Hello, this is Oh Jeong Min.
I am using MICRESS for the first time, and I encountered the following error message during my simulation.
Could you please let me know how to resolve this issue?
I have attached the dri, log and scr files.
Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
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Oh Jeong Min
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Dec 09, 2025 9:09 am
- anti_bot: 333
Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
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Re: Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
Dear Oh Jeong Min,
Welcome to the MICRESS Forum.
Before coming to your problem, I would like stress that, especially as a beginner, you should try to start with a more simplified approach, and not put too many complications at time. Are you sure that all elements which you included are really relevant for your simulation goal? The elements Cu, S and P e.g. have only a very small content, but are segregating strongly. Having them included without caring for the specific precipitates they may imply can be very problematic and lead to numerical issues, even if they are not relevant for your research question. In any case, having many elements makes the simulation slower!
It would be much more easy for me to give advices if you would explain which goals you follow with this simulation approach. I also cannot reproduce the errors because you did not attach the required .ges5-file. But what I can tell you is that error 15 indicates problems in the equilibrium calculation when phase diagram slopes for a phase interaction are calculated (see here). It probably occurs when nucleation of phase 2 is checked, and the 1/2-interface is initialized.
Phase 2 in your case represents TIC-carbides, which are treated in the TCNI12 database as a composition set of the FCC_L12-phase. This type of treatment makes the phase numerically very difficult, often leading to specific problems (see here), not only for MICRESS but also for Thermo-Calc and Dictra. To be on the safe side, you should define all elements of this phase manually as stoichiometric by including the line
stoichiometric 2 1-11
before the "no_more_stoichio" keyword (or "end_of_options") in section "Numerical Parameters/Concentration Solver".
Further comments:
1.) You use Fe an matrix component in MICRESS, although your database is NI-based. This is unusuall and may cause problems. You should rather use Ni as matrix element in MICRESS unless there is a specific reason not to do so.
2.) Once the calculation of the initial equilibrium is successful, you should look up the linearisation data in the .log-file and check the composition of the phases. With composition sets it can easily happen that compositions are switching, so that e.g. you get two identical fcc-compositions instead of fcc and TiC.
3.) The length and time scales of your simulation setup seem to be not yet adapted to your application case. At present, the shield distance of seed_type 2 is 1 µm, which is identical to the grid spacing. This means no shield is active. Also, you use "global" updating of linearisation data with a distance criterion of 1 µm. This again is much too small to make any sense. I would recommend to use "global" without distance criterion in a first step, which is numerically most safe, and which is justified because you do not have a temperature gradient. Alternatively, you could use "global fragment", so that each TIC-precipitate gets its own set of linearisation parameters.
4.) You have defined "IONIC_LIQ", which numerically is very "ugly", as phase 0. What is the idea behind? However, if you never plan to use phase 0 in your simulation setup, it does'nt matter...
Best wishes
Bernd
Welcome to the MICRESS Forum.
Before coming to your problem, I would like stress that, especially as a beginner, you should try to start with a more simplified approach, and not put too many complications at time. Are you sure that all elements which you included are really relevant for your simulation goal? The elements Cu, S and P e.g. have only a very small content, but are segregating strongly. Having them included without caring for the specific precipitates they may imply can be very problematic and lead to numerical issues, even if they are not relevant for your research question. In any case, having many elements makes the simulation slower!
It would be much more easy for me to give advices if you would explain which goals you follow with this simulation approach. I also cannot reproduce the errors because you did not attach the required .ges5-file. But what I can tell you is that error 15 indicates problems in the equilibrium calculation when phase diagram slopes for a phase interaction are calculated (see here). It probably occurs when nucleation of phase 2 is checked, and the 1/2-interface is initialized.
Phase 2 in your case represents TIC-carbides, which are treated in the TCNI12 database as a composition set of the FCC_L12-phase. This type of treatment makes the phase numerically very difficult, often leading to specific problems (see here), not only for MICRESS but also for Thermo-Calc and Dictra. To be on the safe side, you should define all elements of this phase manually as stoichiometric by including the line
stoichiometric 2 1-11
before the "no_more_stoichio" keyword (or "end_of_options") in section "Numerical Parameters/Concentration Solver".
Further comments:
1.) You use Fe an matrix component in MICRESS, although your database is NI-based. This is unusuall and may cause problems. You should rather use Ni as matrix element in MICRESS unless there is a specific reason not to do so.
2.) Once the calculation of the initial equilibrium is successful, you should look up the linearisation data in the .log-file and check the composition of the phases. With composition sets it can easily happen that compositions are switching, so that e.g. you get two identical fcc-compositions instead of fcc and TiC.
3.) The length and time scales of your simulation setup seem to be not yet adapted to your application case. At present, the shield distance of seed_type 2 is 1 µm, which is identical to the grid spacing. This means no shield is active. Also, you use "global" updating of linearisation data with a distance criterion of 1 µm. This again is much too small to make any sense. I would recommend to use "global" without distance criterion in a first step, which is numerically most safe, and which is justified because you do not have a temperature gradient. Alternatively, you could use "global fragment", so that each TIC-precipitate gets its own set of linearisation parameters.
4.) You have defined "IONIC_LIQ", which numerically is very "ugly", as phase 0. What is the idea behind? However, if you never plan to use phase 0 in your simulation setup, it does'nt matter...
