Exploring microstructure and caloric effects in gas-atomized Ni–Mn–Sn–Co precursor for additive manufacturing

Abstract

Recently, additive manufacturing (AM) of intrinsically brittle Ni–Mn–X alloys, in which obtaining high-quality powders is imperative, has received widespread attention. Here, a batch weight of about 34 kg Ni–Mn–Sn–Co powder was prepared using industrial gas atomization equipment. To explore the sinterability of the gas-atomized powder and provide a direct comparison in caloric effects for binder-based AM techniques, we sintered Ni–Mn–Sn–Co alloy powder samples at 1173–1273 K for 2–24 h by using a powder metallurgy process with air cooling. The sintered powder samples had a relative density of about 60.3–80.1 %, and 5M martensite and L21–ordered austenite were found to coexist at room temperature. For all sintered samples, martensitic transformation temperature width of about 11–17 K and hysteresis of about 21–23 K were obtained, and strong magneto-structural coupling was observed. The magnetocaloric and elastocaloric effects of the sample sintered at 1273 K for 2 h were examined. A magnetic entropy change of about 23.0 J kg−1·K−1 and an adiabatic temperature change (ΔTad) of −0.97 K were achieved for magnetic fields of 5.0 and 1.25 T, respectively. Furthermore, a ΔTad of −4.71 K was achieved upon unloading a compressive stress of 350 MPa. These competitive caloric effects in the gas-atomized powder lay the foundation for the AM of Ni–Mn–Sn–Co alloys with complex structures. This study provides a reference for the reliable manufacturing of composition-sensitive Ni–Mn–X Heusler alloys.