A general thermodynamic model was developed for calculating the energy of stacking faults, and was applied to face-centered cubic alloys. A distinction was drawn between ideal stacking faults and real stacking faults, which were associated with an ideal stacking-fault energy and an effective stacking-fault energy, respectively. The ideal stacking-fault energy was characterized by a chemical energy volume term and an interphase surface energy term, whereas the effective stacking-fault energy was defined by an additional strain energy volume term. The chemical and strain energy terms were estimated on the basis of theoretical considerations. The interphase surface energy was calculated on the basis of transmission electron microscopic measurements. The results of the analysis revealed a good agreement between the calculated and experimental values. The model permitted the determination of the ideal and effective stacking fault energies as a function of the Cr and Ni contents. The dependence of the stacking-fault energy upon the Cr and Ni contents had the form of a hyperbola.

A Thermodynamic Model for the Stacking-Fault Energy P.J.Ferreira, P.Müllner: Acta Materialia, 1998, 46[13], 4479-84