ELEVATED-TEMPERATURE STRENGTH OF AN AL88NI9CE2FE1 AMORPHOUS ALLOY CONTAINING NANOSCALE FCC-AL PARTICLES

An Al88Ni9Ce2Fe1 alloy with ultrahigh tensile fracture strength exceeding 950 MPa in the temperature range from room temperature to 573 K was found to be obtained by rapid solidification in the structural state where the nanoscale fcc-Al particles without internal defects disperse homogeneously in the amorphous matrix. The ultimate tensile strength is as high as 1560 MPa at room temperature and 970 MPa at 573 K. The high strength values were obtained in the mixed structure where the volume fraction of Al phase was about 25%. It is notable that the strength values at room temperature and 573 K are about 3 and 15 times, respectively, as high as those for conventional age-hardening type aluminum alloys. The extremely high strengths are presumably due to the dispersion strengthening resulting from the homogeneous dispersion of the nanoscale Al particles without internal defects. Furthermore, the excellent elevated-temperature strength is also presumed to originate from the high resistance of the defect-free Al particles against the softening as well as the particle growth.