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Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions

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A special issue of Crystals (ISSN 2073-4352). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystalline Metals and Alloys".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2021) | Viewed by 43873

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Dr. Simone Anzellini

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Diamond House, Harwell Science & Innovation Campus, Didcot OX11 0DE, UK
Interests: characterization of materials under extreme conditions of pressure and temperature; phase diagrams; melting curves; equation of states; diamond anvil cells; synchrotron X-ray diffraction and absorption spectroscopy
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Prof. Dr. Daniel Errandonea

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Departamento de Física Aplicada-ICMUV, MALTA Consolider Team, Universidad de Valencia, 46010 València, Spain
Interests: high-pressure; phase transitions; oxides; X-ray diffraction; novel technological materials
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The characterisation of the physical and chemical properties of transition metals and their compounds under extreme conditions of pressure and temperature has always attracted the interest of a wide scientific community. Their properties have numerous implications in fields ranging from solid-state physics, chemistry and materials science to Earth and planetary science.

In the last few decades, thanks to advancements in experimental techniques and computer simulations, the rate of new important discoveries in this field has significantly increased: from the prediction and the experimental observation of new ultra-hard materials to the combined characterisation of textural, structural, magnetic and chemical pressure-induced evolutions; and from the possible observation of topological transitions in the Fermi surface for valence electrons to newly predicted pressure-induced core level crossing transitions.

The present Special Issue provides a forum for describing and discussing contemporary achievements in extreme conditions research. In particular, the authors are invited to contribute articles presenting new experimental and theoretical advances related to this field. Contributions discussing pressure (temperature)-induced evolution of electronic, magnetic or structural properties of transition metals, as well as phase diagrams, melting curves and equation of states of geophisically relevant compounds are welcome. Discussions on the mechanism of these transformations and their influence on the physical and chemical properties are also welcome. The volume is also open to feature and short review articles of current hot topics.

Dr. Simone Anzellini
Prof. Dr. Daniel Errandonea
Guest Editors

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Keywords

Extreme conditions research
Phase transitions
Structural, electronic and magnetic properties
Textural evolution
Phase diagrams modelling and characterisation
New materials
Equation of state
Melting curves
Symmetry-breaking

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Published Papers (13 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

3 pages, 157 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions

by Simone Anzellini and Daniel Errandonea

Crystals 2021, 11(10), 1185; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11101185 - 29 Sep 2021

Viewed by 1893

Abstract

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

Research

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32 pages, 6111 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermostructural and Elastic Properties of PbTe and Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te: A Combined Low-Temperature and High-Pressure X-ray Diffraction Study of Cd-Substitution Effects

by Roman Minikayev, Fatemeh Safari, Andrzej Katrusiak, Wojciech Szuszkiewicz, Andrzej Szczerbakow, Anthony Bell, Elżbieta Dynowska and Wojciech Paszkowicz

Crystals 2021, 11(9), 1063; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11091063 - 3 Sep 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3545

Abstract

Rocksalt-type (Pb,Cd)Te belongs to IV–VI semiconductors exhibiting thermoelectric properties. With the aim of understanding of the influence of Cd substitution in PbTe on thermostructural and elastic properties, we studied PbTe and Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te (i) at low temperatures (15 to 300 K) and (ii) at high pressures within the stability range of NaCl-type PbTe (up to 4.5 GPa). For crystal structure studies, powder and single crystal X-ray diffraction methods were used. Modeling of the data included the second-order Grüneisen approximation of the unit-cell-volume variation, V(T), the Debye expression describing the mean square atomic displacements (MSDs), <u²>(T), and Birch–Murnaghan equation of state (BMEOS). The fitting of the temperature-dependent diffraction data provided model variations of lattice parameter, the thermal expansion coefficient, and MSDs with temperature. A comparison of the MSD runs simulated for the PbTe and mixed (Pb,Cd)Te crystal leads to the confirmation of recent findings that the cation displacements are little affected by Cd substitution at the Pb site; whereas the Te displacements are markedly higher for the mixed crystal. Moreover, information about static disorder caused by Cd substitution is obtained. The calculations provided two independent ways to determine the values of the overall Debye temperature, θ_D. The resulting values differ only marginally, by no more than 1 K for PbTe and 7 K for Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te crystals. The θ_D values for the cationic and anionic sublattices were determined. The Grüneisen parameter is found to be nearly independent of temperature. The variations of unit-cell size with rising pressure (the NaCl structure of Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te sample was conserved), modeled with the BMEOS, provided the dependencies of the bulk modulus, K, on pressure for both crystals. The K₀ value is 45.6(2.5) GPa for PbTe, whereas that for Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te is significantly reduced, 33.5(2.8) GPa, showing that the lattice with fractional Cd substitution is less stiff than that of pure PbTe. The obtained experimental values of θ_D and K₀ for Pb_0.884Cd_0.116Te are in line with the trends described in recently reported theoretical study for (Pb,Cd)Te mixed crystals. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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21 pages, 6202 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Specimen Size and Test Procedure on the Creep Behavior of ME21 Magnesium Alloy

by Bettina Camin and Maximilian Gille

Crystals 2021, 11(8), 918; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11080918 - 7 Aug 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2755

