Scalable manufacturing of immiscible Al Bi alloy by self-assembled nanoparticles

Abstract Immiscible Al Bi alloy, with a miscibility gap in the liquid state is not only scientifically important, but also it can offer outstanding self-lubricating properties. However, it is still difficult to control the distribution and size of minority Bi phase during cooling and solidification. Here we show that by applying a scalable molten salt assisted incorporation process, TiC nanoparticles can be incorporated in Al matrix to produce Al-TiC master nanocomposites, which can be readily used to process Al Bi immiscible alloy and restrict the size of minority Bi phase. TiC nanoparticles can be self-assembled on the Al Bi interface and restrict Bi phase size substantially. In addition, submicron minority Bi phase can be achieved by combining the addition of nanoparticles with high cooling rates. Mechanical properties of Al Bi immiscible alloys can be further enhanced by the addition of Cu element and cold rolling.