Formation and thermal stability of Cu-Zr-Al-Er bulk metallic glasses with high glass-forming ability

The formation and thermal stabilities of Cu46.25Zr46.25xAl7.5Erx (x=0 to 8) bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) were investigated. The addition of a small amount of Er (2at%) for replacing Zr effectively improves the glass-forming ability of Cu46.25Zr46.25Al7.5 alloy, and the glassy rod with a diameter of at least 12 mm can be formed. The glass transition temperature (Tg), temperature interval of su- percooled liquid region △Tx (=Tx-Tg), and reduced glass transition temperature Trg (=Tg/Tl) of Cu46.25Zr44.25Al7.5Er2 glassy alloy are 699 K, 62 K and 0.607, respectively.

Effects of Cu,Fe and Co addition on the glass-forming ability and mechanical properties of Zr-Al-Ni bulk metallic glasses

The thermal stability,glass-forming ability(GFA) and mechanical properties of Zr60Al15Ni25xTMx(TM = Cu,Fe and Co,x = 0-10) bulk metallic glasses(BMGs) were systematically investigated.Additional 5-10 at.% Cu greatly enhances the thermal stability and GFA of the base alloy.Zr60Al15Ni15Cu10 BMG exhibits the largest supercooled liquid region of 104 K and critical diameter of 18 mm.However,addition of 5-10 at.% Fe or Co decrease the thermal stability and GFA.In addition,the plasticity of the BMG can be improved by adding of Cu,while the strength is decreased slightly.Zr60Al15Ni20Cu5 BMG has the largest plastic strain of 5.5% with a yield stress of 1755 MPa and Young's modulus of 83 GPa.Addition of Co brings an increase of strength but a lower of plasticity,and additional Fe reduces the strength and plasticity simultaneously.

Formation and corrosion properties of Fe-based bulk metallic glasses

Bulk metallic glass （BMG） formation was explored in the Fe-B-Si-Nb alloy system though combined use of the atomic cluster line approach and the minor alloying strategy. The basic ternary compositions in the Fe-B-Si system were determined by the intersection points of two cluster lines, namely, Fe-B cluster to Si and Fe-Si cluster to B. 3at% -4at% Nb was added to the quaternary Fe-B-Si-Nb alloy. The casting experiments revealed that good glass-forming ability （GFA） occurred at the （Fe73.4Si8.2B18.4）96Nb4 composition, and 3-mm diameter BMG samples were made. The glass transition temperature （Tg）, crystallization temperature （Tx）, and supercooled liquid region （△Tx=Tx-Tg） of this BMG were measured to be 866, 889, and 23 K, respectively. The BMG shows a high Vickers hardness of about Hv 1164, a Young＇s modulus of 180 GPa, and a good corrosion resistance in the solutions of 1 mol/L HCl and 3wt% NaCl.

Bulk Metallic Glasses in Sm-Cu-Ni-Al Alloy Systems

A new series of Sm-Cu-Ni-Al bulk metallic glasses were prepared by suction casting. Their glass-forming ability and thermal stability were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results of DSC indicate that the alloy components strongly affect the widths of supercooled liquid region (ΔT_x=T_x-T_g onset). The widths of supercooled liquid region for Sm_ 70-xCu_xNi_ 10Al_ 20 (x=12.5, 15.0, 17.5), Sm_ 65-xCu_ 15Ni_xAl_ 20 (x=8, 10, 12) and Sm_ 75-xCu_ 15Ni_ 10Al_x (x=15, 20, 25) increase first and then decrease with the increase of x atomic fraction. And Sm_ 55Cu_ 15Ni_ 10Al_ 20 alloy was found to be with the largest width and it can be cast into bulk metallic glass with up to 3 mm in diameter. The glass-forming ability of the alloys was explained in terms of Miedema′s theory, electronegativity difference and atomic size parameter of the amorphous alloys.

