The potential of Zr-based bulk metallic glasses as biomaterials

Zr-based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are a new type of metallic materials with disordered atomic structure that exhibit high strength and high elastic strain, relatively low Young’s modulus, and excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility. The combination of these unique properties makes the Zr-based BMGs very promising for biomaterials applications. In this review article, the authors give an overview of the recent progress in the study of biocompatibility of Zr-based BMGs, especially the relevant work that has been done in the metallic glasses group in Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), including the development of Ni-free Zr-based BMGs, the mechanical and wear properties, the bio-corrosion resistance, the in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility and the bioactive surface modification of these newly developed BMGs.     

Role of minor alloying additions in formation of bulk metallic glasses: A Review

Minor alloying addition or microalloying technology has already shown dramatic effects on glass formation and thermal stability of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs). This paper intends to provide a comprehensive review of recent developments of this technology in the field of BMGs. The beneficial effects of minor alloying additions on the glass formation and the thermal stability of BMGs will be summarized and analyzed. In addition, principles and guidelines for future application of this technology will also be proposed.     

The potential of Zr-based bulk metallic glasses as biomaterials

Zr-based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are a new type of metallic materials with disordered atomic structure that exhibit high strength and high elastic strain, relatively low Young’s modulus, and excellent corrosion resistance and biocompatibility. The combination of these unique properties makes the Zr-based BMGs very promising for biomaterials applications. In this review article, the authors give an overview of the recent progress in the study of biocompatibility of Zr-based BMGs, especially the relevant work that has been done in the metallic glasses group in Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), including the development of Ni-free Zr-based BMGs, the mechanical and wear properties, the bio-corrosion resistance, the in vitro and in vivo biocompatibility and the bioactive surface modification of these newly developed BMGs.     

Metallic glasses from “alchemy” to pure science: Present and future of design,processing and applications of glassy metals

Metallic glasses, first discovered a half century ago, are currently among the most studied metallic materials. Available in sizes up to several centimeters, with many novel, applicable properties, metallic glasses have also been the focus of research advancing the understanding of liquids and of glasses in general.Metallic glasses (MGs), called also bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) (or glassy metals, amorphous metals, liquid metals) are considered to be the materials of the future. Due to their high strength, metallic glasses have a number of interesting applications, for example as coatings. Metallic glasses can also be corrosion resistant. Metallic glasses, and the crystalline materials derived from them, can have very good resistance to sliding and abrasive wear. Combined with their strength – and now, toughness – this makes them ideal candidates for bio-implants or military applications. Prestigious Journals such as “Nature Materials”, “Nature” frequently publish new findings on these unusual glass materials. Moreover Chinese and Asian scientists have also been showing an interest in the study of metallic glasses.This review paper is far from exhaustive, but tries to cover the areas of interest as it follows: a short history, the local structure of BMGs and the glass forming ability (GFA), BMGs’ properties, the manufacturing and some applications of BMGs and finally, about the future of BMGs as valuable materials.     

Medium-range order dictates local hardness in bulk metallic glasses

Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are materials with outstanding strength and elastic properties that make them tantalizing for engineering applications, yet our poor understanding of how their amorphous atomic arrangements control their broader mechanical properties (hardness, wear, fracture, etc.) impedes our ability to apply materials science principles in their design. In this work, we uncover the hierarchical structure that exists in BMGs across the nano- to microscale by using nanobeam electron diffraction experiments. Our findings reveal that local hardness of microscale domains decreases with increasing size and volume fraction of atomic clusters with higher local medium range order (MRO). Furthermore, we propose a model of ductile phase softening that will enable the future design of BMGs by tuning the MRO size and distribution in the nanostructure.     

The elastic properties, elastic models and elastic perspectives of metallic glasses

