  A database for the Cr-Ni-V system was constructed by modeling the binary Cr-V
and ternary Cr-Ni-V systems using the CALPHAD approach aided by density
functional theory (DFT)-based first-principles calculations and ab initio
molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations. To validate this new database, a
functionally graded material (FGM) using Ni-20Cr and elemental V was fabricated
using directed energy deposition additive manufacturing (DED AM) and
experimentally characterized. The deposited Ni-20Cr was pure fcc phase, while
increasing the amount of V across the gradient resulted in the formation of
sigma phase, followed by the bcc phase. The experimentally measured phase data
was compared with computational predictions made using a Cr-Ni-V thermodynamic
database from the literature as well as the database developed in the present
work. The newly developed database was shown to better predict the
experimentally observed phases due to its accurate modeling of binary systems
within the database and the ternary liquid phase, which is critical for
accurate Scheil calculations.
