Thermodynamic modelling of the Cr–Fe–Ni–O system

There is a need to describe the influence of oxygen on high alloyed steels, both regarding oxidation processes – as in the formation of oxide layers – and regarding steel/slag processes in a metallurgical context. As a first step and in order to be able to perform calculations and simulations on these different processes, the thermodynamic properties need to be described, as done for the Cr–Fe–Ni–O system. Previous attempts to describe this system has resulted in an inconsistent description, more specifically concerning the spinel phase. The aim of the present study is to obtain a consistent thermodynamic database for the Cr–Fe–Ni–O system with an emphasis on the modelling of the spinel phase. The solid phases are described using the compound energy formalism and the metallic and ionized liquid is modelled using the ionic two-sublattice model. A complete list of all binary and higher order parameters is included