A physically-based constitutive model for the prediction of yield strength in the precipitate-hardened high-entropy alloys.

Precipitate-hardened high-entropy alloys (HEAs) exhibit great mechanical strength and exceptional ductility. However, the existing model fails to accurately predict the yield strength contributing from the solid solution strengthening and precipitate strengthening in the HEAs due to the neglect of the crucial roles including the complex chemical element, precipitate-size distribution, and the precipitate-spatial distribution. Moreover, a unified strength model for analyzing the yield strength in the HEAs is still lacking. A developed precipitate strengthening model considering the size distribution and spatial distribution is established and shows a higher accuracy compared to the existing model. The results show that the precipitate strengthening is the dominant contribution to the yield strength. It reveals that the effect of spatial distribution on precipitate strengthening is more pronounced than that of the precipitate-size distribution. This developed model provides a theoretical framework for determining the precipitate strengthening and the yield strength of HEA, and then subsequently guides the design of the high-strength HEAs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]