Microstructure and properties of cost-effective Fe-6.5 wt% Si ribbons fabricated by melt-spinning

Melt-spinning was successfully used to fabricate continuous Fe-6.5wt.%Si ribbons of 35 mu m in thickness and 50-60 mm in width. Equiaxed grains measuring 2.4 +/- 1.0 mu m and columnar grains measuring 1.69 +/- 0.72 mu m were observed on the wheel and free surfaces, respectively. The as-spun ribbons showed strong < 100 > fiber texture, excellent room-temperature ductility, and very low core losses at high frequencies above 10 kHz. Compared with other fabricating techniques, the present work verified the feasibility for melt-spinning technique to fabricate ribbons of Fe-6.5 wt%Si with large-scale and thus cost-effective. (C) 2019 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.