Thermodynamic modeling of the Cu–Ag–Au system using the cluster/site approximation

The cluster/site approximation (CSA), which takes short-range order (SRO) into account in a computationally efficient manner in configurational entropy calculations on alloys, has been used to describe the fcc-type phases in the Cu–Ag–Au system. The CSA-calculated phase diagrams and thermodynamic properties are in good agreement with the available experimental data. Importantly, this CSA description requires no reciprocal interaction parameters as has been the case for descriptions based on the compound energy formulism (CEF). For this reason, the CSA description is expected to be more reliable when used for describing multi-component systems.