Surface tension of molten Ni-(Cr, Co, W) alloys and segregation of elements

Surface tension of molten Ni-(Cr, Co, W) alloys was measured at the temperature of 1 773–1 873 K in an Ar+3%H2 atmosphere using an improved sessile drop method. The segregation of Cr, Co and W in alloy was calculated and analyzed using Butler's equation. The results show a good agreement between measured and calculated data. The surface tension of molten Ni-(Cr, Co, W) alloys decreases with increasing temperature. In Ni-(Cr, Co, W) alloys, the element with lower surface tension tends to segregate on the surface of molten alloy while that with higher surface tension tends to segregate inside of the molten alloy. The larger the differences in surface tension, atom radius and electron configuration between solvent and solute are, the more significant the segregation is. As a result, Ni segregates onto the surface and Co and W segregate inside the alloys.