The lines in quaternary phase diagrams define polyhedra with 4 vertices each rather than triangles.Īt any point in the phase diagram other than the stable nodes, the equilibrium phases are given by the vertices of the polyhedron bounding that composition. Therefore, quaternary phase diagrams are shown in three dimensions rather than as a 2D plot. Quaternary phase diagrams are presented in the same general way as ternary phase diagrams, but an additional axis is needed to represent the fourth composition. Quaternary Compositional Phase Diagrams ¶ However, the experimental determination of a phase diagram is an extremely time-consuming process, requiring careful synthesis and characterization of all phases in a chemical system.Ĭomputational tools can accelerate phase diagram construction significantly.īy calculating the energies of all known compounds in a given chemical system (e.g. Phase diagrams represent the thermodynamic phase equilibria of multicomponent systems and reveal useful insights into fundamental material aspects regarding the processing and reactions of materials.