Purpose: The purpose of this article was to investigate the possibility of the production of Fe-Nb-B bulk metallic alloys with additions of yttrium and zirconium elements. Furthermore, this paper tends to present the structure and selected properties of obtained alloys. In this article the influence of an argon atmosphere on casting process was observed too. Design/methodology/approach: The production attempts were performed on Fe-Nb-B-Zr and Fe-Nb-B-Y system alloys in form of a plate. Master alloy ingots with compositions of Fe72B22Y4Nb2 and Fe71(Nb0.8Zr0.2)6B23 were prepared by induction melting of pure Fe, Nb, B, Y and Fe, Nb, B, Zr elements in an argon atmosphere. The ingots have been crushed and then the investigated material was cast with and without a protective atmosphere. The investigated materials were cast in form of a plate with thickness of 1 mm. The structure analysis of the studied materials in as-cast state was carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and microscopic observation. The thermal properties of the alloys were examined by DSC methods. The measurments of the hardness were performed with the Vickers method. Findings: The Fe-Nb-B-Y and Fe-Nb-B-Zr system alloys in form of a plate were produced by die pressure casting method. The investigation methods revealed that the studied as-cast alloys were crystalline. The structure of the obtained plates is rather fine-grained and there were not found any impurities and undesirable phases inside the materials. The results of calorimetric curves confirm that all tested samples are crystalline. Practical implications: To extend the potential applications of the Fe-based BMGs, amorphous alloys with larger critical sizes and better processability are required. The Fe-Nb-B-Zr and Fe-Nb-B-Y bulk metallic glasses obtained by die pressure casting method can be used for production of telecommunications devices, sensors or low-energy transformers. These materials exhibit excellent mechanical and soft magnetic properties. Originality/value: An overall presentation of an influence of the yttrium and zirconium additions on the attempt of forming Fe72B22Y4Nb2 and Fe71(Nb0.8Zr0.2)6B23 alloys. The chemical composition of these alloys was tested in our laboratory for the first time.
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