Bulk metallic glass (BMG) provides plentiful precise knowledge of fundamental parameters of elastic moduli, which offer a benchmark reference point for understanding and applications of the glassy materials. This paper comprehensively reviews the current state of the art of the study of elastic properties, the establishments of correlations between elastic moduli and properties/features, and the elastic models and elastic perspectives of metallic glasses. The goal is to show the key roles of elastic moduli in study, formation, and understanding of metallic glasses, and to present a comprehensive elastic perspectives on the major fundamental issues from processing to structure to properties in the rapidly moving field.A plentiful of data and results involving in acoustic velocities, elastic constants and their response to aging, relaxation, applied press, pressure and temperature of the metallic glasses have been compiled. The thermodynamic and kinetic parameters, stability, mechanical and physical properties of various available metallic glasses especially BMGs have also been collected. A survey based on the plentiful experimental data reveals that the linear elastic constants have striking systematic correlations with the microstructural features, glass transition temperature, melting temperature, relaxation behavior, boson peak, strength, hardness, plastic yielding of the glass, and even rheological properties of the glass forming liquids. The elastic constants of BMGs also show a correlation with a weighted average of the elastic constants of the constituent elements. We show that the elastic moduli correlations can assist in selecting alloying components with suitable elastic moduli for controlling the elastic properties and glass-forming ability of the metallic glasses, and thus the results would enable the design, control and tuning of the formation and properties of metallic glasses.We demonstrate that the glass transition, the primary and secondary relaxations, plastic deformation and yield can be attributed to the free volume increase induced flow, and the flow can be modeled as the activated hopping between the inherent states in the potential energy landscape. We then propose an extended elastic model to understand flow in metallic glass and glass-forming supercooled liquid, and the model presents a simple and quantitative mathematic expression for flow activation energy of various glasses. The elastic perspectives, which consider all metallic glasses exhibit universal behavior based on a small number of readily measurable parameters of elastic moduli, are presented for understanding the nature and diverse properties of the metallic glasses.     

强塑性变形(SPD)制备超细晶粒材料的研究现状与发展趋势

强塑性变形(SPD)技术已成为21世纪获得微米、甚至纳米级细晶粒材料,在塑韧性损失不大的情况下成倍提高金属材料强度的手段.概要介绍了目前国内外开发的强塑性变形的新技术或新方法,指出,应力或塑性变形将成为今后改变材料组织性能的主要技术之一,将与热处理技术并驾齐驱.应力热处理专业将成为材料科学与工程中一个新型的专业.     

The fracture of bulk metallic glasses

The fracture of metallic glasses has received relatively little attention until recently. The development of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) with more compositions, large sample sizes and diverse fracture behaviors provides a series of ideal model systems for the study of fracture in glassy materials. The fracture toughness of different BMGs varies significantly from approaching ideally brittle to the highest known damage tolerance. Diverse fracture patterns on the fracture surface, fracture modes and dynamic propagation of cracks have been observed in different BMGs. In this review paper, we present a comprehensive view of the state-of-the-art research on various aspects of the fracture of BMGs, including fracture behavior and characteristics, fracture mode, fracture criterion, fracture toughness, and fracture morphology. Accumulated experimental data on BMG fracture are presented and their possible theoretical connections with continuum fracture mechanics and the atomic-scale process are introduced and discussed. Modeling studies of the fracture of BMGs by various computational methods are also reviewed. The review also presents a number of perspectives, including the relation of BMG fracture study to other topics, and unsolved issues for future investigation.     

Bulk Metallic Glasses with Functional Physical Properties

In this review, we report on the formation of a variety of novel, metallic, glassy materials that might well have applications as functional materials. The metallic glasses, with excellent glass‐forming ability, display many fascinating properties and features such as excellent wave‐absorption ability, exceptionally low glass‐transition temperatures (～35–60 °C) approaching room temperature, ultralow elastic moduli comparable to that of human bone, high elasticity and high strength, superplasticity and polymer‐like thermoplastic formability near room temperature, an excellent magnetocaloric effect, hard magnetism and tunable magnetic properties, heavy‐fermion behavior, superhydrophobicity and superoleophobicity, and polyamorphism, all of which are of interest not only for basic research but also for technological applications. A strategy based on elastic‐moduli correlations for fabrication of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) with controllable properties is presented. The work has implications in the search for novel metallic glasses with unique functional properties, for advancing our understanding of the nature and formation of glasses, and for extending the applications of the materials.     

Additive Manufacturing of Advanced Multi‐Component Alloys: Bulk Metallic Glasses and High Entropy Alloys

Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) and high entropy alloys (HEAs) are both important multi‐component alloys with novel microstructures and unique properties, which make them promising for applications in many industries. However, certain hindrances have been identified in the fabrication of BMGs and HEAs by conventional techniques due to the intrinsic requirements of BMGs and HEAs. With the advent of metal additive manufacturing, new opportunities have been perceived to fabricate geometrically complex BMGs and HEAs with tailorable microstructure theoretically at any site within the specimen, which are not achievable using conventional fabrication techniques. After providing some background and introducing the conventional fabrication techniques for BMGs and HEAs, this review will focus on the current status, development, and challenges in metal additive manufacturing of BMGs and HEAs including different additive manufacturing techniques being used, microstructure design and evolution, as well as properties of the fabricated BMGs and HEAs. A future outlook of metal additive manufacturing of BMGs and HEAs will also be provided at the end.

