IK4-AZTERLAN develops a new high-entropy alloy with improved behavior to wear and corrosion

This new metallic material, developed specifically for additive manufacturing applications, has been patented by IK4-AZTERLAN. It will bring significant advantages in certain critical applications for Energy, Oil&Gas, Aeronautic and Automotive industries.

The IK4-AZTERLAN Metallurgy Research Centre has developed an innovative high-entropy alloy that, applied by means of LMD technology, allows to adjust the surface hardness of metallic components and improve their resistance to corrosion and wear.

As explained by Fernando Santos, coordinator of Other Materials and Transformation Processes of IK4-AZTERLAN, “the high-entropy alloys have a great potential that cannot easily be found in other common alloys or that can only be obtained on certain pricier metallic alloys”.

Unlike traditional alloys, composed of one or two predominant metals accompanied by small amounts of other metals or elements, high entropy alloys are built of various metals mixed in similar amounts. For this reason, they offer improved properties, such a higher resistance to heat, wear and corrosion.

The new high entropy metallic alloy developed by IK4-AZTERLAN combines high wear resistance properties that are superior to those of high-speed steels and a high corrosion resistance that can be compared to the one from austenitic stainless steels. That way, it competes with materials like high-speed steels, manganese steels or white cast iron, improving the characteristics offered by these materials in terms of wear and corrosion resistance. They also compete with cobalt base steels and nickel base superalloys “offering similar benefits, but with a significantly lower price”.

Due to its characteristics the new high entropy alloy, already patented by the Technology Centre, will bring significant advantages in determined critical applications of Energy, Oil&Gas, Aeronautic and Automotive sectors, among others.

This new alloy has been developed within the ACTIMAT (new materials for the intelligent specialization in Advanced Manufacturing) collaborative ELKARTEK project. Currently, powder-metallurgy and application by means of LMD deposition is being developed along with the Technology Centre CEIT-IK4.

The ACTIMAT project, lead by GAIKER-IK4, is participated by IK4-Azterlan, Ceit-IK4, Cidetec, IK4-Ikerlan, IK4-Tekniker, CTA, Tecnalia, 3 departments of the UPV/EHU, Mondragon Goi Eskola Politeknikoa, Autotech Engineering and BC Materiales.

High entropy alloy developed by IK4-AZTERLAN