Al-Based Amorphous Metallic Plastics

A new class of Al-based metallic glasses is identified, which exhibits polymer-like thermoplastic formability near the boiling point of water. To satisfy the requirements for thermoplastic behavior, a series of AlSm-based metallic glasses are examined by Flash DSC to determine the glass transition temperature, T-g. Viscosity measurements confirm that the T-g values of the AlSm-based glasses are below 100 degrees C. Bending and imprinting trials in boiling water demonstrate permanent deformation without the development of shear bands as required for thermoplastic behavior. Comparison of the thermoplastic formability index values indicates that the AlSm-based glasses exhibit behavior similar to that for common Fe-based metallic glasses. Kinetic measurements are used to evaluate the lifetime before the onset of crystallization. The AlSm-based glasses have a significant potential in the areas of electromechanical systems, micro-scale biomedical parts, nanorobots, and micromachines.