Design of [Al-(FeCoNi)12]AlxCr3-x HEAs based on cluster-plus-glue-atom model and its coating fabricated by laser cladding

To prolong the service life of the blade, a series of [Al-(FeCoNi)12]AlxCr3-x (x = 0,0.5,1,1.5) high-entropy-alloy (HEA) composition is designed based on the cluster-plus-glue-atom model. And the HEAs coating was fabricated on 904L stainless steel by laser cladding. The phase structure, microstructure, microhardness, wear resistance as well as corrosion resistance were measured by XRD, SEM, microhardness tester, wear machine and electrochemical workstation, respectively. The experimental results show that when x = 0, only a single face-centered-cubic (FCC) solid solution is detected in coating. With the addition of Al content, the phases in coating are mainly composed of FCC and BCC. Moreover, the microstructure of the coating is transformed from columnar to cellular dendrites. When x = 1.5, the HEA coating possessed the high microhardness, nearly 3 times higher than that of substrate, also accompanied with the most excellent wear-resistance and anti-corrosion behaviors. The novel HEA coating performs excellent comprehensive properties. •The [Al-(FeCoNi)12]AlxCr3-x HEAs based on cluster-plus-glue-atom model and its coatings are prepared on 904L steel.•The HEAs coatings are mainly composed of BCC and FCC.•The microhardness of the coating is nearly 3 times that of 904L substrate.•The mechanism of wear resistance for HEAs coatings are investigated.•This corrosion resistance of HEAs coating with excellent properties may be novel coating materials for stainless steel.