Estimation of the glass forming ability of the Fe-based bulk metallic glass Fe_68.8C_7.0Si_3.5B_5.0P _9.6Cr_2.1Mo_2.0Al_2.0 that contains non-metallic inclusions

For the mass production of bulk metallic glasses, the use of industrial raw materials that contain certain amounts of inclusions is inevitable. The glass-forming ability of bulk metallic glasses, i.e., the critical cooling rate for glass formation upon solidification, is closely related to the nature of heterogeneous nucleation offered by inclusions during the solidification process. Significantly different effects of various types of inclusions on the glass forming ability of the alloy Fe_68.8C_7.0Si _3.5B_5.0P_9.6Cr_2.1Mo _2.0Al_2.0 are demonstrated in this study. The origins of the effects of different inclusions on the glass forming ability are analyzed through thermodynamic, crystallographic and classical heterogeneous nucleation kinetic theories.