Failure behavior of Cu–Ti–Zr-based bulk metallic glass alloys

Microstructure fracture and mechanical properties of Cu-based bulk metallic glass alloys were investigated. Centrifugal casting into copper molds were used to manufacture basic Cu₄₇Ti₃₃Zr₁₁Ni₉, and modified Cu₄₇Ti₃₃Zr₁₁Ni₇Si₁Sn₁ alloys. Although the alloys show an amorphous structure, TEM images revealed the formation of nanoparticles. At room temperature compression tests reveal fracture strength of 2000 MPa, elastic modulus of 127 GPa, and 1.8% fracture strain for the unmodified basic alloy. Whereas the modified alloy exhibits a fracture strength of 2179 MPa, elastic modulus reaches 123 GPa, and 2.4% fracture strain. So, with the addition of 1 at.% Si and Sn, the fracture strength improves by 9% and the fracture strain improves by 25%, but the fracture behavior under compression conditions exhibits a conical shape similar to that produced by tensile testing of ductile alloys. A proposed fracture mechanism explaining the formation of the conical fracture surface was adopted. The formation of homogeneously distributed nano-size (2–5 nm) precipitates changes the mode of fracture of the metallic glass from single to multiple shear plane modes leading to the conical shape fracture surface morphology.     

The effect of particulate loading on the mechanical behaviour of Al2O3/Al metal-matrix composites

An investigation was made to determine the effect of particulate loading on the elastic, tensile, compressive and fracture properties of Al₂O₃/Al metal-matrix composites fabricated by a pressureless-liquid-metal-infiltration process. The elastic modulus was found to be strongly affected by the reinforcement content, falling within the Hashin-Shtrikman bounds. The Young's modulus of the most highly loaded composite was 170 GPa; compare with 65 GPa for the unreinforced alloy. The strength systematically increased with loading, and the rate of increase also increased with loading. The measured yield strengths were nominally the same in both tension and compression; however, the composites possessed far greater ultimate strengths and strains-to-failure in compression than in tension. At 52 vol % reinforcement, yield strengths in tension and compression of 491 and 440 MPa, respectively, were measured, whereas the associated ultimate strengths were 531 and 1035 MPa, respectively. In tension, the yield and ultimate strengths of the base alloy were found to be 170 and 268 MPa, respectively. The composites displayed a nearly constant fracture toughness for all particulate loadings, with values approaching 20 MPa m^1/2 compared to a value of 29 MPa m^1/2 for the base alloy. Using fractography, the tensile-failure mechanism was characterized as transgranular fracture of the Al₂O₃ particles followed by ductile rupture of the Al-alloy matrix, with no debonding at the matrix/reinforcement interfaces.     

Ab initio study of AlCu2M (M = Sc,Ti and Cr) ternary compounds under pressures

The structural, electronic and elastic properties of the AlCu₂M (M = Sc, Ti and Cr) compounds in the pressure range of 0–100 GPa was investigated based on density functional theory. The calculated lattice parameters of the AlCu₂M compounds at zero pressure and zero temperature are in very good agreement with the existing experimental data. The bulk modulus, shear modulus and Young’s modulus increases with the increase of pressure, which indicates that higher materials hardness may be obtained when increasing pressures. The bulk modulus and Young’s modulus of AlCu₂Cr is the greatest under pressure. The shear modulus of AlCu₂Ti is the highest above 30 GPa, while that of the AlCu₂Sc is the strongest below 30 GPa. The calculated B/G values at zero and higher pressure indicated that they are ductile materials. The electronic densities of states and bonding charge densities have been discussed in details, revealing these compounds exhibit half-metallic behavior. In addition, the pressure dependences of Debye temperatures of AlCu₂M compounds have also been calculated. The results indicate that Debye temperatures increase with increasing pressure.     

