Thermodynamic descriptions of the binary Ni–Sn and ternary Cu–Ni–Sn systems over entire composition range: A revisit

In this study, the phase equilibria of the Cu–Ni–Sn ternary system reported in the literature were critically reviewed and the discrepancies between the results from different sources were clarified. The thermodynamic parameters of the sub-binary Ni–Sn system were updated using the CALculation of PHAse Diagram (CALPHAD) approach yielding significant improvements in the description of Fcc phase boundary. Besides, the artificial miscibility gap in Ni–Sn liquid phase obtained in the previous assessment was successfully removed. Subsequently, a set of self-consistent thermodynamic parameters for the Cu–Ni–Sn ternary system over the whole composition range was systematically optimized by considering the reviewed experimental information together with the updated thermodynamic description for the Ni–Sn binary system. Comprehensive comparison of the calculated and reported thermodynamic properties as well as isothermal and vertical sections shows that the experimental information is satisfactorily reproduced by the present modeling, further validating the thermodynamic descriptions developed in this work.