) ratio (1.12–1.14). Tensile test sample fractures at the base metal (Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-high entropy alloy) and illustrates higher strength (the yield and ultimate strength of 310 ± 10 MPa and 560 ± 15 MPa, respectively) than that of Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-high entropy alloy, ensuring the suitability of the electron-beam welding for the Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-high entropy alloy/AISI 304 stainless steel joint structures designed with respect to Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-HEA properties. The influence of the manufacturing process (electron beam welding) is highlighted in terms of microstructure and mechanical properties.

In this study, a combination of Al–12Si and Al–20Si (Al–(12-20)Si) alloys was fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM) as a result of increased component requirements such as geometrical complexity and high dimensional accuracy. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the SLM Al–(12-20)Si in as-produced as well as in heat-treated conditions were investigated. The Al–(12-20)Si interface was in the as-built condition and it gradually became blurry until it disappeared after heat treatment at 673 K for 6 h. This Al–(12-20)Si bi-material displayed excellent mechanical properties. The hardness of the Al–20Si alloy side was significantly higher than that of the Al–12Si alloy side and the disparity between both sides gradually decreased and tended to be consistent after heat treatment at 673 K for 6 h. The tensile strength and elongation of the Al–(12-20Si) bi-material lies in between the Al–12Si and Al–20Si alloys and fracture occurs in the Al–20Si side. The present results provide new insights into the fabrication of bi-materials using SLM.

Tungsten heavy alloy composite was developed by using novel CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy as the binder/reinforcement phase. Elemental tungsten (W) powder and mechanically alloyed CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy were mixed gently in high energy ball mill and consolidated using different sintering process with varying heating rate (in trend of conventional sintering < microwave sintering < spark plasma sintering). Mechanically alloyed CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy alloy have shown a predominant face-centered cubic (fcc) phase with minor Cr-rich σ-phase. Consolidated tungsten heavy high-entropy alloys (WHHEA) composites reveal the presence of Cr–Mn-rich oxide phase in addition to W-grains and high-entropy alloys (HEA) phase. An increase in heating rate restricts the tungsten grain growth with reduces the volume fraction of the Cr–Mn-rich phase. Finally, spark plasma sintering with a higher heating rate and shorter sintering time has revealed higher compressive strength (~2041 MPa) than the other two competitors (microwave sintering: ~1962 MPa and conventional sintering: ~1758 MPa), which may be attributed to finer W-grains and reduced fraction of Cr–Mn rich oxide phase.

High-entropy alloy, a new generation material, exhibits superior structural properties. For high-temperature applications, where dissimilar materials are in demand, HEAs may be joined with commercially available structural materials to improve their performance-life ratio. In this connection, a dissimilar joint was fabricated by gas tungsten arc welding between Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-HEA and Inconel 718. The columnar dendritic grains are growing epitaxially at the Al_0.1CoCrFeNi-HEA/weld metal interface, where their compositions are matching. While the composition misfit at the weld metal/Inconel 718 interface, reveals the non-epitaxial mode of solidification. In addition, the fusion zone exhibits the porosity and micro-segregation of NbC and Laves phases. The joint shows a joint efficiency of ~ 88%, where the strength is observed to be 644 MPa with 21% ductility. The results demonstrate the applicability of GTAW in fabricating the dissimilar weld joints between HEA and Inconel 718 for structural applications. Graphic abstract