Mechanical performance and fracture behavior of Fe₄₁Co₇Cr₁₅Mo₁₄Y₂C₁₅B₆ bulk metallic glass

The mechanical properties of a new Fe₄₁Co₇Cr₁₅Mo₁₄Y₂C₁₅B₆ bulk glassy alloy were studied by impact bending, compression, and hardness tests carried out at room temperature. The compressive fracture strength, elastic strain to fracture, Young’s modulus and Vickers hardness were measured to be 3.5 GPa, 1.5%, 265 GPa, and 1253 kg mm⁻², respectively. The fracture mode of the glassy alloy under uniaxial compression is different from those of other bulk metallic glasses in that this fracture mode causes the samples to be broken, in an exploding manner, into a large number of micrometer-scale pieces. The fracture mechanisms of this bulk glassy alloy under bending and uniaxial compression are discussed based on the observation of the fracture surfaces. Vickers indentation tests indicate that the structure of the glassy ingot may be inhomogeneous.