Compositional dependence of thermal and elastic properties of Cu-Ti-Zr-Ni bulk metallic glasses

Starting from the quaternary Cu47Ti34Zr11Ni8 alloy, the compositional dependence of thermal and elastic properties of Cu-Ti-Zr-Ni alloys was systematically investigated. Quaternary Cu-Ti-Zr-Ni alloys can be cast directly from the melt into copper molds to form fully amorphous strips or rods with the thickness of 3-6 mm. The evidence of the amorphous nature of the cast rods was provided by X-ray spectra. The measured glass transition temperature （Tg） and crystallization temperature （Tx） were obtained for the alloys using differential scanning calorimetry （DSC） at the heating rate of 20 K/s. In the results, the differences between the glass temperature and the crystallization temperature （△Tx=Tx-Tg） are measured with values ranging up to 33-55 K. The reduced glass transition temperature （Trg）, which is the ratio of the glass temperature to the liquidus temperature （T3, is often used as an indication of the glass-forming ability of metallic alloys. For the present Cu-Ti-Zr-Ni alloys, this ratio is typically in the range of 0.5838-0.5959, characteristic of metallic alloys with good glass-forming ability. The elastic constants for several selected alloys were measured using ultrasonic methods. The values of the elastic shear modulus, bulk modulus, and Poisson＇s ratio were also given.

Glass formation,thermal and mechanical properties of ZrCuAlNi bulk metallic glasses

The glass forming ability, thermal and mechanical properties of some Zr Cu Al Ni bulk metallic glasses were analyzed. The compositions of the alloys were theoretically determined with the dense packing and kinetic fragility index models. Cylindrical and conical ingots were produced by copper mould suction-casting under Ar atmosphere. The conical ingots were characterized by means of X-ray diffraction in order to determine the glassy structure. It was found that both alloys have a critical glassy diameter, Dc, of 3 mm. Thermal behaviours were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry at heating rates of 0.5, 0.67 and 0.83 K/s. The gamma parameter γ, supercooled liquid region ΔTx, and reduced glass transition temperature Trg, of the experimentally obtained glasses indicated high glass forming ability. The glassy compositions showed a fragility index of ~40 GPa. The compression test of the investigated alloys was carried out at a strain rate of 0.016 s^-1, obtaining a elastic modulus of ~83 GPa, total deformation of ~5%, yield strength of 1.6 GPa and hardness of 4 GPa. It was concluded that the use of the dense packing and kinetic fragility index models helped to predict glass-forming compositions in the family alloy investigated.

Effect of minor aluminium addition in Cu47Ti34Zr11Ni8 bulk metallic glasses

Cu47Ti34Zr11Ni8 and (Cu47Ti34Zr11Ni8)_ 99Al bulk metallic glass with size of 1mm×10mm×50mm were prepared by copper mold casting, and the influence of minor aluminium addition upon the alloy thermal stability and mechanical properties was studied. The results indicate that with the aluminium addition, the crystallizing behavior of the melt changes at the same cooling rate, and the crystallizing behavior of the glass changes at the same heating rate. The glass transition temperature(T_g), crystallization temperature(T_ x1), temperature interval of supercooled liquid region ΔT_x (=T_ x1-T_g) and reduced glass transition temperature (T_ rg) are proved to be changed from 672K, 734K, 62K and 0.578 to 681K, 729K, 48K and 0.590, respectively. Because of the addition of aluminium, three point-bending flexural strength and flexural modulus of the bulk glass are increased from 2350MPa and 102GPa to 2970MPa and 108GPa, respectively.

Viscosity properties and strong liquid behavior of Pr_(60)Ni_(25)Al_(15) bulk metallic glass-forming liquids

Pr60Ni25Al15 bulk metallic glass in a cuboid form with dimensions of 2 mm×2 mm×55 mm by copper mold casting method was cast. The dynamic viscosity near the glass transition region for Pr60Ni25Al15 was measured by three-point beam bending methods. The fragility parameter m and activation energy for viscous flow of the liquid sample were calculated to be:m=31.66,E=10689.17 K,respectively. It was shown that the supercooled liquid of Pr60Ni25Al15 alloy behaved much closer to strong glasses. The variation of active energy with temperature in supercooled liquid was analyzed. It was found that Kivelson’s super-Arrhenius equation is not suitable for description of the activation energy in a supercooled region of Bulk metallic glass,and there is a direct proportion between activation energy crystal-lization and activation energy of viscous flow.

