Grain boundary segregation, solute drag and abnormal grain growth Original Research Article

By employing a phase-field model, we simulated the grain boundary (GB) kinetics in terms of GB segregation of solute atoms for an isolated grain embedded in a matrix and demonstrated that the phase-field simulation could describe the GB movement under conditions of GB segregation in a quantitatively correct way. We then modeled grain growth in association with GB segregation in two-dimensional polycrystalline systems, and clarified that similarity between the Cottrell effect and the solute drag effect holds even on the macroscopic scale, that is, abnormal grain growth (AGG) can be induced by the solute drag effect. This AGG can take place spontaneously in homogeneous systems without any texture, anisotropy of GB mobility and/or energy, pinning particles and grain size advantage. The basic characteristics of this AGG and the effects of the solute diffusivity and the average grain size were investigated in detail.