Amorphization and energy maps of mechanically alloyed FeSiB-based alloys

In this research work, the effect of different mechanical alloying processing parameters such as ball-to-powder weight ratio (BPR), size of the milling balls, rotation speed, and milling duration on the amorphization of an elemental blend of iron (Fe), silicon (Si), and boron (B) have been studied. FeSiB powder alloys were obtained by mechanically alloying of elemental powders for 10, 20, and 30 h with a rotation speed of 700 rpm, stearic acid as process control agent (PCA), and the ball-to-powder ratio of 5:1, 10:1, and 15:1. The resultant powders were then consolidated using the spark plasma sintering (SPS) technique. The effect of SPS processing parameters on mechanical and magnetic properties was studied. For samples milled under the same conditions, the saturation magnetization of the samples sintered at higher temperatures was proven to be higher. Moreover, the effect of heat treating the amorphous powder alloy before SPS processing was studied. The results showed an increase in the saturation magnetization of the heat-treated samples but also an increase in coercivity. Finally, the energy maps were drawn for mechanically alloyed FeSiB-based samples milled under different conditions to find the window for the total energy and minimum energy of a single ball that would give us an amorphous structure useful for magnetic properties. • Iron-based soft magnetic alloys processed by mechanical alloying followed by SPS. • Energy maps were developed for FeSiB-based amorphous alloys. • Crystallite size of iron-based alloys decreases with increasing milling time. • All alloys exhibited good saturation magnetization and lower coercivity.