Cryogenic-temperature fracture toughness analysis of non-equi-atomic V₁₀Cr₁₀Fe₄₅Co₂₀Ni₁₅ high-entropy alloy

Representative face-centered-cubic (FCC) high-entropy alloys (HEAs) or medium-entropy alloys (MEAs), e.g., equi-atomic CoCrFeMnNi or CrCoNi alloys, have drawn many attentions due to the excellent damage-tolerance at cryogenic temperature. The investigation of fracture toughness at 77 K is basically required for the reliable evaluation of high-performance alloys used for cryogenic applications; however, it has been rarely carried out for the non-equi-atomic FCC HEAs yet. In this study, tensile and fracture toughness tests were conducted on the non-equi-atomic V₁₀Cr₁₀Fe₄₅Co₂₀Ni₁₅ alloy, and the results were compared with those of the equi-atomic CoCrFeMnNi and CrCoNi alloys. The present alloy shows a good damage tolerance at cryogenic temperature with tensile strength of 1 GPa and elongation of ∼60%. The K_JIc fracture toughness values are 219 and 232 MPa m^1/2 at 298 and 77 K, respectively, showing the increase in toughness with decreasing temperature. This increase results from the absence of twins at 298 K and the increased propensity to twin formation at 77 K, which is well confirmed by the variation of stacking fault energies (SFEs) by using Ab-initio calculations. The mechanical properties of the present alloy are actually similar or slightly lower than those of the other CoNiCr or FeMnCoNiCr alloy; instead, this study provides that neither composition nor certain elements are the most important factors dictating damage-tolerance of HEAs or MEAs.