Effect of Heating Rate on Crystallization Kinetics of Amorphous Al91La5Ni4 Alloys by DSC

Crystallization kinetics of Al₉₁La₅Ni₄ amorphous ribbons produced by a melt-spinning method were studied by DSC analysis and X-ray diffraction. The effect of heating rate (from 4 to 200°C min^-1) was investigated in the temperature range from 298 to 700 K. Increases the heating rate from 4 to 200°C min^-1 resulted in increases of the temperature difference between the two stages of the transformation process: crystallization of Al and crystallization of the Al compounds from 148.9 to 167.4 K. The apparent activation energies for the first step, related to Al crystallization, and to the second step related to crystallization of Al₄La and Al₃Ni, were found to be 161±9 and 199±10 kJ mol^-1, respectively. The results indicate the possibility of tailoring the heating treatment to produce the required fraction of the amorphous phase. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.