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Chinese Journal of Materials Research  2026, Vol. 40 Issue (10): 746-756    DOI: 10.11901/1005.3093.2025.367
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Fabrication and Tribological Performance of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si Composites
HU Yong(), QIAO Zenghuan, XIN Yu
School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China Jiaotong University, Nanchang 330013, China
Cite this article: 

HU Yong, QIAO Zenghuan, XIN Yu. Fabrication and Tribological Performance of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si Composites. Chinese Journal of Materials Research, 2026, 40(10): 746-756.

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Abstract  

Composites of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si were fabricated by laser deposition technique with mixed powder of FeCoCrNiMo and Al-10Si as raw material. The microstructure, local composition and tribological properties of the composites were characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and UMT-3 tribometer. The results demonstrate that the α-Al grain size gradually decreases with the increasing mass fraction of FeCoCrNiMo reinforcements. The morphology of the reinforcing phase evolves from initially spherical to petal-like, and finally to a coarse fishbone structure. A distinct interfacial reaction layer with a thickness of approximately 30 nm is formed between the FeCoCrNiMo high-entropy alloy and the Al matrix, which can be identified as Al3Ni2. As the mass fraction of the FeCoCrNiMo reinforcements increases, the wear resistance of the composites was improved correspondingly. However, when the mass fraction of FeCoCrNiMo exceeds 10%, the enhancement in wear resistance becomes less pronounced. The dominant wear mechanism shifts from fatigue and adhesive wear to abrasive wear.

Key words:  composites      FeCoCrNiMo      Al-matrix composites      laser deposition      microstructure      wear resistance     
Received:  16 December 2025     
ZTFLH:  TB331  
Fund: National Natural Science Foundation of China(51865011)
Corresponding Authors:  HU Yong, Tel: 13576012078, E-mail: huyong@ecjtu.edu.cn

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https://www.cjmr.org/EN/10.11901/1005.3093.2025.367     OR     https://www.cjmr.org/EN/Y2026/V40/I10/746

Fig.2  Average grain size of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites
Fig.1  Microstructure of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites (a) A0, (b) A5, (c) A7.5, (d) A10, (e) A12.5, (f) A15
Fig.3  Morphology of reinforcing phase in FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites (a) A5, (b) A7.5, (c) A10, (d) A12.5, (e) A15
Fig.4  Average grain size of FeCoCrNiMo reinforced phase
Fig.5  SEM-EDS analysis of A10 composite
Fig.6  TEM observation of A15 composite
ElementFeCoCrNiMo
Al-11-19-10-22-5
Si-18-24-31-23-18
Table 1  Values of ΔHmix (kJ/mol) between different elements
PointAlSiCrFeCoNiMo
160.290.930.281.091.3636.030.03
262.521.640.471.92.1430.061.27
Table 2  Point scanning of diffusion layer of A15 composite (mass fraction, %)
Fig.7  Bright field (BF) diagram and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) diagram of A15 composites (a) BF diagram, (b) HRTEM image of zone 1, (c) SAED pattern of interface reaction layer Al3Ni2, (d) SAED pattern of Al phase, (e)SAED pattern of FCC phase, (f) SAED pattern of Si phase
Fig.8  Microhardness of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites
Fig.9  Friction coefficient of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites
Fig.10  Three-dimensional profiles of wear scar of of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites (a) A0, (b) A5, (c) A7.5, (d) A10, (e) A12.5, (f) A15
Fig.11  Macroscopic morphology of wear scar of of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites (a) A0, (b) A5, (c) A7.5, (d) A10, (e) A12.5, (f) A15
Fig.12  Cross-sectional profile of the wear scar (a) and wear rate (b) of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites
PositionFeCoCrNiMoAlSiO
A-----37.1210.1652.72
B1.410.471.390.640.7241.735.1848.46
C0.550.080.100.390.0864.2112.7621.83
D0.920.2100.480.1775.3413.169.72
E1.370.680.970.760.8569.4018.677.30
F0.320.130.070.780.3775.0816.326.93
Table 3  EDS analysis of FeCoCrNiMo / Al-10Si wear surface (atomic fraction, %)
Fig.13  Wear surface morphology of FeCoCrNiMo/Al-10Si composites (a) A0, (b) A5, (c) A7.5, (d) A10, (e) A12.5, (f) A15
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