High-temperature deformation behaviors of the c-doped and n-doped high entropy alloys

High entropy alloys (HEAs) containing multi-principal metallic constituents have attracted much attention. A good understanding of their hot-deformation behavior and recrystallization mechanism is the prerequisite for microstructures tuning and for optimizing mechanical performance. Here, the flow behavior and recrystallization mechanism of the N-doped and C-doped face-centered cubic phase HEAs are produced at high temperatures by hot-compression at 1123–1273 K, with strain rates of 0.1–0.001 s⁻¹. Constitutive equations were successfully constructed to reveal flow behavior, and stress-strain curves were predicted using strain compensated polynomial functions. Discontinuous and continuous dynamic recrystallization proceeded concurrently when compressed at a low temperature and high strain rate, whereas discontinuous recrystallization, which occurs at primary grain boundaries, became predominant at a high temperature and low strain rate, significantly contributing to the refinement and homogenization of the grains. For this reason, a relatively high temperature and a low strain rate, in which the recrystallized grains exhibit equiaxed morphology and very weak texture, are more suitable for refining grains. The average size of the grains was approximately 10 µm. This study sheds light on grain optimization and mechanical properties through thermomechanical processing.