     

金属空心微球的制备及应用现状

金属空心微球不仅具有一般金属空心球的结构和性能等特点，而且还具有小尺寸的独特优势，可望在微电子、微系统和生命科学等诸多前沿领域发挥重大的作用。介绍了金属空心微球的制备和应用现状，并对存在的问题进行了的讨论。     

Formation, Structure and Properties of Bulk Metallic Glasses

1.IntroductionTheformationofmetallicglassesbydirectquench-ingfromthemeltwasfirstdiscoveredin196obyDuwezandhisco-workersinaAu-25at.pctSialloy[']bya'guntechnique'[2].Thistechniqueen-abledcoolingrateoflo6K/s,thuscreatinganewseriesofmaterials.Thediscoveryofmetal1icglassesandmetastab1ephasehasledto-explosiveresearchanddevelopmefltofmetallicglassesandothercrys-tallinematerialsquenchedfrommelt[3'4].Metallicglasses,whichareobtainedbytherapidquenchingofmetallicmelts,arenoncrystallineoramorphous,likeo…     

Basic mechanical behaviors and mechanics of shear banding in BMGs

In this paper, some basic mechanical behaviors of bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) were discussed. It can be found from the discussions that the mechanical behaviors of BMGs are mainly due to the formation and operation of shear bands in BMGs. Furthermore, the relevant mechanics of shear banding were investigated in the paper. The theoretical analysis of deformation coupling thermal softening and free volume creation softening demonstrates that the free volume creation and thermal softening can jointly promote the formation of shear bands in BMGs, and the observed post mortem shear band width looks more like that governed by free volume creation.     

Processing of Bulk Metallic Glass

Bulk metallic glass (BMG) formers are multicomponent alloys that vitrify with remarkable ease during solidification. Technological interest in these materials has been generated by their unique properties, which often surpass those of conventional structural materials. The metastable nature of BMGs, however, has imposed a barrier to broad commercial adoption, particularly where the processing requirements of these alloys conflict with conventional metal processing methods. Research on the crystallization of BMG formers has uncovered novel thermoplastic forming (TPF)‐based processing opportunities. Unique among metal processing methods, TPF utilizes the dramatic softening exhibited by a BMG as it approaches its glass‐transition temperature and decouples the rapid cooling required to form a glass from the forming step. This article reviews crystallization processes in BMG former and summarizes and compares TPF‐based processing methods. Finally, an assessment of scientific and technological advancements required for broader commercial utilization of BMGs will be made.     

内生非晶复合材料组织与力学性能调控研究进展

非晶合金因其独特的短程有序、长程无序原子结构特征, 使其具有了一系列优异的力学、物理、化学等性能, 在先进金属结构材料领域具有巨大的潜在应用价值。但非晶合金在室温承载变形时, 原子团簇发生剪切转变形成的大量自由体积会演化为高度局域化剪切带, 局域化剪切带由于缺乏介质的阻碍会发生失稳扩展, 导致非晶合金极易发生室温脆断, 特别单轴拉伸时基本无塑性。为克服这个缺憾, 研究者们提出将微米级尺寸的晶体相引入非晶来抑制剪切带的失稳扩展, 使得内生第二相增韧非晶复合材料具有了明显的拉伸塑性能力, 因此倍受材料学界的关注。近年来, 研究者们陆续通过成分设计、制备技术、热处理工艺等方法来实现非晶复合材料的塑性变形能力的提升, 使得非晶复合材料有望走向实际的工程应用。本文围绕内生第二相增韧非晶复合材料的微观组织调控这一关键科学问题, 从影响非晶复合材料微观组织结构的因素(合金成分设计、制备工艺参数、微观结构构筑等)到微观组织对其室温力学性能的影响机制两方面的研究成果进行了系统总结, 重点阐述了近10年来内生第二相增韧非晶复合材料领域组织调控及其室温力学性能关联性方面的研究进展, 并且对内生非晶复合材料研究领域目前的存在的问题和挑战进行了展望, 以期为高强高韧内生第二相增韧非晶复合材料的设计与制备提供理论参考。     

