The novel eutectic microstructures of Si–Mn–P ternary alloy

The microstructures of Si–Mn–P alloy manufactured by the technique of combining phosphorus transportation and alloy melting were investigated using electron probe micro-analyzer (EPMA). The phase compositions were determined by energy spectrum and the varieties of eutectic morphologies were discussed. It is found that there is no ternary compound but Si, MnP and MnSi1.75−x could appear when the Si–Mn–P alloy's composition is proper. Microstructure is greatly refined by rapid solidification technique and the amount of eutectic phases change with faster cooling rates. Moreover, primary Si or MnP are surrounded firstly by the binary eutectic (Si + MnP) and then the ternary eutectic (Si + MnSi1.75−x + MnP) which also exhibit binary structures due to divorced eutectic determined by the particularity of some Si–Mn–P alloys.