Abstract
The mechanical strength of a polycrystalline material can be drastically weakened by a phenomenon known as grain boundary (GB) premelting that takes place, owing to the so-called disjoining potential, when the dry GB free energy sigma _{gb} exceeds twice the free energy of the solid–liquid interface sigma _{sl}. While previous studies of GB premelting are all limited to equilibrium conditions, we use a multi-phase field model to analyze premelting dynamics by simulating the steady-state growth of a liquid layer along a dry GB in an insulated channel and the evolution of a pre-melted polycrystalline microstructure. In both cases, our results reveal the crucial influence of the disjoining potential. A dry GB transforms into a pre-melted state for a grain-size-dependent temperature interval around T_m, such that a critical overheating of the dry GBs over T_m should be exceeded for the classical melting process to take place, the liquid layer to achieve a macroscopic width, and the disjoining potential to vanish. Our simulations suggest a steady-state velocity for this transformation proportional to sigma _{gb} -2 sigma _{sl}. Concerning the poly-crystalline evolution, we find unusual grain morphologies and dynamics, deriving from the existence of a pre-melted polycrystalline equilibrium that we evidence. We are then able to identify the regime in which, due to the separation of the involved length scales, the dynamics corresponds to the same curvature-driven dynamics as for dry GBs, but with enhanced mobility.
Highlights
The mechanical strength of a polycrystalline material can be drastically weakened by a phenomenon known as grain boundary (GB) premelting that takes place, owing to the so-called disjoining potential, when the dry GB free energy σ gb exceeds twice the of the solid–liquid interface σsl
A dry GB transforms into a pre-melted state for a grain-size-dependent temperature interval around Tm, such that a critical overheating of the dry GBs over Tm should be exceeded for the classical melting process to take place, the liquid layer to achieve a macroscopic width, and the disjoining potential to vanish
→ ∞, To summarize the phenomenology associated with the two critical values of ∞, we present in Fig. 11 a simschegleitvmeednaGt.iFcBokrwi niteh∞tixch as(∞01e)a,dnnidaogftroraramn s∞wfohr>emrea,tia(∞o2sn) amofceuclntuicnrtsgi.ooFncocoruf rs(∞1∞w) i
Summary
The mechanical strength of a polycrystalline material can be drastically weakened by a phenomenon known as grain boundary (GB) premelting that takes place, owing to the so-called disjoining potential, when the dry GB free energy σ gb exceeds twice the of the solid–liquid interface σsl. While previous studies of GB premelting are all limited to equilibrium conditions, we use a multi-phase field model to analyze premelting dynamics by simulating the steady-state growth of a liquid layer along a dry GB in an insulated channel and the evolution of a pre-melted polycrystalline microstructure. In both cases, our results reveal the crucial influence of the disjoining potential. Another reason is that the existing experimental evidence for pure materials is controversial[12] due to a fair criticism that the conclusions could have been influenced by trace impurities[17]
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