Development of a β-type Ti–12Mo–5Ta alloy for biomedical applications: cytocompatibility and metallurgical aspects

Ti-based biocompatible alloys are especially used for replacing failed hard tissue. Some of the most actively investigated materials for medical implants are the beta-Ti alloys, as they have a low elastic modulus (to inhibit bone resorption). They are alloyed with elements such as Nb, Ta, Zr, Mo, and Fe. We have prepared a new beta-Ti alloy that combines Ti with the non-toxic elements Ta and Mo using a vacuum arc-melting furnace and then annealed at 950 degrees C for one hour. The alloy was finally quenched in water at room temperature. The Ti-12Mo-5Ta alloy was characterised by X-ray diffraction, optical microscopy, SEM and EDS and found to have a body-centred-cubic structure (beta-type). It had a lower Young's modulus (about 74 GPa) than the classical alpha/beta Ti-6Al-4V alloy (120 GPa), while its Vickers hardness remained very high (about 303 HV). This makes it a good compromise for a use as a bone substitute. The cytocompatibility of samples of Ti-12Mo-5Ta and Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloys with various surface roughnesses was assessed in vitro using organotypic cultures of bone tissue and quantitative analyses of cell migration, proliferation and adhesion. Mechanically polished surfaces were prepared to produce unorientated residual polished grooves and cells grew to a particularly high density on the smoother Ti-12Mo-5Ta surface tested.     

Room temperature elastic moduli and Vickers hardness of hot-pressed LLZO cubic garnet

Cubic garnet Li_6.24La₃Zr₂Al_0.24O_11.98 (LLZO) is a candidate material for use as an electrolyte in Li–Air and Li–S batteries. The use of LLZO in practical devices will require LLZO to have good mechanical integrity in terms of scratch resistance (hardness) and an adequate stiffness (elastic modulus). In this paper, the powders were fabricated by powder processing of cast ingots. All specimens were then densified via hot pressing. The room temperature elastic moduli (Young’s modulus, shear modulus, bulk modulus, and Poisson’s ratio) and hardness were measured by resonant ultrasound spectroscopy, and Vickers indentation, respectively. For volume fraction porosity, P, the Young’s modulus was 149.8?±?0.4?GPa (P?=?0.03) and 132.6?±?0.2?GPa (P?=?0.06). The mean Vickers hardness was 6.3?±?0.3?GPa for P?=?0.03 and 5.2?±?0.4 for P?=?0.06.     

Effects of Sn content on thermal stability and mechanical properties of the Ti60Zr10Ta15Si15 amorphous alloy for biomedical use

The (Ti₆₀Zr₁₀Ta₁₅Si₁₅)_100−xSn_x (x = 0, 4, 8, 12 at.%) amorphous ribbons were prepared by the single roll melt-spinning method, and the effects of the Sn content on the thermal stability, the elastic modulus and nanohardness of the Ni-free Ti-based alloys were investigated. It is found that Sn additions decrease the glass formation ability of the Ti₆₀Zr₁₀Ta₁₅Si₁₅ alloy. The content of Sn addition has an important impact on the elastic modulus and nanohardness of the alloys. The amorphous alloy with 4% Sn addition exhibits the highest the elastic modulus and nanohardness, which are 111 GPa and 7.0 GPa, respectively. The correlation between the mechanical properties and Sn content was discussed based on the free volume containing in the as-spun ribbons.     

Structural and mechanical properties of titanium oxide thin films for biomedical application

Titanium oxide thin films were deposited by radiofrequency reactive sputtering in Ar-O₂ atmosphere on silicon (100) wafers and titanium alloy plates (Ti-6Al-4V). Thin films structural characterization was carried out by grazing incidence X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopies. Chemical composition was checked by X-ray wavelength dispersive spectroscopy. Mechanical assessment was achieved by nano-indentation and nano-scratch measurements. The films deposited on silicon substrates are over-stoechiometric in oxygen, with an oxygen to titanium ratio of about 2.2. The growth of anatase and rutile phases was promoted by ranging the total and oxygen partial pressures between 0.17-1.47 Pa and 35-85%. The growth rate of films, determined by grazing incidence X-ray reflectivity, was ranging from 35 to 55 nm/h. The rutile single-phased films possess a hardness of about 2.5 times higher and a lower friction coefficient than the anatase films. The films which contain anatase possess a high surface root-mean-square roughness and a reduced elastic modulus of around 120 GPa close to reduced elastic moduli of hydroxyapatite bioceramic and titanium alloy. So the anatase film could be the best candidate as a titanium oxide intermediate layer between hydroxyapatite and titanium alloy in the field of biomedical implants.     

