By: Capt.

Ajay Puri

Ship Building Materials :

Definitions
• Tensile Strength: It is the amount of tensile (stretching) stress a material can withstand before
breaking or failing.

• Ductility: It is a measure of the degree to which a material can strain or elongate between the
onset of yield and eventual fracture under tensile loading. The extent to which the bar stretches
before rupture is a measure of the metal’s ductility which is expressed as the percentage
elongation. Ductility is often characterized by a material's ability to be stretched into a wire.

Malleability is a substance's ability to deform under pressure (compressive stress). If malleable, a

material may be flattened into thin sheets by hammering or rolling. Malleable materials can be flattened
into metal leaf. Many metals with high malleability also have high ductility. Malleability is a physical
property of metals that defines the ability to be hammered, pressed, or rolled into thin sheets without
breaking. In other words, it is the property of a metal to deform under compression onto a different form.A
metal's malleability can be measured by how much pressure (compressive stress) it can withstand
without breaking. Differences in malleability among different metals are due to variances in their crystal
structures.Compression stress forces atoms to roll over each other into new positions without breaking
their metallic bond. When a large amount of stress is put on a malleable metal, the atoms roll over each
other, permanently staying in their new position.

Examples of malleable metals are:Gold,Silver,Iron,Aluminium,Copper,Tin

• Hardness: It is the resistance of a material to localized deformation. The term can apply to
deformation from indentation, scratching, cutting or bending.

• Toughness: It describes the way a material reacts under sudden impacts. Toughness is the
resistance to fracture of a material when stressed. It is defined as the amount of energy that a
material can absorb before rupturing, and can be found by finding the area underneath the
stress-strain curve. It can be defined as the work required to deform one cubic inch of metal
until it fractures. It is the ability of a material to resist the start of permanent distortion plus the
ability to resist shock or absorb energy.

• Brittle Fracture: It is the fracture of a metal caused by lack of ductility due to low temperature.

• Fatigue: it is development and propagation of cracks in a metal due to number of repeated

alternating stresses.

• Limits of Proportionality: It is the highest stress prior to which deformation increases

proportionally to the load applied.

• Yield Point: It is the amount of stress in a solid at the onset of permanent deformation. The yield
point, *alternatively called the elastic limit*, marks the end of elastic behavior and the
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

beginning of plastic behavior. When stresses ( less than the yield point) are removed, the
material returns to its original shape.

• Ultimate Tensile stress: It is the max stress that a material can withstand while being stretched
or pulled before failing or breaking.

• Modulus of Elasticity: It is a measure of stiffness of an elastic material. Also called the Young’s
Modulus is the ratio of Stress to strain and is denoted by the letter “E”.
E = stress / strain

 Stress: Stress (σ) is force per unit area and can be expressed as
σ = F / A       
– tensile stress - stress that tends to stretch or lengthen the material
– compressive stress - stress that tends to compress or shorten the material
– shearing stress - stress that tends to shear the material

 Strain: Strain (ε  ) is the change in dimension divided by the original value of the
dimension - and can be expressed as

ε  = dL / L                )
where
– ε  = strain  (m/m) (in/in)
– dL  = elongation or compression (offset) of the object (m) (in)
– L  = length of the object (m) (in)
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Stress Strain Curve

Hooke’s Law
It States - For an elastic body, strain is proportional to stress. When the body changes shape within the
elastic limits, the ratio of stress/strain remains constant and is equal to “E” and the curve if plotted
would be a straight line.
E = stress / strain
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

