The objective of this research is to employ a new, generic approach to improving the ductility of intermetallic compounds of the AB3-type. The technique uses Pettifor maps and ALCHEMI and X-ray diffraction to determine the relationship of new compounds (created by selective alloying) relative to their crystal structure and near proximity to ductile alloys. If this idea works, it will provide a more systematic approach to intermetallic alloy design. This research is timely because of current interest in intermetallic alloys for their high temperature applications and associated problems with low temperature ductility and toughness.