Comparative Study of the Magnetic Properties and Glass-Forming Ability of Fe-Based Bulk Metallic Glass with Minor Mn, Co, Ni, and Cu Additions

Fe43MsCra5Mo14C15B6Y2 （M = Mn, Co, Ni, and Cu in at.%） bulk metallic glasses （BMGs） are synthesized using the suction casting technique, and the glass-forming ability （GFA）, microstructure, and thermal and magnetic properties of these glasses are extensively examined using X-ray diffraction, differential scanning calorimeter, and vibrating sample magnetometer techniques. Among the four BMG alloys, Fe43NisCr15Mo14C15B6Y2 exhibits the lowest coercivity and the highest saturation magnetization, Curie temperature, effective magnetic moment, and GFA. By contrast, Fe43MnsCrlsMo14C15B6Y2 presents the poorest magnetic properties, such as the highest coercivity and the lowest saturation magnetization, Curie temperature, and effective magnetic moment. Fe43Cu5Cr15MolaC15B6Y2 demonstrates the lowest thermal stability and GFA. The observed thermal, structural, and magnetic properties of these BMG alloys are discussed in terms of the kinetics of BMG synthesization and the formation of different ferromagnetic, ferrimagnetic, and antiferromagnetic phases.

Kinetics and thermal stability of the Ni_(62)Nb_(38–x)Ta_x(x=5, 10, 15,20 and 25) bulk metallic glasses

We studied thermal stability and its relationship to the glass-forming ability （GFA） of the Ni62Nb38-xTax （x=5, 10, 15, 20, 25） bulk metallic glasses （BMG） fi＇om a kinetic point of view. By fitting the heating-rate dependence of glass transition temperature （Tgonsct） and crystallization temperatures （Txonset and Txpcak） of the Ni62Nb38_xTax BMG using the Vogel-Fulcher-Tammann （VFT） equation, we obtained the ideal glass transition and crystallization temperatures （Tg0 and Tx2） and the fragility parameter （m）, and also constructed continuous heating transition （CHT） diagrams for crystallization of the BMG. The CHT diagrams of the BMG indicate enhanced thermal stability by Ta addition; the Tg~ as well as the Tx~ also illustrates this improved stability limit. The compositional dependence of m, which agrees well with that of the reduced glass-transition temperature, indicates a strong correlation between liquid fragility and glass-forming ability in the present alloy system. These results provide new evidence for understanding thermal stability, liquid fragility, and GFA in BMG.

Enhancement of glass-forming ability and thermal stability of a soft magnetic Co_(75)B_(25)metallic glass by micro-alloying Y and Nb

Soft magnetic Co-based Co-Y-Nb-B bulk metallic glasses(BMGs)without Fe have been developed by micro-alloying Y and Nb into a C075B25 alloy.First,addition of 3^at.%Y promotes the occurrence of glass transition and increases the supercooled liquid stability and magnetic softness.C0_(71.5)Y_(35)B_(25) metallic glass possesses a large supercooled liquid region(△T_(x))of 33 K and low coercivity(H_(c))of l.5 A/m.Subsequent alloying 2-4 at.% Nb into C0_(71.5)Y_(35)B_(25) alloy further enlarges △T_(x) to 50 K,lowers H_(c) to 0.9 A/m,and enables the formation of BMGs with a critical sample diameter up to 2.0 mm.The alloying Nb causes the formation of complex(Co,Nb,Y)_(23)B_(6) competing phase during crystallization and widens the melt undercooling during solidification,which improves the supercooled liquid stability and glass-forming ability,respectively.Co-Y-Nb-B BMGs also exhibit good soft magnetic and mechanical properties,i.e.,lowH_(c)of 0.9-1.2 A/m,relatively high saturation magnetic flux density of 0.36-0.57 T,high yielding strength of 3877-3930 MPa with plastic strain of 0.2%-0.3%,and high Vickers hardness of 1156-1201.The developed soft magnetic Co-based BMGs are promising for applications as structural and functional materials.

