MME101 Materials Engineering Fundamentals

Lecture 04
A. K. M. Bazlur Rashid Part A: Introduction
Professor, Dept. of Materials and Metallurgical Eng.
Bangladesh Univ. of Eng. and Tech., Dhaka-1000 4 – Introduction to basic materials

Lecture outcome (LO)

At the end of this lecture, students should be able to

1. classify materials, and
2. describe principal characteristics and applications of basic classes of materials.

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 1. Classification of Materials

❑ The factors which form the basis of various systems of classifications of materials
in material science and engineering are:

(i) chemical composition of the material,

(ii) mode of occurrence of the material in the nature,
(iii) refining and manufacturing process to which the material
is subjected prior it acquires the required properties,
(iv) atomic and crystalline structure of material, and
(v) industrial and technical use of the material.

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❑ Any material which has got applications in engineering constructions/usage

is termed engineering material.

❑ Common engineering materials that fall within the scope of material science
and engineering may be classified into one of the following four groups:
1. Metals (ferrous and non-ferrous) and alloys,
2. Ceramics, glasses, and glass-ceramics,
3. Polymers, and
4. Composites

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 2. Metals and Alloys
❑ Metals are composed of one or more metallic elements,
which readily give up electrons to form metallic bonds and conduct electricity.

❑ Some of the important basic properties of metals are:

• Atoms are arranged in very ordered manner with non-localized electrons
• Excellent conductors of heat and electricity
• Moderate melting point; usually solid at ordinary temperature
• denser than ceramics and polymers
• relatively strong and stiff yet malleable and ductile
• resistant to shock & fracture: tough
• lustrous/shiny, but opaque
• when struck metal produce typical sound
• most of the metals form alloys.
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❑ Pure metals are soft and very difficult to obtains.

❑ Common engineering metallic materials are
mostly alloys. Some important alloys:
Steels Fe, C (<2 wt.%) & Mn (~ 1 wt.%)
❑ When two or more pure elements are mixed to Stainless steel Fe, Cr (>10 wt.%) & Ni
form a new metal, whose properties are quite Cast iron Fe, C (2 - 4 wt.%) & Si (1 - 3 wt.%)
different from those of original metals, it is called Brass Cu & Zn (5 - 45 wt.%)
an alloy.
(Tin) Bronze Cu & Sn (12 - 12.5 wt.%)
❑ Alloys are composed of one or more metallic Duralumin Al & Cu (4.5 wt.%)
elements (such as Fe, Al, Cu, Ti, Au, and Ni) 21K gold Au & Cu ( 12.5 wt.%).
and often also include nonmetallic elements 18K gold Au, Cu ( 12.5 wt.%) & Ag (12.5 wt.%)
(for example, C, Ni, and O).

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 ❑ Some compounds often have metallic properties.
These are called intermetallic compounds.
Example: Fe3C, Ni3Al.

❑ Sintered metals/alloys are manufactured using powder metallurgy (PM)

technique and have very different properties than those of ordinary
metals/alloys made using casting.
Example: Tungsten carbide (WC) tools.

❑ Cladded metals/alloys are prepared as a sandwich of two metals/alloys

to have properties of both.
Example: Al (outside for corrosion resistance) and duralumin (inside for strength);
stainless steel (outside for corrosion resistance) and ordinary steel (inside).

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Applications
Industry/Field Applications Common Metals Used
Construction structures, reinforcing materials, roofing, plumbing, doorknobs, Steels, cast irons, aluminium alloys, brasses,
industry screws, pipes, electrical wiring, window frames, decoration, oil stainless steels, pure copper
and gas lines, etc.)
Automobiles body, chassis, springs, engine block Steels, cast irons, aluminium alloys
Electronics electrical wiring, wires, computers chips, circuit/motherboard, Copper, gold, silver, lithium, palladium, tin, zinc,
cell phones nickel, cobalt, iron, bismuth and antimony
Airplanes engine components, fuselage, landing gear assembly Aluminium alloys, steels, titanium and tungsten
Trains rails, engine components, body, wheels Carbon steels and alloy steels
Machine tools drill bits, hammers, screwdrivers, saw blades High carbon steels, alloy steels (high speed
steels) cast irons, carbides
Shape memory Aircraft and spacecraft, automotive, robotics, smartphone Cu-Al-Ni, Nitinol (50%Ni-50%Ti), Fe-Mn-Si, Cu-
materials camera, medicine, orthopaedic surgery, dentistry Zn-Al and Cu-Al-Ni,
Super alloys turbine blades, medical applications, space vehicles, nuclear Groups of Nickel, Iron-Nickel, and Cobalt alloys
power plants
Magnets Hybrid and electric automobiles, loudspeakers, disk drives, Iron, Nickel, Cobalt
industrial pumps, televisions, telephones, computers
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 Steel as construction material
Nickel-based super alloys for turbine blade