STEEL
Manufacture:
 Iron ore is crushed to convert into small uniform pieces, passed through air blast to
remove dust and light impurities, washed to remove soluble impurities and finally
passed over a magnetic separator to separate ferrous and non-ferrous materials.
 Now the lumps are separated from the fines and called iron concentrate, which consists
of 65-75% of iron and the rest is iron oxides.
 To change the concentrates to refined iron, it is reduced. Carbon is used as the reducing
agent.
 Purpose of reducing agent:
1. To emit heat to melt the ore.
2. To remove oxides.
 IRON CONCENTRATE IS MELTED IN FURNACE TO APPROXIMATELY 1700 degree C, WITH
SUITABLE COMPOSITION OF COKE AND LIMESTONE. Limestone works as flux whereas
coke is used as reducing agent and used to remove the oxides from the concentrates.
 Impurities like Sulphur and Phosphorus reduce the strength of steel therefore
shipbuilding steel should not have more than 0.5% content of either of these.
 Method to manufacture Steel:
Steel is manufactured by reducing the impurities in iron except carbon. The percentage
of carbon in iron determines the type of steel produced. It ranges from 0.1% for mild
steel to 1.8% for some hardened steels.
Most of the molten iron from a Blast Furnace is used to make one of a number of types
of steel. There isn't just one substance called steel - they are a family of alloys of iron
with carbon or various metals.
Impurities in the iron from the Blast Furnace include carbon, sulfur, phosphorus and
silicon. These have to be removed.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

 Removal of sulfur: Sulfur has to be removed first in a separate process. Magnesium

powder is blown through the molten iron and the sulphur reacts with it
to form magnesium sulfide. This forms a slag on top of the iron and can be removed.
Mg+S→MgS(7)(7)Mg+S→MgS
 Removal of carbon: The still impure molten iron is mixed with scrap iron (from
recycling) and oxygen is blown on to the mixture. The oxygen reacts with the remaining
impurities to form various oxides. The carbon forms carbon monoxide. Since this is a gas it
removes itself from the iron! This carbon monoxide can be cleaned and used as a fuel
gas.
 Removal of other elements: Elements like phosphorus and silicon react with the
oxygen to form acidic oxides. These are removed using quicklime (calcium oxide) which is
added to the furnace during the oxygen blow. They react to form compounds such as
calcium silicate or calcium phosphate which form a slag on top of the iron.

Properties of good shipbuilding Steel.

1) Carbon Content between 0.15% - 0.33%.
2) Suitable for flame cutting and easily welded.
3) Should be ductile.
4) Homogenous composition to prevent weaknesses in the metal.
5) High Yield Point or higher than Ultimate Breaking Stress.
6) Resistant to corrosion.
7) Available at reasonable cost.

Types of Iron
• PIG IRON: Is a raw material for cast iron and wrought iron. It is formed by treating sponge iron,
DRI (Directly Reduced Iron) so that it looses its affinity for water and becomes more stable.

• CAST IRON: is produced by melting pig iron with layers of coke and limestone and poured into
moulds to cast it in a desired shape.
– The carbon content is high (2-4%).
– Has high strength but is brittle.

• WROUGHT IRON: It is manufactured by melting pig iron with silica in a coal fired furnace.
– It is then drawn or beaten into shape while hot after which a heat treatment is given.
– The final product is extremely ductile and free from brittleness and used for anchors,
cables etc.

• STEEL: Addition of carbon to iron, forms iron carbide or Cementite. Cementite lies with iron
molecules side by side and has pearl like appearance hence called Pearlite.

Types of Steel
• Mild Steel:
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– It has low carbon content (<0.3%).

– Used for structural material.(beams, plates, bars etc.)
• Medium carbon steel:
– Has carbon content from 0.3% to 0.5%.
– Used in chisels, knives, saw blades etc.
• High Carbon Steel:
– Has carbon content from 0.5% - 0.7%.
– Used as insulation for fire resistant divisions and reefer tanks in reefer vessels.
High Tensile Steel
• It has greater tensile strength for equivalent thickness even at low temperatures. Used in large
tankers and ore carriers. It is denoted by ‘H’ against various grades of steel, eg. AH, BH, CH …..
etc.
 Advantages:
• Reduction in scantlings.
• Reduced lightship displacements.
• Greater tensile strength even at low temperatures.

 Hazards:
• After corrosion the reduction in thickness for HTS as a percentage of original thickness is
greater thus leaving the plate weaker than ordinary plate.
• Reduced scantlings can prove dangerous for the strength of the ship.

Two main types of steels are used in ship building;

1) Mild Steel
2) High Tensile Steel (HTS)

Testing of steel
The basic tests are:-

1. Tensile Test

2. Bend Test

3. Hardness Test

4. Impact Test

5. Creep Test

6. Fatigue Test

Tensile Test
• Carried in tensile test machine. A load is applied hydraulically to draw apart the ends of the test
piece. This test is done to determine elongation, yield point, Limits of proportionality and
ultimate breaking stress of steel.

