Remarkable Wear Resistance in a Complex Concentrated Alloy with Nanohierarchical Architecture and Composition Undulation.

Sustained wear damages on the sliding surfaces of alloys are generally the culprit responsible for the failure of various mechanical systems. Inspired by high-entropy effects, here we deliberately deploy nanohierarchical architecture with composition undulation in a Ni(AlNbTiV) complex concentrated alloy, which yields ultralow wear rate within the order of 10 to 10 mm/Nm between room temperature and 800 °C. Such remarkable wear resistance heretofore represents one of the highest wear resistance reported for the bulk alloys or composites, and originates from the multi-type adaptive friction interface protection governed by intrinsically nano-coupled grains and nanoprecipitates. This cooperative heterostructure releases gradient frictional stress in stages upon wear at room temperature through the coexistence of multiple deformation pathways while activating a dense nanocrystalline glaze layer upon wear at 800 °C to minimize adhesive and oxidative wear. Our work uncovers a practical avenue for tailoring wear properties with multicomponent heterostructures over a wide temperature range.