Abstract:After substituting partial Cu and Mg with Zn or Al elements for Mg₆₅Cu₂₅Y₁₀ alloy, respectively, the metallic glass plate samples with thickness of 2−3 mm were prepared by water-quenching, their respective glass-forming ability and thermal stability were studied by using differential thermal analysis (DTA) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Using Kissinger equation, the activation energies of crystallization of these metallic glasses heated with a constant rate were calculated. The results show that Al element is greatly harmful to the glass-forming ability of Mg-Cu-Y alloys and cannot acquire bulk amorphous alloys; nevertheless, the effect of Zn element addition is indeterminate for various components. The magnitudes of thermal stability are also revealed.

Key words: Mg-based alloy; metallic glasses; glass-forming ability; thermal stability