Best wishes
Bernd
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Oh Jeong Min
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Dec 09, 2025 9:09 am
- anti_bot: 333
Re: Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
Hello, this is Oh Jeong Min. Thank you for your previous reply.
I am trying to simulate the precipitation of carbides (FCC_L12#3, TiC) from the gamma matrix (FCC_L12).
I removed the unstable IONIC_LIQ phase.
I added stoichiometric 2 1-11 before the no_more_stoichio command.
However, the same error still occurs even after applying these changes, so I would like to ask for further advice.
To clearly define the composition of FCC_L12#3, I am considering setting the sublattice. In the M247.TCM file, the composition appears to be specified in the manner shown in the attached image to make GES5 file. I am trying to rebuild the GES5 file using this approach.
In particular, I would like to let Thermo-Calc calculate the composition of the FCC_L12 (gamma matrix), while fixing the composition of FCC_L12#3 (TiC carbide).If so, could you please let me know how to set the appropriate commands in console mode to achieve this?
I would like to know whether fixing the composition in this way could resolve the issue. If there are any additional solutions you could suggest, I would greatly appreciate it.
I am trying to simulate the precipitation of carbides (FCC_L12#3, TiC) from the gamma matrix (FCC_L12).
I removed the unstable IONIC_LIQ phase.
I added stoichiometric 2 1-11 before the no_more_stoichio command.
However, the same error still occurs even after applying these changes, so I would like to ask for further advice.
To clearly define the composition of FCC_L12#3, I am considering setting the sublattice. In the M247.TCM file, the composition appears to be specified in the manner shown in the attached image to make GES5 file. I am trying to rebuild the GES5 file using this approach.
In particular, I would like to let Thermo-Calc calculate the composition of the FCC_L12 (gamma matrix), while fixing the composition of FCC_L12#3 (TiC carbide).If so, could you please let me know how to set the appropriate commands in console mode to achieve this?
I would like to know whether fixing the composition in this way could resolve the issue. If there are any additional solutions you could suggest, I would greatly appreciate it.
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Re: Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
I also wondered why there is an ionic liquid.
TC2025b changes from LIQUID:L to IONIC_LIQ:Y automatically when getting the data from the database.
However, liquid is not present in the simulation setup. The ionic liquid phase might not harm.
Best,
Ralph
TC2025b changes from LIQUID:L to IONIC_LIQ:Y automatically when getting the data from the database.
However, liquid is not present in the simulation setup. The ionic liquid phase might not harm.
Best,
Ralph
Re: Error Occurred During Precipitate Growth Simulation
Dear Oh Jeong Min,
If that what you show is part of the M247.TCM which you used for creating the file TC2025b_tcni12_mobni6_800H.ges5, you probably got a syntax error! HF and TA are not part of your system, so you cannot define them as major constituent. When executing M247.TCM please check for error messages. You can do that either by executing it inside MICpad, or by copying it line by line into the Thermo-Calc console. If there are errors when executing the .TCM file, the resulting .ges5-file could be corrupt. This could be an explanation for your problem.
If this is not the case, I would try to change the temperature for calculation of the initial equilibrium (you define that directly after the initial compositions). Normally, this temperature is chosen identical to the initial temperature, but in case of trouble with the calculation of the initial equilibrium you can try to use different temperatures. Furthermore, you can use the "init_fraction" command in section "Numerical Parameters" to explicitly determine the phase fractions for the initial equiibrium.
Next, you should try to do the calculation of the initial equilibrium in Thermo-Calc directly (i.e. define your initial composition and temperature and calculate an equilibrium). Are there also problems? Or are there further phases appearing which you do not use in MICRESS? You can also check your .ges5-file by reading it in Thermo-Calc (inside GES-module) and trying the same calculation.
If all that does not help or at least provide further insight into the nature of the problem, you can still do the following:
- Try to use a steel database instead of the TCNI12 (if available)
- Reduce the number of elements to the minimum (Ni, Fe, Cr, Ti, C)
- Send me your .TCM or .ges5-file so that I can try to reproduce the problem
Bernd
If that what you show is part of the M247.TCM which you used for creating the file TC2025b_tcni12_mobni6_800H.ges5, you probably got a syntax error! HF and TA are not part of your system, so you cannot define them as major constituent. When executing M247.TCM please check for error messages. You can do that either by executing it inside MICpad, or by copying it line by line into the Thermo-Calc console. If there are errors when executing the .TCM file, the resulting .ges5-file could be corrupt. This could be an explanation for your problem.
If this is not the case, I would try to change the temperature for calculation of the initial equilibrium (you define that directly after the initial compositions). Normally, this temperature is chosen identical to the initial temperature, but in case of trouble with the calculation of the initial equilibrium you can try to use different temperatures. Furthermore, you can use the "init_fraction" command in section "Numerical Parameters" to explicitly determine the phase fractions for the initial equiibrium.
Next, you should try to do the calculation of the initial equilibrium in Thermo-Calc directly (i.e. define your initial composition and temperature and calculate an equilibrium). Are there also problems? Or are there further phases appearing which you do not use in MICRESS? You can also check your .ges5-file by reading it in Thermo-Calc (inside GES-module) and trying the same calculation.
If all that does not help or at least provide further insight into the nature of the problem, you can still do the following:
- Try to use a steel database instead of the TCNI12 (if available)
- Reduce the number of elements to the minimum (Ni, Fe, Cr, Ti, C)
- Send me your .TCM or .ges5-file so that I can try to reproduce the problem
Bernd