Tensile Strength = maximum Load / Original cross sectional area.

 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Bend Test
• A test bar or plate is bend through 180 deg till the ends are parallel. The bend area is closely
inspected for cracks or fractures. This is done to determine the ductility of the metal.

Hardness Test
• A load is applied to dent the surface of the metal. This is done to determine the ability to
withstand wear and tear.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Brinell Number is an indicator of Hardness.

Brinell Number = Load in newtons/area of indentation in mm 2

Impact Test
• Charpy V-notch machine is used. A heavy striker at the end of a pendulum provides a blow
which breaks the specimen placed at the bottom of the pendulum’s swing. This is done to
determine the ability of the metal to withstand fracture under shock loads.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Creep Test :This test is similar to Tensile Test

Fatigue Test
• The specimen is subjected to number of alternating stresses and the number that produces the
fracture at given value of stress is noted. This is done to determine the ability of the metal to
withstand repeatedly applied stresses.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Heat treatment of Steel

Four basic treatments of steel:-

1. Annealing
2. Normalising
3. Hardening
4. Tempering

Annealing
• PROCESS:

– THE METAL IS HEATED TO ABOUT 200-300 C ABOVE THE CRITICAL POINT. AFTER BEING
HELD FOR A WHILE AT THIS TEMPERATURE (FOR THE TRANSFORMATION TO BE
COMPLETE), IT IS COOLED SLOWLY AT A RATE OF AROUND 50 0 C PER HOUR. THE
COOLING MAY BE DONE IN THE FURNACE OR IN SOME MEDIUM e.g. A SAND BATH,
WHICH REDUCES THE RATE OF COOLING.

• PURPOSE

– TO IMPART
– SOFTNESS
– ELASTICITY
– DUCTILITY
– TO RELIEVE ANY INTERNAL STRESSES

Normalising
• PROCESS

– THE METAL IS HEATED TO 300-500 C ABOVE THE CRITICAL POINT AND ALLOWED TO
COOL IN STILL AIR.

• PURPOSE

– TO RESTORE TO THE ORIGINAL PROPERTIES TO A METAL

– TO CORRECT THE STRUCTURE OF OVERHEATED STEEL
– TO RELIEVE THE STRESSES AND IMPROVE THE MACHINABILITY OF CARBON AND LOW
ALLOY STEELS BY MAKING THEM LESS HARD
– TO HARDEN AND STRENGTHEN STEEL THAT HAS SOFTENED.
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Hardening
• PROCESS

– THE METAL IS HEATED TO 200-300 C ABOVE THE CRITICAL POINT AND THEN QUENCHED.
QUENCHING IS THE PROCESS OF COOLING THE STEEL RAPIDLY FROM THE
TEMPERATURE TO WHICH IT HAS BEEN HEATED. THIS IS DONE BY IMMERSING THE
METAL IN A QUENCHING BATH. THESE BATHS MAY BE AIR, WATER, OILS, BRINE,
MOLTEN SALTS ETC.

• PURPOSE

– TO INCREASE THE HARDNESS OF A METAL TO MAKE CHISELS, DRILL BITTS ETC

Tempering
• PROCESS

– TEMPERING CONSISTS OF HEATING THE METAL TO ABOUT 250 0 C, RETAINING THIS

TEMPERATURE FOR A PERIOD DEPENDING UPON THE MASS AND DEGREE OF
TOUGHNESS REQUIRED AND THEN QUENCHING OR COOLING IN AIR.

• PURPOSE

– TO RELIEVE THE STRESS AND BRITTLENESS FROM STEEL AND MAKE IT DUCTILE
WITHOUT LOSING HARDNESS I.E.TO INCREASE TOUGHNESS.

Aluminium in Ship Building

Advantages
• Corrosion resistant. Aluminum has the additional advantage of superior resistance to corrosion,
since it corrodes over 100 times more slowly than conventional structural carbon steel used to
build ships.