Effects of B addition on glass forming ability and thermal behavior of FePC-based bulk metallic glasses

The FePC-based bulk metallic glasses（BMGs）have been demonstrated to possess high plasticity and good soft magnetic properties.However,the relatively poor glass forming ability（GFA）and thermal stabilities limited their application in industries.The effects of microalloying with B in FePC-based BMGs on the GFA and thermal behaviors were systematically investigated.It was found that a small amount of B addition can dramatically enhance the GFA of FePC-based BMGs,which in turn leads to the critical maximum diameter up to 2 mm for full glass formation even using low cost raw materials.The underlying mechanism of the enhancement of GFA from the competing crystalline phase with amorphous phase,the average thermal expansion coefficient and dynamic viscosity were discussed in detail.

Novel Soft Magnetic Co-Based Ternary Co-Er-B Bulk Metallic Glasses

In this work,a series of Co-based ternary Co-Er-B bulk metallic glasses(BMGs)with excellent soft magnetic properties and high strength were developed,and the local atomic structure of a typical Co_(71.5)Er_(3.5)B_(25) metallic glass was studied through in situ high-energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction and ab initio molecular dynamics simulations.The results reveal that the BMG samples can be obtained in a composition region of Co_(68.5-71.5)Er_(3.5-4)B_(25-27.5) by a conventional copper-mold casting method.The Co-Er-B metallic glasses possess stronger atomic bond strengths and denser local atomic packing structure composed of a higher fraction of icosahedral-like clusters but fewer deformed body-centered cubic and crystal-like polyhedrons,and they exhibit slower atomic diffusion behaviors during solidification,as compared to Co-Y-B counterparts.The enhancement in structural stability and the retardation of atomic-ordered diffusion lead to the better glass-forming ability of the Co-Er-B alloys.The smaller magnetic anisotropy energy in the Co-Er-B metallic glasses results in a lower coercivity of less than 1.3 A/m.The Co-Er-B BMGs exhibit high-yield strength of 3560-3969 MPa along with distinct plasticity of around 0.50%.

Ti-Zr-Be-Fe quaternary bulk metallic glasses designed by Fe alloying

A series of Ti-Zr-Be-Fe bulk metallic glasses(BMGs)with good glass-forming ability(GFA)and high specific strength have been developed.With different alloying routes and content of Fe,it is found that these alloys exhibit different GFA and mechanical properties.The effects of Fe addition on the GFA and mechanical properties of Ti-Zr-Be alloy are systemically investigated.The possible mechanisms for the improvement or damage to the GFA by addition of Fe can be interpreted in view of the mixing enthalpy,atomic size differences and electronegativity differences of the alloys,while the mechanical properties strongly depend on the Poisson’s ratio and free volume concentration.The experimental results also show that alloying technology is an effective method to improve the GFA and mechanical properties of Ti-Zr-Be glassy alloy.

Effects of Metalloid B Addition on the Glass Formation,Magnetic and Mechanical Properties of FePCB Bulk Metallic Glasses

Low-cost Fe;P;C;B;（x = 0,1,2,3 and 4 at.%） bulk metallic glasses（BMGs） with good soft magnetic and mechanical properties were prepared,and effects of metalloid B addition on the glass-forming ability（GFA） as well as thermal,magnetic,and mechanical properties of the BMGs were investigated.It was found that the proper B substitution for P improves the GFA of the Fe-P-C BMGs.The alloy with2 at.%B addition manifests the highest GFA with critical diameter for glass formation of 2 mm.Besides,these BMGs exhibit good soft magnetic properties featured by high saturation magnetization of 1.35一1.57 T and low coercivity of 2.2-7.7 A/m as well as unique mechanical properties of high fracture strength of;.3 GPa and visible plastic strain of 0.4%-2.5%.The combination of high GFA,good soft magnetic and mechanical properties as well as low cost makes the present Fe-P-C-B BMGs promising as soft magnetic materials for industrial applications.