Effects of Si addition on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg–8Gd–4Y–Nd–Zr alloy

Effects of Si addition (1.0 wt.%) on microstructure and mechanical properties of Mg–8Gd–4Y–Nd–Zr alloy have been investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectrum (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), hardness measurements and tensile testing. The results indicated that the addition of Si led to the formation of Mg₂Si and (RE + Si)-rich particles, which enhanced the Young’s modulus of the alloy by 7 GPa while decreased the yield strength and ultimate strength by 10 MPa and 31 MPa, respectively. The tensile properties of the Mg–8Gd–4Y–Nd–Zr–Si alloy are as follows: Young’s modulus E = 51 GPa, yield strength σ_0.2 = 347 MPa, ultimate strength σ_b = 392 MPa and elongation δ = 2.7%. The increase in Young’s modulus was attributed to the formation of particles with high Young’s modulus, while the decrease in strength was ascribed to the decrease in volume fraction of metastable β′ precipitates caused by the consumption of rare earth atoms due to the formation of the rare earth containing particles.     

A new TiCuHfSi bulk metallic glass with potential for biomedical applications

A new Ti_41.3Cu_43.7Hf_13.9Si_1.1 bulk metallic glass (BMG), free of Ni, Al and Be elements, was designed using the proper mixing of binary deep eutectics. The alloy exhibited excellent glass forming ability (GFA) and could be cast into single glassy rod up to 3 mm in diameter by copper mould casting method. The appropriate atomic-size mismatch, the large negative heat of mixing among constituent elements, and the possible formation of glassy HfSiO₄ facilitated its superior GFA. The BMG also showed good mechanical properties with fracture strength of 1685 MPa and Young’s modulus of 95 GPa as well as better corrosion resistance in both NaCl and Hank’s solutions, compared with pure Ti and Ti–6Al–4V alloy. The above results demonstrated that the developed BMG is promising in biomedical applications.     

A novel biomedical titanium alloy with high antibacterial property and low elastic modulus

β-type titanium alloys have attracted much attention as implant materials because of their low elastic modulus and high strength,which is closer to human bones and can avoid the problem of stress fielding and extend the lifetime of prosthetics.However,other issues,such as the infection or inflammation postimplantation,still trouble the titanium alloy's clinical application.In this paper,we developed a novel near β-titanium alloy (Ti-13Nb-13Zr-13Ag,TNZA) with low elastic modulus and strong antibacterial ability by the addition of Ag element followed by proper microstructure controlling,which could reduce the stress shielding and bacterial infections simultaneously.The microstructure,mechanical properties,corrosion resistance,antibacterial properties and cell toxicity were studied using SEM,electrochemical testing,mechanical test and cell tests.The results have demonstrated that TNZA alloy exhibited an elastic modulus of 75-87 GPa and a strong antibacterial ability (up to 98 ％ reduction) and good biocompatibility.Moreover,it was also shown that this alloy's corrosion resistance was better than that of Ti-13Nb-13Zr.All the results suggested that Ti-13Nb-13Zr-13Ag might be a competitive biomedical titanium alloy.     

Compression strength of carbon,glass and Kevlar-49 fibre reinforced polyester resins

The compression behaviour of a series of polyester resins of various compositions and in different states of cure has been investigated. Their mechanical characteristics having been established, the same range of resins was then used as a matrix material for a series of composites reinforced with carbon, glass and aromatic polyamide fibres. The composites were unidirectionally reinforced, having been manufactured by pultrusion, and were compression tested in the fibre direction after a series of experiments to assess the validity of a simple testing procedure. Rule of Mixtures behaviour occurred in glass-polyester composites up to limiting volume fractions (V _f) of 0.31 for strength and 0.46 for elastic modulus, the compression modulus being equal to the tensile modulus, and the apparent fibre strength being in the range 1.3 to 1.6 GPa at this limiting V _f. At a V _f of 0.31 the strengths of reinforced polyesters were proportional to the matrix yield strength, _my, and their moduli were an inverse exponential function of _my. For the same matrix yield strength a composite with an epoxy resin matrix was stronger than polyester based composites. At V _f=0.30, Kevlar fibre composites behaved as though their compression modulus and strength were much smaller than their tensile modulus and strength, while carbon fibre composites were only slightly less stiff and weaker in compression than in tension. The compression strengths of the polyester resins were found to be proportional to their elastic moduli.     

Photo-induced characteristics of a Ti-Nb-Sn biometallic alloy with low Young's modulus

Anodic oxidation was conducted to Ti-Nb-Sn biometallic alloy for the purpose of giving photo-induced properties without losing the low Young's modulus of the alloy. The anodic oxide consists of primary TiO₂ with small amounts of Nb₂O₅ and SnO. Rutile-structured TiO₂ prepared in an electrolyte solution containing 1.2 M sulfuric acid exhibits photocatalytic activity and superhydrophilicity under ultraviolet (UV) light illumination, and superhydrophilicity in the absence of UV light illumination. The Young's modulus of Ti-Nb-Sn alloy with anodic oxide demonstrates a low value of approximately 50 GPa, which expands its application of the alloy as biomedical materials by adding photocatalytic sterilization function.     