Aluminium alloys for aerospace industry Pure copper for transformer

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3. Ceramics, Glasses, and Glass-ceramics

❑ Mostly inorganic compounds (oxides, ❑ Some basic properties of metals :

nitrides and carbides) of metallic and • Strong & stiff
nonmetallic elements. • Harder than metals
• Low malleability & ductility
❑ Have very strong ionic and/or covalent • Low resistant to fracture: brittle
bonds, and no free electrons like metals. • High melting point: high refractoriness
• Low density than most metals
❑ Ceramics are generally crystalline, • Electrical & thermal insulators
glasses are amorphous, while glass- • Usually opaque, but can be made transparent
ceramics are partly amorphous and
partly crystalline.

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 Example
• Single oxides (SiO2, Al2O3, Fe 2O3, MgO, etc.)
• Mixed-metal oxides (BaTiO3, MgAl2O4, YBa2Cu3O7-x, etc.)
• Nitrides (Si3N4, TiN, AlN, GaN, BN)
• Carbides (SiC, WC, TiC)
• Silicate glasses (soda-lime, borosilicate, Pyrex)

Applications
• Traditional ceramics (pottery, porcelains, tiles, sanitary ware)
• Structural or engineering ceramics (refractories, gears, cutting tools)
• Electrical ceramics (capacitors, insulators, transducers)
• Abrasives (emery paper, grinding wheel)
• Glasses (e.g., soda-lime glass, crystal glass, pyrex glass, optical fibres)
• Chemically bonded ceramics (e.g., cement)
• Bioceramics (artificial bone joints)
• Magnetic materials (audio/video tapes, hard disks)
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Applications of engineering ceramics

Applications of traditional ceramics

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 4. Polymeric Materials
❑ Polymers can be found all around us: ❑ Long chained molecules composed of many
from the strand of our DNA (a naturally mers bonded together by a process called
occurring biopolymer) to polypropylene polymerization.
(or plastic) which is used throughout the
❑ Usually contain 5 or more monomers, and
world.
some may contain 100s or 1000s of monomers
in each chain.
❑ Derived from two Greek words:
poly means many ❑ They have extremely large molecular weight.
mer means part (single molecule unit)
❑ Example:
- (C2H4) n - (n = 100-1000)
Polyethylene

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❑ Most polymers are organic and can be

either natural or synthetic in nature.
❑ Even though the basic makeup of many
polymers is carbon and hydrogen, other
elements can also be involved.

❑ Example:
H (polyethylene) N (nylon)
O (acrylic) F (PTFE or Teflon)
Si (silicone) Cl (PVC) , etc.

❑ There are also some polymers that, instead of

having a carbon backbone, have a silicon or
phosphorous backbone.
• These are considered inorganic polymers.
• E.g., polysiloxanes (silicones) and polyphosphazenes. structure of polyethylene
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 Distinguishing features Applications
• Usually not strong but very ductile • Adhesives, paints and glues
• Low melting point • Containers
• Low density • Mouldable products (computer casings, telephone handsets)
• Poor conductor of electricity & heat • Clothing and upholstery material (vinyl, polyester, nylon)
• Can be transparent • Water-resistant coatings (latex)
• Biodegradable products
• Biomaterials (organic/inorganic interfaces)
Examples • Liquid crystals
• Polyethylene (PE) • Low-friction materials (Teflon)
• Polystyrene (PS) • Synthetic oils and greases
• Gaskets and O-rings (rubber)
• Polyurethane (PU)
• Soaps and surfactants
• Polyvinylchloride (PVC)
• Medical products (hand gloves, syringes, blood bags)
• Nylon
• Polymer bank notes, plastic cards
• Rubbers • Bullet proof vests, space suits
• Perspex (PMMA)
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Uses of polymers in traditional applications Uses of polymers in engineering applications

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 5. Composite Materials
❑ Composites materials are artificially prepared solids containing of two or more
physically distinct phases on a scale larger than the atomic.

