On the Inoculation and Phase Formation of Zr47.5Cu45.5Al5Co2 and Zr65Cu15Al10Ni10 Bulk Metallic Glass Matrix Composites

Abstract

Bulk metallic glass matrix composites have emerged as new potential material for structural engineering applications owing to their superior strength, hardness and high elastic strain limit. However, their behaviour is dubious. They manifest brittleness and inferior ductility which limit their applications. Various methods have been proposed to overcome this problem. Out of these, introduction of foreign particles (inoculants) during solidification have been proposed as most effective. In this study, an effort has been made to delimit this drawback. A systematic tale has been presented which explain the evolution of microstructure in Zr47.5Cu45.5Al5Co2 and Zr65Cu15Al10Ni10 bulk metallic glass matrix composites with varying percentage of ZrC inoculant as analysed by secondary electron and back scatter electron imaging of as cast unetched samples. A support is provided to hypothesis that inoculation remain successful in promoting phase formation and crystallinity and improve toughness.