Effects of strain and electropulse duration on elastic modulus of TiNi alloy

The elastic modulus of TiNi alloy was tailored by electroplastic rolling deformation and the effects of rolling strain and electropulse duration on the elastic modulus of electroplastic rolled TiNi alloy were systematically investigated. With rolling strain increasing from 0 to 1.70, the elastic modulus decreases from 61 to 30?GPa, which can be attributed to the increase in dislocation density and deformation-induced low modulus B19^′ martensite phase. With electropulse duration increasing from 80 to 120?µs, the elastic modulus first decreases due to the volume fraction increase in low modulus B19^′ martensite phase and then slightly increases on account of the dynamic recovery of dislocation and reverse martensite transformation resulted from electroplastic effect induced by high-energy electropulse.     

Electronic Structure,Phase Stability,and Elastic Properties of Inverse Heusler Compound Mn<Subscript>2</Subscript>RuSi at High Pressure

The structural, magnetic, electronic, and elastic properties of the new Mn-based Heusler alloy Mn₂RuSi at high pressure have been investigated using the first-principles calculations within density functional theory. Present calculations predict that Mn₂RuSi in stable \(F\bar {4}3m\) configuration is a ferrimagnet with an optimized lattice parameter 5.76 Å. The total spin magnetic moment is 2.01 μ _B per formula unit and the partial spin moments of Mn (A) and Mn (B) which mainly contribute to the total magnetic moment are 2.48 and ?0.66 μ _B, respectively. Mn₂RuSi exhibits half metallicity with an energy gap in the spin-down channels. The study of phase stability indicates that the elastic stiffness coefficients of Mn₂RuSi with \(F\bar {4}3m\) structure satisfy the traditional mechanical stability restrictions until up to 100 GPa. In addition, various mechanical properties including bulk modulus, shear modulus, Young’s modulus, and Poisson’s ratio along with elastic wave velocitieshave also been obtained and discussed in details in the pressure range of 0–100 GPa based on the three principle elastic tensor elements C ₁₁, C ₁₂, and C ₄₄ for the first time.     

Biomedical TiNbZrTaSi alloys designed by d-electron alloy design theory

We report on the formation of ultrafine-grained (Ti_69.71Nb_23.72Zr_4.83Ta_1.74)_100 − xSi_x (at.%, x = 0, 2 and 5) alloys designed by d-electron alloy design theory and fabricated by spark plasma sintering of nanocomposite powder precursor. The designed and fabricated alloys exhibit a high yield and fracture strength of 1296 MPa and 3263 MPa along with an ultra-large fracture strain of 65% under compression. Meanwhile, they display low elastic modulus of 37–48 GPa. The high-performance titanium alloys without toxic elements show high potential for application as biomaterials.     

Cell structure and compressive behavior of an aluminum foam

The plastic collapse strength, energy absorption and elastic modulus of a closed cell aluminum foam are studied in relation to cell structures. The density, node size and the cell wall thickness of the aluminum foams decrease with increasing cell size. The failure of the foam cells under compressive load progresses successively from the top or/and bottom to the mid-layer of the compression specimens, and no initial rupture of the foam cells is observed in the mid-height of the foam samples. When foam density increases from 0.11 to 0.22 g/cm ³, the plastic collapse strength rises from 0.20 to 1.29 MPa, while the elastic modulus of the closed cell aluminum foam increases from 0.70 to 1.17 GPa. In contrast, the energy absorption of the foams decreases rapidly with increasing cell size. When cell size increases from 4.7 to 10.1 mm, the energy absorption drops from over unity to 0.3 J/cm ³. The normalized Yong’s modulus of the closed cell aluminum foam is E^*/E_s = 0.208 (ρ^*/ρ_s), while the normalized strength of the foams, σ */σ_s is expressed by σ */σ_s = c ⋅ ρ */ρ_s where c is a density-dependent parameter. Furthermore, the plastic collapse strength and energy absorption ability of the closed cell aluminum foams are significantly improved by reducing cell size of the aluminum foams having the same density.     

