High-Entropy Alloy
en.wikipedia.org83 points by leonidasrup 3 days ago
83 points by leonidasrup 3 days ago
The challenge with modelling HEAs is that they have very complex electronic structures, its very tempting for a newbie to throw an MLIP at the problem but in reality you have many complicated bonding arrangements that are not captured by these models, this is also compounded by the fact that you dont just have a slab with a bunch of itinerant electrons but you end up with covalent and even ionic-like bondings forming in the SRO substructures. Then theres spin treatment (which matters a lot), and also because the configuration space is combitatorially large you also have to do some high throughout studies with statistical interpretation since by definition theres no such thing as a representative unit cell in an HEA
How do I know? We have invented multiple via simulation and have them in the lab for synthesis now!
Because with so many metals in high entropy alloys, you can tune it to whatever, and that's why it's currently being investigated for potential room temperature superconductors.
I did some work with HEAs, specifically Paliney-6 and Paliney-7, and was pretty blown away by two things:
1. Material properties
2. Cost.
I wonder if the Xenonite is a high-entropy alloy :-)
In the book Grace says that it's a mess of proteins and molecules that he gives up on trying to understand
>mess of proteins and molecules
Because proteins famously aren't molecules.
This is a legitimate, understandable way to discuss a mixture of abstract and specific things. This is a novel we are referring to, here. The intended audience is very, very broad.
Have any commercially interesting alloys been found? This article seems to be all about research.
It depends what you mean by commercially interesting. There’s loads of interest in aerospace (for high temp corrosion resistant structural components) and catalysis but these alloys are pretty much across the board at a relatively low level of technical readiness. It’s developed enough that there’s significant industry R&D and not just academic and government research, but I don’t think there’s really wide-scale deployment yet of alloys with 4+ principal elements