Thermodynamic and diffusion kinetic studies of the Fe-Co system

Abstract The phase equilibria, thermodynamic properties and diffusion mobilities of the Fe-Co system were carefully assessed through the CALPHAD methods. As an indispensable tool, the first-principles calculations were carried out to study the magnetic moments and the enthalpies of mixing of the bcc_A2, bcc_B2, fcc_A1 and hcp_A3 phases as well as the point defect types of the bcc_B2 phase. In order to verify the heat capacities reported in the literature, new measurements were conducted in a high-temperature calorimetric apparatus using the three-dimensional calorimetric method. Because of the revision of the thermodynamic parameters in the present work, the diffusion mobilities for the fcc_A1 phase were reassessed. The diffusion mobilities for the bcc_A2 phase were established for the first time based on the experimental diffusion coefficients. For the low-temperature bcc_B2 phase, the diffusion couple experiments conducted in the present work show that the diffusion process is sluggish and the interdiffusion coefficients are difficult to determine. Therefore the tracer diffusivities of Co and Fe in the Fe-Co alloys were used to assess the diffusion mobilities for the bcc_B2 phase, while the composition-distance profile of one diffusion couple was served as a validation of its diffusion mobilities.