Abstract

Lightweight constructions and materials offer the opportunity to reduce CO₂ emissions in the transport sector. As components in vehicles are often exposed to higher temperatures above 40% of the melting temperature, there is a risk of creep. The creep behavior usually is investigated based on standard procedures. However, lightweight constructions frequently have dimensions not adequately represented by standardized specimen geometries. Therefore, comparative creep experiments on non-standardized miniature and standardized specimens are performed. Due to a modified test procedure specified by a miniature creep device, only the very first primary creep stage shows a minor influence, but subsequently, no effect on the creep process is detected. The creep behavior of hot extruded and heat treated ME21 magnesium alloy is investigated. It is observed that the creep parameters determined by the miniature and standard creep tests are different. As the deviations are systematic, qualitatively, evidence of the creep behavior is achieved. The creep parameters obtained, and particularly the creep strain and the strain rate, show a higher creep resistance of the miniature specimen. An initial higher number of twinned grains and possible multiaxiality in the gauge volume of the miniature specimen can be responsible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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11 pages, 18098 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermal Convection in the Core of Ganymede Inferred from Liquid Eutectic Fe-FeS Electrical Resistivity at High Pressures

by Joshua A. H. Littleton, Richard A. Secco and Wenjun Yong

Crystals 2021, 11(8), 875; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11080875 - 28 Jul 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2114

Abstract

The core of Ganymede is suggested to be mainly Fe but with a significant proportion of S. Effects of S as a core constituent are freezing-point depression, allowing for a molten core at relatively low core temperatures, and modification of transport properties that can influence the dynamo and thermal evolution. The electrical resistivity of solid and liquid Fe-FeS (~24–30 wt.% S) was measured up to 5 GPa and thermal conductivity was calculated using the Wiedemann–Franz law. These first well-constrained experimental data on near eutectic Fe-FeS compositions showed intermediate values of electrical and thermal conductivities compared to the end-members. Eutectic temperatures were delineated from the solid to liquid transition, inferred from sharp changes in electrical resistivity, at each pressure. Combined with thermal models, our calculated estimates of the adiabatic heat flow of a molten Fe-FeS eutectic composition core model of Ganymede showed that thermal convection is permissible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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10 pages, 3611 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of High Pressure and Temperature on the Evolution of Si Phase and Eutectic Spacing in Al-20Si Alloys

by Rong Zhang, Chunming Zou, Zunjie Wei and Hongwei Wang

Crystals 2021, 11(6), 705; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11060705 - 20 Jun 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2199

Abstract

The microstructure of the Si phase in Al-20Si alloys solidified under high pressure was investigated. The results demonstrate that the morphology of Si phase transformed (bulk→short rod→long needle) with the increase of superheat temperature under high pressure. At a pressure of 3 GPa and a superheat temperature of 100 K, a microstructure with a uniform distribution of fine Si phases on the α-Al matrix was obtained in the Al-20Si alloy. In addition, a mathematical model was developed to analyze the spacing variation of the lamellar Al-Si eutectics under the effect of pressure. The lamellar Al-Si eutectics appeared at 2 GPa and superheat temperatures of 70–150 K, and at 3 GPa and superheat temperatures of 140–200 K. With the increase of pressure from 2 GPa to 3 GPa, the average spacing of lamellar Al-Si eutectics decreased from 1.2–1.6 μm to 0.9–1.1 μm. In binary alloys, the effect of pressure on the eutectic spacing is related to the volume change of the solute phase from liquid to solid. When the volume change of the solute phase from liquid to solid is negative, the lamellar eutectic spacing decreases with increasing pressure. When it is positive, the eutectic spacing increases with increasing pressure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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14 pages, 25397 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Ab Initio Phase Diagram of Copper

by Samuel R. Baty, Leonid Burakovsky and Daniel Errandonea

Crystals 2021, 11(5), 537; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11050537 - 12 May 2021

