Thermomechanical treatments and their effects on structure, microstructure, and select mechanical properties of β-type Zr-rich Ti–Zr–Mo alloys

β-type titanium alloys have attracted considerable interest for biomedical applications, primarily because of their relatively low elastic modulus and their ability to reduce stress-shielding effects in load-bearing implants. In this work, the effects of thermomechanical treatments on the structural, microstructural, and mechanical behavior of Ti–10Mo–xZr alloys (x = 30, 40, and 50 wt%) were systematically examined. The alloys were fabricated by arc melting and subsequently subjected to homogenization heat treatment, hot rolling, and solution treatment. The Microstructural and phase constitution were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy (OM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). At the same time, mechanical performance was evaluated through Vickers microhardness and Young’s modulus. XRD results confirmed the presence of a single β phase across all compositions and processing conditions, highlighting Zr's strong β-stabilizing effect when combined with Mo. The applied thermomechanical treatments had a pronounced impact on mechanical behavior, particularly after solution treatment, which enhanced β-phase stability and led to a noticeable reduction in elastic modulus. All investigated alloys exhibited microhardness values higher than those of commercially pure titanium but lower than those of Ti–6Al–4V. At the same time, their Young’s modulus values were reduced by approximately 24–45% compared with CP-Ti and Ti–6Al–4V. Among the studied compositions, the solution-treated Ti–10Mo–50Zr alloy showed the most favorable combination of properties, with the lowest Young’s modulus (≈50 GPa) and a microhardness of 328 HV, indicating an advantageous balance between reduced stiffness and sufficient mechanical strength for load-bearing biomedical applications.