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Material

Materials are substances that can be classified based on their properties, origin, and function, and are essential in manufacturing processes. They can be categorized by use, structure, and properties, including mechanical and thermal characteristics. The study of materials science encompasses the development and application of various materials, including metals, polymers, and composites.

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9 views

Material

Materials are substances that can be classified based on their properties, origin, and function, and are essential in manufacturing processes. They can be categorized by use, structure, and properties, including mechanical and thermal characteristics. The study of materials science encompasses the development and application of various materials, including metals, polymers, and composites.

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amitkumargarg88
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Material

A material is a substance or mixture of substances that


constitutes an object. Materials can be pure or impure, living or
non-living matter. Materials can be classified on the basis of
their physical and chemical properties, or on their geological
origin or biological function. Materials science is the study of
materials, their properties and their applications.

Raw materials can be processed in different ways to influence


their properties, by purification, shaping or the introduction of
other materials. New materials can be produced from raw
materials by synthesis.

In industry, materials are inputs to manufacturing processes to Various different materials classified by
microstructure. Clockwise from top-left: steel
produce products or more complex materials.[1]
kitchen container (metals), terracotta flowerpots
(ceramics), wooden pallets (composites), and
plastics (polymers).
Historical elements
Materials chart the history of humanity. The system of the three prehistoric ages (Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron
Age) were succeeded by historical ages: steel age in the 19th century, polymer age in the middle of the
following century (plastic age) and silicon age in the second half of the 20th century.[2]

Classification by use
Materials can be broadly categorized in terms of their use, for example:

▪ Building materials are used for construction


▪ Building insulation materials are used to retain heat within buildings
▪ Refractory materials are used for high-temperature applications
▪ Nuclear materials are used for nuclear power and weapons
▪ Aerospace materials are used in aircraft and other aerospace applications
▪ Biomaterials are used for applications interacting with living systems
Material selection is a process to determine which material should be used for a given application.

Classification by structure
The relevant structure of materials has a different length scale depending on the material. The structure and
composition of a material can be determined by microscopy or spectroscopy.

Microstructure
In engineering, materials can be categorised according to their microscopic structure:[3]: 15–17

▪ Plastics: a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient.
▪ Ceramics: non-metal, inorganic solids
▪ Glasses: amorphous solids
▪ Crystals: a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly
ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions.
▪ Metals: pure or combined chemical elements with specific chemical bonding behavior
▪ Alloys: a mixture of chemical elements of which at least one is often a metal.
▪ Polymers: materials based on long carbon or silicon chains
▪ Hybrids: Combinations of multiple materials, for example composites.

Larger-scale structure
A metamaterial is any material engineered to have a property that is not found in naturally occurring
materials, usually by combining several materials to form a composite and / or tuning the shape, geometry,
size, orientation and arrangement to achieve the desired property.[4]

In foams and textiles, the chemical structure is less relevant to immediately observable properties than
larger-scale material features: the holes in foams, and the weave in textiles.

Classification by properties
Materials can be compared and classified by their large-scale physical properties.

Mechanical properties
Mechanical properties determine how a material responds to applied forces.

Examples include:

▪ Stiffness
▪ Strength
▪ Toughness
▪ Hardness

Thermal properties
Materials may degrade or undergo changes of properties at different temperatures. Thermal properties also
include the material's thermal conductivity and heat capacity, relating to the transfer and storage of thermal
energy by the material.

Other properties
Materials can be compared and categorized by any quantitative measure of their behavior under various
conditions. Notable additional properties include the optical, electrical, and magnetic behavior of materials.
[3]:5–7

See also
▪ Hyle, the Greek term, relevant for the philosophy of matter
▪ Matter
▪ Category:Materials
References
1. "Definition of MATERIAL" (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/material). Merriam-Webster.
2023-08-20. Retrieved 2023-08-29.
2. "Materials that shaped history | School of Materials Science and Engineering – UNSW Sydney" (https://w
ww.unsw.edu.au/science/our-schools/materials/engage-with-us/high-school-students-and-teachers/materi
als-shaped-history). UNSW Sites. Retrieved 2023-08-29.
3. Ashby, Michael; Shercliff, Hugh; Cebon, David (2010). Materials engineering, science, processing and
design (2nd ed.). Oxford: Elsevier. ISBN 9781856178952.
4. Kshetrimayum, R.S. (January 2005). "A brief intro to metamaterials" (https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/documen
t/1368916). IEEE Potentials. 23 (5): 44–46. doi:10.1109/MP.2005.1368916 (https://doi.org/10.1109%2FM
P.2005.1368916). ISSN 0278-6648 (https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0278-6648). S2CID 36925376 (http
s://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:36925376).

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Material&oldid=1258872687"

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