Determination of solid-liquid interfacial energy of solid Mg2Si intermetallic phase in equilibrium with liquid AlSiMg eutectic solution in AlSiMg energy storage alloy

Abstract

The grain boundary groove method has been successfully used to measure Gibbs-Thomson coefficient, Γ, solid-liquid interfacial energies, σSL, experimentally for transparent materials, binary eutectic, peritectic, monotectic systems, colloidal system, any alloy system, multi-component systems as well as pure materials. It has been shown that the grain boundary groove shapes could be obtained for any system provided that the prepared sample could be held at the evaluated temperature long enough with a very stable temperature gradient. Equilibrated grain boundary groove shapes for binary solid Mg2Si intermetallic phase in equilibrium with liquid AlSiMg ternary eutectic solution have been directly observed with a radial heat flow apparatus. The Gibbs-Thomson coefficient, Γ, was determined with a numerical method using observed groove shapes. The measured thermal conductivities of the solid and liquid AlSiMg solutions at the eutectic temperature and the temperature gradient in the solid Mg2Si phase were used for the calculation of Γ. Then σSL was determined using the Gibbs-Thomson equation. The grain boundary energy, σgb, for the same system was also obtained from the observed groove shapes. The results of the work were compared with the results of the related experimental works.