• Non Magnetic. Aluminum being non-magnetic in nature, does not affect various electronic
equipments especially the magnetic compass

• Lighter than steel, thus saving almost up to 60% of the deadweight. Thus resulting in passenger
caring capacity (in case of passenger ships) and improved stability. Lower hull weight requires
less power, resulting in saving of energy and require smaller space and size of machinery.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Disadvantages
• Max Yield Strength: Aluminum alloys cannot meet the maximum yield strengths required in
certain shipbuilding applications—only high-strength, low-alloy steels meet these strength
requirements.

• Cost: Aluminum costs roughly five times more than steel.

• Low Melting Point: Aluminum has a very low melting point (659 C) as compared to steel(1500
C).

• Welding: Difficulty in welding. The aluminium alloy in molten state readily absorbs oxygen and
causes excessive corrosion thus weakening the metal. Thus welding is done in a gas shield and
only MIG/TIG welding process is suitable.

Joining Aluminium to Steel (Corrosion Control Method)

• Aluminium is joined to steel, eg. In case of aluminium superstructure, through either Bolting or
Welding. Precautions have to be taken to prevent corrosion as the two metals in presence of
water will set up a galvanic cell which will result in aluminium becoming annode and getting
eaten up.

1. BOLTING:
The aluminium plate is bolted to steel with nuts and bolts but with packing of insulated
material between the two. This is to prevent the setting up of Galvanic Cell.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

2. Welding:
– TIG or MIG welding process is used.

– There is use of bimetallic metal (half aluminium and half steel) also called Transition Bar
(TriClad).

TIG Welding TRICLAD

TIG or MIG welding process is used.

Gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW), also known as tungsten inert gas (TIG) welding, is an arc
welding process that uses a non-consumable tungsten electrode to produce the weld. The weld area
is protected from atmospheric contamination by an inert shielding gas (argon or helium), and a filler
metal is normally used, though some welds, known as auto-genous welds, do not require it.
A constant-current welding power supply produces electrical energy, which is conducted across the
arc through a column of highly ionized gas and metal vapors known as a plasma.

GTAW is most commonly used to weld thin sections of stainless steel and non-ferrous metals such
as aluminum, magnesium, and copper alloys. The process grants the operator greater control over
the weld than competing processes such as shielded metal arc welding and gas metal arc welding,
allowing for stronger, higher quality welds. However, GTAW is comparatively more complex and
difficult to master, and furthermore, it is significantly slower than most other welding techniques. A
related process, plasma arc welding, uses a slightly different welding torch to create a more focused
welding arc and as a result is often automated
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

The Extraction of Iron

Extracting iron from iron ore using a Blast
Furnace
The common ores of iron are both iron oxides, and these can be reduced to iron by heating them with carbon in the
form of coke. Coke is produced by heating coal in the absence of air. Coke is cheap and provides both the reducing
agent for the reaction and also the heat source. The most commonly used iron ores are hematite, Fe2O3Fe2O3, and
magnetite, Fe3O4Fe3O4.

The Blast Furnace

The significant reactions occuring within the Blast Furnace can be described via the following steps showing how the
reducing agent varies depending on the height in the furnace (i.e. on the Temperature).

At 500 °C
3Fe2O3 +CO →
2Fe3O4 + CO2
Fe2O3 +CO →
2FeO + CO2

At 850 °C
Fe3O4 +CO →
3FeO + CO2

At 1000 °C
FeO +CO → Fe +
CO2

At 1300 °C
CO2 + C → 2CO

At 1900 °C
C+ O2 → CO2
FeO +C → Fe +
CO

The air blown into the bottom of the furnace is heated using the hot waste gases from the top. Heat energy is
valuable, and it is important not to waste any. The coke (essentially impure carbon) burns in the blast of hot air to
form carbon dioxide - a strongly exothermic reaction. This reaction is the main source of heat in the furnace.
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

The reduction of the ore

At the high temperature at the bottom of the furnace, carbon dioxide reacts with carbon to produce carbon monoxide.
It is the carbon monoxide which is the main reducing agent in the furnace. In the hotter parts of the furnace, the
carbon itself also acts as a reducing agent. Notice that at these temperatures, the other product of the reaction is
carbon monoxide, not carbon dioxide. The temperature of the furnace is hot enough to melt the iron which trickles
down to the bottom where it can be tapped off.