Effects of Mo additions on the glass-forming ability and magnetic properties of bulk amorphous Fe-C-Si-B-P-Mo alloys

Glass formation, mechanical and magnetic properties of the Fe76-xC7.0Si3.3B5.0P8.7Mox (x=0, 1 at.%, 3 at.% and 5 at.%) alloys prepared using an industrial Fe-P master alloy have been studied. With the substitution of Mo for Fe, glass-forming ability (GFA) was significantly enhanced and fully amorphous rods with a diameter of up to 5 mm were produced in the alloy with 3% Mo. The Mo-containing amorphous alloys also exhibited high fracture strength of 3635–3881 MPa and excellent magnetic properties including a high saturation magnetization of 1.10–1.41 T, a high Curie temperature and a low coercive force. The unique combination of high GFA, high fracture strength and excellent magnetic properties make the newly developed bulk metallic glasses viable for practical engineering applications.

Effects of yttrium on the formation and magnetic properties of bulk metallic glassy(Fe,Co)-B-Si-Nb alloys

The bulk metallic glassy （BMG） rods of [（Fe0.5Co0.5）0.72B0.192Si0.048Nb0.04]100-xYx （x=0-6） and [（FexCO1-x）0.72B0.192Si0.048Nb0.04]96Y4 （x=0.5-0.8） were prepared by copper mold casting. The structure, thermal stability, and magnetic properties of the samples were studied by X-ray diffraction （XRD）, differential scanning calorimetry （DSC）, and vibrating sample magnetometer （VSM）. Adding 1 at% to 6at% of yttrium, the bulk glassy alloy rods of [（Fe0.5Co0.5）0.72B0.192Si0.048Nb0.04]100-xYx （x=0-6） with the diameter of 3 mm were not formed, and the sample with 4at% of yttrium showed less crystalline phase than others. When the Fe/Co atomic ratio was between 5：5 and 7：3, the bulk glassy alloy rods of [（Fe1-xCox）0.72B0.192Si0.048Nb0.04]96Y4 （x=0.5-0.8） with the diameter of 2 mm were fabricated. In the （Fe, Co）-B-Si-Nb-Y BMGs, when the Fe content increased, the thermal stability, the supercooled liquid region, and the glass-forming ability （GFA） decreased, but the saturation magnetization （Ms） increased.

A Modified Glass Formation Criterion for Various Glass Forming Liquids with Higher Reliability

A modified indicator of the glass forming ability （GFA） from the previous 7 = Tx/（Tl ＋ Tg） for various glass forming liquids is proposed based on a conceptual approach which combines more acceptable physical metallurgy views in terms of the time-temperature-transformation diagrams. It is found that the glass forming ability for glass forming liquids is closely associated mainly with two factors, i.e. （2Tx - Tg） and Tl （wherein Tx is the onset crystallization temperature, Tg the glass transition temperature, and Tl the liquidus temperature）, and could be predicated by a unified parameter γm defined as （2Tx - Tg）/Tl. This approach is confirmed and validated by experimental data in various glass forming systems including oxide glasses, cryoprotectants and metallic glasses, which all shows a higher reliability when their glass forming ability is predicted by the modified parameter.

Bulk glass formation in ternary Cu-Zr-Ti system

The formation of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) in ternary Cu-Zr-Ti system was investigated by a copper mold casting method. The nature of the amorphous phase was verified by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). It was demonstrated that the BMGs could be formed in a broad composition range in this system. Cu50Zr42.5Ti7.5, Cu60Zr27.5Ti12.5, Cu60Zr30Ti10 and Cu60Zr32.5Ti7.5 alloys exhibit strong glass-forming ability (GFA), and fully glassy rods of 5 mm in diameter can be obtained. In the center region of the ternary diagram, however, the GFA of the alloys was degraded due to the presence of Laves phase. The degradation of the GFA results from easy nucleation of the Laves phase in the undercooled liquid.

A Group of Cu(Zr)-based BMGs with Critical Diameter in the Range of 12 to 18 mm

A group of Cu（Zr）-based bulk metallic glasses （BMGs） with critical diameter （De） in the 12 to 18 mm range have been obtained using copper mould casting. In the Cu-Zr-Y-Al quaternary system, a new record of Dc=14 mm was established for Cu-based compositions, and 16 mm for compositions based on equi-atomic CuZr. Additional partial substitution of Hf for Zr further elevated the Dc to 18 mm at Cu42Zr43Hf1.5Y3.5Al10.