Sustainable Nanostructured Eutectic Casting Alloys

Ordinary eutectic compositions are characterized by homogeneous solidification of fine structured microstructures of the same number of phases (P) as constituents (N), a consequence of Gibbs’ rule of phases. In higher order systems, so-called pseudo-eutectic points emerge, exhibiting a reduced number of phases, i.e. P<N. This thermodynamic degeneracy leads to an intrinsic refinement that is independent of the cooling rates applied. The project SUSTAINair aims at utilizing this concept to develop novel casting alloys with a superior balance of sustainability, mechanical performance and suitability for welding.