Zr–Si biomaterials with high strength and low elastic modulus

In order to develop new biomaterials for hard tissue replacements (HTR), the Zr–8.8Si–xNb (x = 0.0, 0.3, 0.6 and 0.9) alloys with required properties were designed and prepared for the first time. Experimental results show that these alloys can provide excellent mechanical compatibility for the special demands for substitution of human bones. The highest compression strength of the alloys is 1189.30 MPa, while the highest yield strength of alloys is 850.25 MPa. The elastic energy is determined to be 5.001–12.01 MJ/m³, and the Young’s modulus is in the range of 25.08–29.63 GPa. The composition of high strength and low elastic modulus of Zr–8.8Si–xNb alloys offer potential advantages for biomedical applications.     

B3–B1 phase transition and pressure dependence of elastic properties of ZnS

We have performed the ab initio calculations based on density functional theory to investigate the B3–B1 phase transition and mechanical properties of ZnS. The elastic stiffness coefficients, C₁₁, C₁₂, C₄₄, bulk modulus, Kleinman parameter, Shear modulus, Reuss modulus, Voigt modulus and anisotropy factor are calculated for two polymorphs of ZnS: zincblende (B3) and rocksalt (B1). Our results for the structural parameters and elastic constants at equilibrium phase are in good agreement with the available theoretical and experimental values. Using the enthalpy–pressure data, we have observed the B3 to B1 structural phase transition at 18.5 GPa pressure. In addition to the elastic coefficients under normal conditions, we investigate the pressure dependence of mechanical properties of both phases: up to 65 GPa for B1-phase and 20 GPa for B3-phase.     

Ti-10Mo-XNb合金铸态组织和机械性能的研究

为了研究Nb元素对Ti-10Mo合金组织和性能的影响,采用钨电极熔化、离心浇注工艺制备了4种钛合金(Ti-10Mo-XNb,X=0,3,7,10),分析并测试了Nb元素对Ti-10Mo合金铸态组织和力学性能的影响.研究结果表明:随着Nb含量的增加,3种Ti-Mo-Nb合金的铸态组织和相组成发生了改变,Ti-10Mo-3Nb合金由等轴的α+β晶粒组成,Ti-10Mo-7Nb合金由等轴的β晶粒组成,Ti-10Mo-10Nb合金由少量等轴和大量枝状的β晶粒组成.另外,随着Nb含量的增加,3种Ti-Mo-Nb合金的维氏硬度、压缩强度、弹性模量降低,压缩率和抗弯强度升高,压缩断口和弯曲断口由脆性断裂向韧性断裂转变.Ti-Mo-Nb合金有望成为新型的生物医用材料.     

Effects of molybdenum content on the structure and mechanical properties of as-cast Ti-10Zr-based alloys for biomedical applications

The effects of molybdenum on the structure and mechanical properties of a Ti-10Zr-based system were studied with an emphasis on improving the strength/modulus ratio. Commercially pure titanium (c.p. Ti) was used as a control. As-cast Ti-10Zr and a series of Ti-10Zr-xMo (x = 1, 3, 5, 7.5, 10, 12.5, 15, 17.5 and 20 wt.%) alloys prepared using a commercial arc-melting vacuum pressure casting system were investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) for phase analysis was conducted with a diffractometer. Three-point bending tests were performed to evaluate the mechanical properties of all specimens. The experimental results indicated that these alloys had different structures and mechanical properties when various amounts of Mo were added. The as-cast Ti-10Zr has a hexagonal α′ phase, and when 1 wt.% Mo was introduced into the Ti-10Zr alloy, the structure remained essentially unchanged. However, with 3 or 5 wt.%, the martensitic α″ structure was found. When increased to 7.5 wt.% or greater, retention of the metastable β phase began. The ω phase was observed only in the Ti-10Zr-7.5Mo alloy. Among all Ti-10Zr-xMo alloys, the α″-phase Ti-10Zr-5Mo alloy had the lowest elastic modulus. It is noteworthy that all the Ti-10Zr and Ti-10Zr-xMo alloys had good ductility. In addition, the Ti-10Zr-5Mo and Ti-10Zr-12.5Mo alloys exhibited higher bending strength/modulus ratios at 20.1 and 20.4, respectively. Furthermore, the elastically recoverable angles of these two alloys (26.4° and 24.6°, respectively) were much greater than those of c.p. Ti (2.7°). Given the importance of these properties for implant materials, the low modulus, excellent elastic recovery capability and high strength/modulus ratio of α″ phase Ti-10Zr-5Mo and β phase Ti-10Zr-12.5Mo alloys appear to make them promising candidates.