High-entropy gradient filler metal enables high-strength joints of Ti2AlNb and GH4169 superalloy

Abstract

Vacuum brazing with an innovative filler alloy is critical for manufacturing high-precision aerospace components requiring exceptional comprehensive performance, yet achieving superior strength in Ti2AlNb/GH4169 brazed joints remains challenging. This study proposed a (TiZrHf)50(NiCu)45Al5 / (TiZrHf)30(NiCu)65Al5 high-entropy gradient filler metal (HGFM) to join Ti2AlNb alloy and GH4169 superalloy, which relieved stress concentration and elevated microstructure stability, achieving the maximum shear strength of 335 MPa. The lower thermodynamic inclination and high entropy characters synergistically contributed the solid solution mainly composed of (Ni, Cr, Fe)ss and (Ni, Cu, Fe, Cr)ss phases, replacing the intermetallic compounds dominated by (Ti, Zr, Hf)(Ni, Cu)₃ and (Ti, Zr, Hf)₂(Ni, Cu) phases. The corresponding lattice misfits between (Ni, Cr, Fe)ss and (Ni, Cu, Fe, Cr)ss phases were 3.72%, 13.24% and 20.14%, which enabled coherent and semi-coherent relationships, facilitating the dynamic equilibrium of dislocation motion without termination. A higher activation energy at the interface (393 kJ/mol) indicated that slow atomic diffusion controlled the excessive reaction at the interface. The remarkable drop in elastic modulus discrepancies at the customized solid solution region enhanced the synergistic deformation capacities, which drove the fracture locations to transform to the Ti₂AlNb dissolved with Ni and Cu phase, exhibiting a more tortuous fracture path and higher fracture toughness. Molecular dynamics simulations indicated that the solid solution interface enhanced a peak tensile strength of 10.36 GPa, demonstrating favorable high-temperature stability. Current work offers a directly transferable approach for developing tailored filler metal in other dissimilar metal systems.