A detailed study of metallic glass formation in copper-hafnium-titanium alloys

Recently we have reported a number of bulk glass forming compositions in the CuHf-Ti system,with the critical thickness for complete glass formation,dc,ranging from 2 mm to 4 mm.In order to improve the glass forming ability （GFA） getting even larger dc,the prevailing approach is to use complex multicomponent systems.This strategy has been investigated by us for the Cu-Hf-Ti bulk glass forming alloy Cu55Hf25Ti20 using 〉1 at.pct additions of B,Y,Nb,Ta,Al,Mn,Si or V but with no significant improvement in the GFA.Clearly,it is necessary,in order to utilise the full potential of the base ternary system,to identify the best glass-forming compositions as a basis for extending the search into multi-dimensional compositional space.Thus,CuxHfyTiz alloys,where x=（40-70） at.pct,y=（5-30） at.pct,and z=（10-36） at.pct,were prepared by melt spinning andcopper mould suction-casting.The composition dependence of the GFA for the Cu-Hf-Ti alloys,as measured by dc for rod and ribbon samples,is reported over the composition range given above.

Martensitic twinning transformation mechanism in a metastable IVB element-based body-centered cubic high-entropy alloy with high strength and high work hardening rate

Realizing high work hardening and thus elevated strength–ductility synergy are prerequisites for the practical usage of body-centered-cubic high entropy alloys(BCC-HEAs).In this study,we report a novel dynamic strengthening mechanism,martensitic twinning transformation mechanism in a metastable refractory element-based BCC-HEA(TiZrHf)Ta(at.%)that can profoundly enhance the work hardening capability,leading to a large uniform ductility and high strength simultaneously.Different from conventional transformation induced plasticity(TRIP)and twinning induced plasticity(TWIP)strengthening mechanisms,the martensitic twinning transformation strengthening mechanism combines the best characteristics of both TRIP and TWIP strengthening mechanisms,which greatly alleviates the strengthductility trade-off that ubiquitously observed in BCC structural alloys.Microstructure characterization,carried out using X-ray diffraction(XRD)and electron back-scatter diffraction(EBSD)shows that,upon straining,α”(orthorhombic)martensite transformation,self-accommodation(SA)α”twinning and mechanicalα”twinning were activated sequentially.Transmission electron microscopy(TEM)analyses reveal that continuous twinning activation is inherited from nucleating mechanical{351}type I twins within SA“{351}”<■11>typeⅡtwinnedα”variants on{351}twinning plane by twinning transformation through simple shear,thereby accommodating the excessive plastic strain through the twinning shear while concurrently refining the grain structure.Consequently,consistent high work hardening rates of 2–12.5 GPa were achieved during the entire plastic deformation,leading to a high tensile strength of 1.3 GPa and uniform elongation of 24%.Alloy development guidelines for activating such martensitic twinning transformation strengthening mechanism were proposed,which could be important in developing new BCC-HEAs with optimal mechanical performance.