Containerless Liquid Flow Modulated Surface Dendritic Growth of Refractory Alloys Under Space Microgravity and Terrestrial Gravity.

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Title: Containerless Liquid Flow Modulated Surface Dendritic Growth of Refractory Alloys Under Space Microgravity and Terrestrial Gravity.
Authors: Liao, Hui1 (AUTHOR), Liu, Dingnan1 (AUTHOR), Chang, Jian1 (AUTHOR), Wang, Haipeng1 (AUTHOR), Wei, Bingbo1 (AUTHOR) bbwei@nwpu.edu.cn
Source: Metallurgical & Materials Transactions. Part A. Jul2026, Vol. 57 Issue 7, p3181-3193. 13p.
Subjects: Fluid flow, Dendritic crystals, Reduced gravity environments, Levitation, Materials science, Gravity, Heat resistant alloys, Solidification
Abstract: It is well-established that fluid flow exerts a significant influence on dendritic growth morphology. Under terrestrial gravity, the impact of natural convection within opaque alloy melts on dendritic dynamics is challenging to observe directly. We therefore employed electrostatic levitation platform aboard the China Space Station to specifically investigate surface dendritic growth morphology under both microgravity and terrestrial gravity. After containerless experiments in outer space, highly symmetric and well-developed dendrites were observed on the surface of alloy spheres. This stands in distinctive contrast to the fragmented dendrites found on alloy surface from ground-based containerless experiments. To further elucidate the differences of surface dendritic morphology between microgravity and gravity, we simulated the rapid solidification process from an undercooled state by an extended theoretical model. The result explains how fluid flow modulated surface dendritic growth under both gravity and microgravity: during the onset of surface dendritic growth, the global flow velocity under microgravity was markedly lower than that under gravity, accompanied by a significantly larger expanse of weak-flow zones—regions where local flow velocity falls below the dendritic growth velocity. This study offers further insights for developing high-temperature materials under both space microgravity and terrestrial gravity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Metallurgical & Materials Transactions. Part A is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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DbLabel: Engineering Source
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  Label: Title
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  Data: Containerless Liquid Flow Modulated Surface Dendritic Growth of Refractory Alloys Under Space Microgravity and Terrestrial Gravity.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Liao%2C+Hui%22">Liao, Hui</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Liu%2C+Dingnan%22">Liu, Dingnan</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Chang%2C+Jian%22">Chang, Jian</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wang%2C+Haipeng%22">Wang, Haipeng</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Wei%2C+Bingbo%22">Wei, Bingbo</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo> (AUTHOR)<i> bbwei@nwpu.edu.cn</i>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Metallurgical+%26+Materials+Transactions%2E+Part+A%22">Metallurgical & Materials Transactions. Part A</searchLink>. Jul2026, Vol. 57 Issue 7, p3181-3193. 13p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Fluid+flow%22">Fluid flow</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Dendritic+crystals%22">Dendritic crystals</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Reduced+gravity+environments%22">Reduced gravity environments</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Levitation%22">Levitation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Materials+science%22">Materials science</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Gravity%22">Gravity</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Heat+resistant+alloys%22">Heat resistant alloys</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Solidification%22">Solidification</searchLink>
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  Data: It is well-established that fluid flow exerts a significant influence on dendritic growth morphology. Under terrestrial gravity, the impact of natural convection within opaque alloy melts on dendritic dynamics is challenging to observe directly. We therefore employed electrostatic levitation platform aboard the China Space Station to specifically investigate surface dendritic growth morphology under both microgravity and terrestrial gravity. After containerless experiments in outer space, highly symmetric and well-developed dendrites were observed on the surface of alloy spheres. This stands in distinctive contrast to the fragmented dendrites found on alloy surface from ground-based containerless experiments. To further elucidate the differences of surface dendritic morphology between microgravity and gravity, we simulated the rapid solidification process from an undercooled state by an extended theoretical model. The result explains how fluid flow modulated surface dendritic growth under both gravity and microgravity: during the onset of surface dendritic growth, the global flow velocity under microgravity was markedly lower than that under gravity, accompanied by a significantly larger expanse of weak-flow zones—regions where local flow velocity falls below the dendritic growth velocity. This study offers further insights for developing high-temperature materials under both space microgravity and terrestrial gravity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Metallurgical & Materials Transactions. Part A is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1007/s11661-026-08233-9
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        PageCount: 13
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      – SubjectFull: Fluid flow
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Dendritic crystals
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      – SubjectFull: Reduced gravity environments
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      – SubjectFull: Levitation
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      – SubjectFull: Materials science
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      – SubjectFull: Gravity
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      – SubjectFull: Heat resistant alloys
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      – SubjectFull: Solidification
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      – TitleFull: Containerless Liquid Flow Modulated Surface Dendritic Growth of Refractory Alloys Under Space Microgravity and Terrestrial Gravity.
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            NameFull: Liao, Hui
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            NameFull: Liu, Dingnan
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            NameFull: Chang, Jian
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            NameFull: Wang, Haipeng
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            NameFull: Wei, Bingbo
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              M: 07
              Text: Jul2026
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              Y: 2026
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