❑ They are made from a matrix material, reinforced with an engineered,

man-made or natural fiber, particles, or other reinforcing material.

THE MATRIX (aluminium)

THE INTERFACE
protects the reinforcing material from
environmental and external damage and allows transfer of stress from the
transfers the load between the fibers. matrix to the dispersed phase

THE REINFORCEMENT (tungsten fibre)

provide strength and stiffness to
reinforce the matrix—and help it resist
tungsten fibre reinforced
cracks and fractures. aluminium composite
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Distinguishing features

❑ Physical mixture of two or more different materials. ❑ The primary needs

E.g., metal/ceramic, ceramic/polymer, polymer/polymer. for making composites:
❑ Offset the poor qualities of one phase • greater strength and stiffness
• light weight
with the good qualities of another • higher operating temperatures
• higher impact and wear resistance
❑ The term “composite” is usually reserved for those
• better corrosion resistance
materials in which • higher reliability and affordability
• the phases are microscopically or macroscopically distinct,
• properties such as the elastic modulus are significantly
altered in comparison with those of a homogeneous material

❑ Properties depend on
the amount and distribution of each material.
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 “The best of both worlds”

METALS
Pros
 electrically & thermally conductive Cons
 good strength & ductility  dense
 high toughness  low creep resistance
 magnetic  low/moderate corrosion resistance

Pros Pros
 electrically & thermally insulating Composites  very ductile
 wear & corrosion resistant  easy to form
 high strength & stiffness  corrosion resistant
 creep resistant  high strength-to-weight ratio
 low density
CERAMICS POLYMERS
Cons Cons
 difficult to form/machine  low stiffness & strength
 very low toughness  poor high temperature properties

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Classes of Composites

Based on matrix material

• Polymer matrix composites (PMC) (glass fibres in a polymer: GFRP, CFRP)
• Metal matrix composites (MMCs) (SiC in aluminium)
• Ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) (zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA), cermets (Ag in Alumina))

Based on reinforcing material

• Particulate composites (cermets, duralumin)
• Fiber reinforced composites (fiberglass, golf club shafts, tennis rackets)
• Laminate/structural composites (sandwich/honeycomb structures: aircraft body, structural panel)

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 Natural Composite
• Wood (cellulose-fibre-reinforced lignin)
• Concrete (aggregate composite of cement, rock and sand)
• Bone (collagen and hydroxyapatite)

Applications
• Sports equipment (golf club shafts, tennis rackets, bicycle frames)
• Aerospace materials (Space shuttle, heat shields)
• Thermal insulation
• "Smart" materials (for sensing and responding)
• Brake materials

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Structural Composite Concrete

(laminated plywood) (sand/gravel in cement)

SEM image showing

reinforcing material
(glass fibre) in golf club

Composite material in making golf club

Composite material in making textile products

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 6. Comparison of Properties of Materials

Density
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Elastic Modulus

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 Strength

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Resistance to Fracture

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 Electrical Conductivity
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TABLE 1-2 ◼ Strength-to-weight ratio of various materials

Strength Density Strength-to-weight

Material (lb/in2) (lb/in3) ratio (in)

Polyethylene 1,000 0.030 0.03 x 106

Pure aluminium 6,500 0.098 0.07 x 106
Alumina (Al2O3) 30,000 0.114 0.26 x 106
Epoxy 15,000 0.050 0.30 x 106
Heat-treated alloy steels 240,000 0.280 0.86 x 106
Heat-treated aluminium alloys 86,000 0.098 0.88 x 106
Carbon-carbon composite 60,000 0.065 0.92 x 106
Heat-treated titanium alloys 170,000 0.160 1.06 x 106
Kevlar-epoxy composite 65,000 0.050 1.30 x 106
Carbon-epoxy composite 80,000 0.050 1.60 x 106

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 • Increasing temperature normally reduces the
strength of a material.

• Polymers are suitable only at low temperatures.

• Some composites, special alloys, and ceramics,

have excellent properties at high temperatures.

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Next Class
MME101: Lecture 05
Part A: Introduction
5 – Introduction to advanced materials

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