Nanocellulose as a natural source for groundbreaking applications in materials science: Today’s state

Nanocelluloses are natural materials with at least one dimension in the nano-scale. They combine important cellulose properties with the features of nanomaterials and open new horizons for materials science and its applications. The field of nanocellulose materials is subdivided into three domains: biotechnologically produced bacterial nanocellulose hydrogels, mechanically delaminated cellulose nanofibers, and hydrolytically extracted cellulose nanocrystals. This review article describes today’s state regarding the production, structural details, physicochemical properties, and innovative applications of these nanocelluloses. Promising technical applications including gels/foams, thickeners/stabilizers as well as reinforcing agents have been proposed and research from last five years indicates new potential for groundbreaking innovations in the areas of cosmetic products, wound dressings, drug carriers, medical implants, tissue engineering, food and composites. The current state of worldwide commercialization and the challenge of reducing nanocellulose production costs are also discussed.     

金属材料表面自身纳米化研究进展

近年来采用表面自身纳米化技术时纯金属、低碳钢及其他合金进行表面改性已得到广泛而深入的研究.相对于其他金属材料的表面改性技术,表面自身纳米化具有特定的技术优势.简要综述了金属材料表面自身纳米化技术的组织结构特征、组织演变机理、力学性能、元素扩散行为、腐蚀性能等.层错能的不同导致了不同表面纳米化形成机制,表面纳米晶的形成能有效改善原子的扩散行为,提高金属的硬度、强度、耐摩擦和疲劳性能.     

Bulk metallic glass: the smaller the better

Bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) are strong, highly elastic, and resistant to wear but still find limited utility due to their macroscopic brittle nature, high costs, and difficulty of processing, particularly when complex shapes are desired. These drawbacks can be mitigated when BMGs are used in miniature parts (< 1 cm), an application which takes advantage of BMGs' enhanced plasticity at small length scales as well the insignificant material cost associated with such parts. As an alternative to traditional metal processing techniques, thermoplastic forming (TPF)-based microfabrication methods have been developed which can process some BMGs like plastics. In this article, we discuss the properties and fabrication of BMGs on minuscule length scales to explore their prospective application in small-scale devices.     

Zirconium Alloys for Orthopaedic and Dental Applications

Zirconium alloys for biomedical applications are receiving increasing attention due to their two unique properties: 1) the formation of an intrinsic bone‐like apatite layer on their surfaces in body environments, and 2) better compatibility with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diagnostics due to their low magnetic susceptibility, as well as their overall excellent biocompatibility, mechanical properties, and bio‐corrosion resistance. In particular, since both of the MRI quality and speed depend on magnetic field strength, there is a compelling drive for use of high magnetic field strength (>3 Tesla) MRI systems. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the characteristics of commercially pure (CP) Zr and Zr‐based alloys as orthopaedic and dental implant materials. These include their 1) phase transformations; 2) unique properties including corrosion resistance, biocompatibility, magnetic susceptibility, shape memory effect, and super‐elasticity; 3) mechanical properties; 4) current orthopaedic and dental applications; and 5) the d‐electron theory for Zr alloy design and novel Zr‐alloys. The mechanical properties of Zr‐based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) and their application as implant materials are also assessed. Future directions for extending the use of Zr‐alloys as orthopaedic and dental implants are discussed.

     

Ti based biomaterials,the ultimate choice for orthopaedic implants – A review

The field of biomaterials has become a vital area, as these materials can enhance the quality and longevity of human life and the science and technology associated with this field has now led to multi-million dollar business. The paper focuses its attention mainly on titanium-based alloys, even though there exists biomaterials made up of ceramics, polymers and composite materials. The paper discusses the biomechanical compatibility of many metallic materials and it brings out the overall superiority of Ti based alloys, even though it is costlier. As it is well known that a good biomaterial should possess the fundamental properties such as better mechanical and biological compatibility and enhanced wear and corrosion resistance in biological environment, the paper discusses the influence of alloy chemistry, thermomechanical processing and surface condition on these properties. In addition, this paper also discusses in detail the various surface modification techniques to achieve superior biocompatibility, higher wear and corrosion resistance. Overall, an attempt has been made to bring out the current scenario of Ti based materials for biomedical applications.