Cited by 34 | Viewed by 4164

Abstract

Copper has been considered as a common pressure calibrant and equation of state (EOS) and shock wave (SW) standard, because of the abundance of its highly accurate EOS and SW data, and the assumption that Cu is a simple one-phase material that does not exhibit high pressure (P) or high temperature (T) polymorphism. However, in 2014, Bolesta and Fomin detected another solid phase in molecular dynamics simulations of the shock compression of Cu, and in 2017 published the phase diagram of Cu having two solid phases, the ambient face-centered cubic (fcc) and the high-

P T

body-centered cubic (bcc) ones. Very recently, bcc-Cu has been detected in SW experiments, and a more sophisticated phase diagram of Cu with the two solid phases was published by Smirnov. In this work, using a suite of ab initio quantum molecular dynamics (QMD) simulations based on the Z methodology, which combines both direct Z method for the simulation of melting curves and inverse Z method for the calculation of solid–solid phase boundaries, we refine the phase diagram of Smirnov. We calculate the melting curves of both fcc-Cu and bcc-Cu and obtain an equation for the fcc-bcc solid–solid phase transition boundary. We also obtain the thermal EOS of Cu, which is in agreement with experimental data and QMD simulations. We argue that, despite being a polymorphic rather than a simple one-phase material, copper remains a reliable pressure calibrant and EOS and SW standard. Full article

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13 pages, 13366 KiB

Open AccessArticle

P–V–T Equation of State of Iridium Up to 80 GPa and 3100 K

by Simone Anzellini, Leonid Burakovsky, Robin Turnbull, Enrico Bandiello and Daniel Errandonea

Crystals 2021, 11(4), 452; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11040452 - 20 Apr 2021

Cited by 45 | Viewed by 3822

Abstract

In the present study, the high-pressure high-temperature equation of the state of iridium has been determined through a combination of in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction experiments using laser-heating diamond-anvil cells (up to 48 GPa and 3100 K) and density-functional theory calculations (up to 80 GPa and 3000 K). The melting temperature of iridium at 40 GPa was also determined experimentally as being 4260 (200) K. The results obtained with the two different methods are fully consistent and agree with previous thermal expansion studies performed at ambient pressure. The resulting thermal equation of state can be described using a third-order Birch–Murnaghan formalism with a Berman thermal-expansion model. The present equation of the state of iridium can be used as a reliable primary pressure standard for static experiments up to 80 GPa and 3100 K. A comparison with gold, copper, platinum, niobium, rhenium, tantalum, and osmium is also presented. On top of that, the radial-distribution function of liquid iridium has been determined from experiments and calculations. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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18 pages, 2929 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Anomalous Behavior in the Atomic Structure of Nb₃Sn under High Pressure

by Irene Schiesaro, Simone Anzellini, Rita Loria, Raffaella Torchio, Tiziana Spina, René Flükiger, Tetsuo Irifune, Enrico Silva and Carlo Meneghini

Crystals 2021, 11(4), 331; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11040331 - 25 Mar 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3340

Abstract

In the present study, the local atomic structure of a Nb₃Sn superconductor sample has been probed by X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) as a function of hydrostatic pressure (from ambient up to 26 GPa) using a diamond anvil cell set-up. The analysis of the Nb-K edge extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) data was carried out combining standard multi shell structural refinement and reverse Monte Carlo method to provide detailed in situ characterization of the pressure-induced evolution of the Nb local structure in Nb₃Sn. The results highlight a complex evolution of Nb chains at the local atomic scale, with a peculiar correlated displacement of Nb–Nb and Nb–Nb–Nb configurations. Such a local effect appears related to anomalies evidenced by X-ray diffraction in other superconductors belonging to the same A15 crystallographic structure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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14 pages, 5915 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mechanical Properties of Commercial Purity Aluminum Modified by Zirconium Micro-Additives

by Ahmad Mostafa, Wail Adaileh, Alaa Awad and Adnan Kilani

Crystals 2021, 11(3), 270; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11030270 - 9 Mar 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3063

Abstract

The mechanical properties and the fractured surfaces of commercial purity aluminum modified by zirconium micro-additives were investigated by means of experimental examination. A commercial purity Al specimen was used as a reference material and seven Al-Zr alloys in the 0.02–0.14 wt.% Zr composition range (with 0.02 wt.% Zr step) were prepared by microalloying methods. Optical microscopy was used to examine the microstructures and to calculate the grain sizes of the prepared specimens. The phase assemblage diagrams were plotted and the relative amounts of solid phases were calculated at room temperature using FactSage thermochemical software and databases. Proof stress, strength coefficient and strain hardening exponent were measured from the stress-strain curves obtained from tensile experiments and Charpy impact energy was calculated for all specimens. The experiments showed that the grain size of commercial purity Al was reduced by adding any Zr concentration in the investigated composition range, which could be due to the nucleation of new grains at Al₃Zr particle sites. Accordingly, the microhardness number, tensile properties and Charpy impact energy were improved, owing to the large grain-boundary areas resulted from the refining effect of Zr, which can limit the movement of dislocations in the refined samples. The basic fracture mode in all specimens was ductile, because Al has an FCC structure and remains ductile even at low temperatures. The ductile fractures took place in a transgranular manner as could be concluded from the fractured surface features, which include voids, ridges and cavitation. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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11 pages, 21949 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

