  Iron-chromium forms the basis of most of the stainless steel grades in the
markets. Recently new insights into the physical and chemical properties of
Fe-Cr based alloys have been obtained. Some of the new results are quite
unexpected and call for further investigations. The present study addresses the
magnetic contribution in the atomic driving forces behind the chemical
composition in Fe-Cr alloyed with Al, Ti, V, Mn, Co, Ni, and Mo. Using the ab
initio exact muffin-tin orbitals method and an Ising-type spin model, it is
found that the magnetic moment of the solute atom combined with the induced
changes in the magnetic moments of the host atoms form the main framework in
determining the mixing energy and chemical potentials of low-Cr Fe-Cr based
alloys. The results obtained in the present work are related to tuning of the
microstructure and corrosion protection of low-Cr steels.
