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Crystals
Special Issues
Microstructure Characterization and Design of Advanced Alloys
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Microstructure Characterization and Design of Advanced Alloys

A special issue of Crystals (ISSN 2073-4352). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystalline Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 November 2026 | Viewed by 1830

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Changling Zhuang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Material and Metallurgy, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Interests: crack sensitivity; TWIP steels; solidification process; high manganese steel; electro-slag remelting (ESR); inclusions; clean steelmaking; the secondary phase particle characterization and control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Patrice Berthod

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institut Jean Lamour and Faculty of Sciences and Technologies, University of Lorraine, 54000 Nancy, France
Interests: elaboration, microstructures and properties of superalloys and dental alloys (mechanical behavior, oxidation and corrosion)
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The design and development of advanced alloys have long been at the core of materials science and engineering, driving innovations across multiple industries, including aerospace, automotive, energy, and electronics. The microstructure of alloys serves as the foundation for their macroscopic properties, and a deep understanding and precise control of it are essential for creating materials that meet the increasingly demanding requirements of modern applications.

This Special Issue, "Microstructure Characterization and Design of Advanced Alloys", is dedicated to publishing high-quality research articles and reviews that focus on the latest advances in the field of alloy microstructure. We welcome submissions that present novel experimental techniques, sophisticated simulation methods, and innovative design strategies related to the microstructure of advanced alloys.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to

  1. Advanced characterization techniques (e.g., high-resolution electron microscopy, synchrotron X-ray diffraction, atom probe tomography) for revealing the microstructure of alloys at different scales;
  2. In situ and operando studies of microstructure evolution during alloy processing and under service conditions;
  3. Computational modeling and simulation of alloy microstructure formation and stability, including phase-field modeling, molecular dynamics simulations, and Monte Carlo methods;
  4. Microstructure–property relationships in advanced alloys and how they can guide alloy design for specific performance targets;
  5. Design of novel alloy systems with tailored microstructures for enhanced strength, ductility, toughness, corrosion resistance, high-temperature stability, etc.;
  6. Case studies on the microstructure optimization of advanced alloys for particular industrial applications.

We look forward to receiving your contributions and showcasing cutting-edge research that advances our understanding of alloy microstructures and their role in the development of next-generation materials.

Prof. Dr. Changling Zhuang
Dr. Patrice Berthod
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Crystals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • advanced alloys
  • microstructure characterization
  • property optimization
  • multi-scale analysis
  • computational modeling

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 11347 KB  
Article
Kinetics of Oxidation at High Temperature and Degradation States of Cr-Free Al-Containing Cobalt and Nickel Alloys Reinforced by TaC Carbides
by Patrice Berthod
Crystals 2026, 16(2), 125; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst16020125 - 8 Feb 2026
Viewed by 571
Abstract
Two cobalt alloys and one nickel alloy, containing Ta and C in similar atomic contents and either 5 or 10 wt.% Al, were cast. Their microstructures and their oxidation behaviors in air at 1200 °C over 50 h were investigated. All contained eutectic [...] Read more.
Two cobalt alloys and one nickel alloy, containing Ta and C in similar atomic contents and either 5 or 10 wt.% Al, were cast. Their microstructures and their oxidation behaviors in air at 1200 °C over 50 h were investigated. All contained eutectic script-like TaC carbides and a dendritic matrix which was either single-phased (FCC) or double-phased (FCC + Co3Al). The cobalt sample with 5 wt.% oxidized catastrophically, became thinner, lost all its TaC, and was covered by a thick oxide shell (outer CoO and inner mixture of CoO, CoAl2O4 and Ta-rich oxides). The two other alloys, Ni-based with 5 wt.% Al and Co-based with 10 wt.% Al, oxidized more slowly, with a mass gain kinetic slightly lower than that for chromia-forming alloys at 1200 °C and a continuous duplex oxide scale made of an outer MAl2O4 spinel and inner Al2O3 scales. This evidences the existence of two Al content thresholds, depending on the base element, that must be exceeded to obtain acceptable oxidation behavior. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microstructure Characterization and Design of Advanced Alloys)
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18 pages, 9611 KB  
Article
Design, Preparation and Synergistic Optimization of Mechanical Properties and Thermal Neutron Shielding Performance of Mg-Dy-Sm-Zr Alloys
by Huabing Lu, Chengzhi Duan, Enci Niu, Xiyu Xu, Jia She, Jun Tan, Wei Zhang and Jianjun Mao
Crystals 2025, 15(10), 894; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst15100894 - 15 Oct 2025
Viewed by 778
Abstract
Addressing the challenge of synergistically optimizing shielding performance and mechanical properties in nuclear radiation shielding materials, this study designed and prepared as-cast Mg-12Dy-xSm-0.4Zr (x = 1, 2, 3) alloys by incorporating rare earth elements Dy and Sm, which possess high thermal neutron absorption [...] Read more.
Addressing the challenge of synergistically optimizing shielding performance and mechanical properties in nuclear radiation shielding materials, this study designed and prepared as-cast Mg-12Dy-xSm-0.4Zr (x = 1, 2, 3) alloys by incorporating rare earth elements Dy and Sm, which possess high thermal neutron absorption cross-sections. The co-addition of Sm and Dy significantly refined the grains and promoted the precipitation of bone-like Mg5(Sm,Dy) and Mg41Sm5 phases along grain boundaries. The alloys exhibited favorable mechanical properties, with ultimate tensile strength (UTS) reaching up to 194.6 MPa and elongation (EL) up to 10.9%. However, higher Sm content led to an increased amount of secondary phases at grain boundaries, resulting in stress concentration and a subsequent decline in both yield strength and elongation. Moreover, the combined addition of Dy and Sm markedly enhanced the thermal neutron shielding performance. Experimental results agreed well with Geant4 simulations, showing that both the neutron shielding rate and linear attenuation coefficient improved with increasing Sm content, demonstrating the positive role of Dy and Sm in neutron absorption. The developed alloy achieves simultaneous improvement in mechanical properties and neutron shielding capacity, providing valuable insights for the development of lightweight “function–structure integrated” radiation shielding materials for applications such as nuclear medicine and aerospace. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microstructure Characterization and Design of Advanced Alloys)
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