High-Pressure Spectroscopy Study of Zn(IO₃)₂ Using Far-Infrared Synchrotron Radiation

by Akun Liang, Robin Turnbull, Enrico Bandiello, Ibraheem Yousef, Catalin Popescu, Zoulikha Hebboul and Daniel Errandonea

Crystals 2021, 11(1), 34; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11010034 - 30 Dec 2020

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3037

Abstract

We report the first high-pressure spectroscopy study on Zn(IO₃)₂ using synchrotron far-infrared radiation. Spectroscopy was conducted up to pressures of 17 GPa at room temperature. Twenty-five phonons were identified below 600 cm⁻¹ for the initial monoclinic low-pressure polymorph of Zn(IO₃)₂. The pressure response of the modes with wavenumbers above 150 cm⁻¹ has been characterized, with modes exhibiting non-linear responses and frequency discontinuities that have been proposed to be related to the existence of phase transitions. Analysis of the high-pressure spectra acquired on compression indicates that Zn(IO₃)₂ undergoes subtle phase transitions around 3 and 8 GPa, followed by a more drastic transition around 13 GPa. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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11 pages, 2874 KiB

Open AccessArticle

High-Pressure Structural Behavior and Equation of State of Kagome Staircase Compound, Ni₃V₂O₈

by Daniel Diaz-Anichtchenko, Robin Turnbull, Enrico Bandiello, Simone Anzellini and Daniel Errandonea

Crystals 2020, 10(10), 910; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst10100910 - 8 Oct 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2965

Abstract

We report on high-pressure synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements on Ni₃V₂O₈ at room-temperature up to 23 GPa. According to this study, the ambient-pressure orthorhombic structure remains stable up to the highest pressure reached in the experiments. We have also obtained the pressure dependence of the unit-cell parameters, which reveals an anisotropic compression behavior. In addition, a room-temperature pressure–volume third-order Birch–Murnaghan equation of state has been obtained with parameters: V₀ = 555.7(2) Å³, K₀ = 139(3) GPa, and K₀′ = 4.4(3). According to this result, Ni₃V₂O₈ is the least compressible kagome-type vanadate. The changes of the crystal structure under compression have been related to the presence of a chain of edge-sharing NiO₆ octahedral units forming kagome staircases interconnected by VO₄ rigid tetrahedral units. The reported results are discussed in comparison with high-pressure X-ray diffraction results from isostructural Zn₃V₂O₈ and density-functional theory calculations on several isostructural vanadates. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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Review

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51 pages, 23171 KiB

Open AccessReview

Phase Relations of Earth’s Core-Forming Materials

by Tetsuya Komabayashi

Crystals 2021, 11(6), 581; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11060581 - 22 May 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4363

Abstract

Recent updates on phase relations of Earth’s core-forming materials, Fe alloys, as a function of pressure (P), temperature (T), and composition (X) are reviewed for the Fe, Fe-Ni, Fe-O, Fe-Si, Fe-S, Fe-C, Fe-H, Fe-Ni-Si, and Fe-Si-O systems. Thermodynamic models for these systems are highlighted where available, starting with 1 bar to high-P-T conditions. For the Fe and binary systems, the longitudinal wave velocity and density of liquid alloys are discussed and compared with the seismological observations on Earth’s outer core. This review may serve as a guide for future research on the planetary cores. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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28 pages, 4561 KiB

Open AccessReview

A Review of the Melting Curves of Transition Metals at High Pressures Using Static Compression Techniques

by Paraskevas Parisiades

Crystals 2021, 11(4), 416; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst11040416 - 13 Apr 2021

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 4766

Abstract

The accurate determination of melting curves for transition metals is an intense topic within high pressure research, both because of the technical challenges included as well as the controversial data obtained from various experiments. This review presents the main static techniques that are used for melting studies, with a strong focus on the diamond anvil cell; it also explores the state of the art of melting detection methods and analyzes the major reasons for discrepancies in the determination of the melting curves of transition metals. The physics of the melting transition is also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Properties of Transition Metals and Their Compounds at Extreme Conditions)

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