The function of the limestone

Iron ore is not pure iron oxide - it also contains an assortment of rocky material that would not melt at the temperature
of the furnace, and would eventually clog it up. The limestone is added to convert this into slag which melts and runs
to the bottom. The heat of the furnace decomposes the limestone to give calcium oxide.
This is an endothermic reaction, absorbing heat from the furnace. It is therefore important not to add too much
limestone because it would otherwise cool the furnace. Calcium oxide is a basic oxide and reacts with acidic oxides
such as silicon dioxide present in the rock. Calcium oxide reacts with silicon dioxide to give calcium silicate.
The calcium silicate melts and runs down through the furnace to form a layer on top of the molten iron. It can be
tapped off from time to time as slag. Slag is used in road making and as "slag cement" - a final ground slag which can
be used in cement, often mixed with Portland cement.

Cast iron
The molten iron from the bottom of the furnace can be used as cast iron. Cast iron is very runny when it is molten and
doesn't shrink much when it solidifies. It is therefore ideal for making castings - hence its name. However, it is very
impure, containing about 4% of carbon. This carbon makes it very hard, but also very brittle. If you hit it hard, it tends
to shatter rather than bend or dent. Cast iron is used for things like manhole covers, guttering and drainpipes, cylinder
blocks in car engines, Aga-type cookers, and very expensive and very heavy cookware.

Steel
Most of the molten iron from a Blast Furnace is used to make one of a number of types of steel. There isn't just one
substance called steel - they are a family of alloys of iron with carbon or various metals. More about this later . . .
 By: Capt.Ajay Puri

Steel-making: the basic oxygen process

Impurities in the iron from the Blast Furnace include carbon, sulfur, phosphorus and silicon. These have to be
removed.
 Removal of sulfur: Sulfur has to be removed first in a separate process. Magnesium powder is blown
through the molten iron and the sulphur reacts with it to form magnesium sulfide. This forms a slag on top of the iron
and can be removed.
 Removal of carbon: The still impure molten iron is mixed with scrap iron (from recycling) and oxygen is
blown on to the mixture. The oxygen reacts with the remaining impurities to form various oxides. The carbon forms
carbon monoxide. Since this is a gas it removes itself from the iron! This carbon monoxide can be cleaned and used
as a fuel gas.
 Removal of other elements: Elements like phosphorus and silicon react with the oxygen to form acidic
oxides. These are removed using quicklime (calcium oxide) which is added to the furnace during the oxygen blow.
They react to form compounds such as calcium silicate or calcium phosphate which form a slag on top of the iron.

Types of iron and steel

Cast iron has already been mentioned above. This section deals with the types of iron and steel which are produced
as a result of the steel-making process.
 Wrought iron: If all the carbon is removed from the iron to give high purity iron, it is known as wrought iron.
Wrought iron is quite soft and easily worked and has little structural strength. It was once used to make decorative
gates and railings, but these days mild steel is normally used instead.
 Mild steel: Mild steel is iron containing up to about 0.25% of carbon. The presence of the carbon makes the
steel stronger and harder than pure iron. The higher the percentage of carbon, the harder the steel becomes. Mild
steel is used for lots of things - nails, wire, car bodies, ship building, girders and bridges amongst others.
 High carbon steel: High carbon steel contains up to about 1.5% of carbon. The presence of the extra
carbon makes it very hard, but it also makes it more brittle. High carbon steel is used for cutting tools and masonry
nails (nails designed to be driven into concrete blocks or brickwork without bending). You have to be careful with high
carbon steel because it tends to fracture rather than bend if you mistreat it.
 Special steels: These are iron alloyed with other metals. For example:
 

  iron mixed with special properties uses include

stainless steel chromium and resists corrosion cutlery, cooking utensils, kitchen sinks, industrial
nickel equipment for food and drink processing

titanium steel titanium withstands high gas turbines, spacecraft

temperatures

manganese manganese very hard rock-breaking machinery, some railway track (e.g.
steel points), military helmets