Manipulating Nucleation Potency of Substrates by Interfacial Segregation: An Overview

During solidification of metallic materials, heterogeneous nucleation occurs on substrates, either endogenous or exogenous. The potency the substrates for is mainly dependent upon atomic arrangements substrate surface, which are affected by lattice misfit between and nucleated solid, surface roughness at scale, chemical interaction melt. Extensive examinations metal/substrate (M/S) interfaces scale state-of-the-art aberration (Cs) corrected STEM associated EDS EELS have shown that alloying elements in liquid melts tend to segregate interfaces, leading formation various 2-dimensional compounds (2DCs) solutions (2DSs), depending segregation behavior elements. For instance, Al3Ti 2DC Ti2Zr Al/TiB2 interface, Y2O3 Mg/MgO a Si-rich 2DS layer Al-Si/TiB2 interface been identified. Such interfacial segregations significantly affect resulting promoting impeding process during solidification. In this paper, we present an overview current studies behavior, structure chemistry their impacts subsequent grain initiation processes. Our focus advances made understanding mechanisms refinement. It demonstrated it feasible manipulate modifying through deliberate desirable elements, achieving effective control cast materials.