Achieving Excellent Strength-Ductility Balance in Single-Phase CoCrNiV Multi-Principal Element Alloy

CoCrNi alloys exhibit excellent strength and ductility. In this work, the CoCrNiV multi-principal alloy with single-phase fine grained (FG) structure was prepared by rolling and heat treatment. The characteristics of deformation microstructures and mechanical properties were systematically investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results indicate that the CoCrNiV alloy successfully attains a yield strength of 1060 MPa while maintaining a uniform elongation of 24.1%. The enhanced strength originates from FG structure and severe lattice distortion induced by V addition. Meanwhile, the exceptional ductility arises from the stable strain-hardening ability facilitated by dislocations and stacking faults. The deformation mechanisms and the optimization strategies for attaining both strength and ductility are thoroughly discussed.