Material Science and

Engineering
ME007
Mechanical Properties of Materials
Intended Learning Outcomes

• At the end of this module, the

student will be able to;
• 1. Understand the different
Mechanical Properties of
Materials
• 2. Apply Mechanical Properties
of Materials on Engineering
Projects.
Mechanical Properties of Materials

• Elasticity
• Plasticity
• Ductility
• Brittleness
• Malleability
• Toughness
• Resiliency
• Hardness
Elasticity

• Property by virtue of which materials regain their original

shape and size after the removal of deforming forces.
• The elastic limit of a substance is defined as the maximum
stress that can be applied to the substance before it
becomes permanently deformed and does not return to its
initial length.
Plasticity

• The property of materials which undergo deformation

under stress and do not regain their original dimension.
Ductility

• The measure of a material's ability

to plastically deform without
fracturing when placed under a
tensile stress that exceeds its
yield strength.
• Ability of a material to be drawn
into a wire.
Brittleness

• Brittle material breaks while little

to no energy is absorbed when
stressed.
• The material fractures with no
plastic deformation.
Malleability

• The material has the ability to

deform under compressive
stress.
• A malleable material is one in
which a thin sheet can be easily
formed by hammering or rolling.
Toughness

• The ability of a material to absorb

energy and plastically deform
without fracturing.
• It is how much energy can be
absorbed and still keep going.
Resilience

• The ability of a material to absorb

energy when it is deformed
elastically and release that
energy upon unloading.
• It is related to toughness.
Hardness

• The resistance to localized

plastic deformation induced by
either mechanical indentation or
abrasion.
• Hardness is the ability of a
material to resist deformation.
Classification of Materials
Metals and Alloys

• Metals are polycrystalline bodies

which are having a number of
differentially oriented fine crystals.
• Normally, major metals are in solid
states at normal temperature.
However, some metals such as
mercury are also in liquid state at
normal temperature.
Metals and Alloys

• All metals are having high thermal and electrical

conductivity.
• All metals are having positive temperature coefficient of
resistance. Means resistance of metals increases with
increase in temperature.
• Examples of metals – Silver, Copper, Gold, Aluminum, Iron,
Zinc, Lead, Tin etc.
Classification of Metals

1. Ferrous Metals
All ferrous metals are having iron as a common
element. All ferrous materials are having very high
permeability which makes these materials suitable for the
construction of the core of electrical machines. Examples:
Cast Iron, Wrought Iron, Steel, Silicon Steel, High-Speed
Steel, Spring Steel, etc.

Permeability is the measure of magnetization that a material obtains in response

to an applied magnetic field.
Classification of Metals

2. Non-Ferrous Metals

All non-ferrous metals are having very low permeability.

Example: Silver, Copper, Gold, Aluminum, etc.
Metals and Alloys

• Alloys are the composition of two or more metals or metal

and non-metals together. Alloys are having good
mechanical strength, low-temperature coefficient of
resistance. Example: Steels, Brass, Bronze, Gunmetal,
Invar. Super Alloys etc.
Ferrous Metals

• Metal with the descriptor “ferrous” means that it has iron

in its composition. (Latin name ferrum)
• When the term ferrous metal is used, it also usually implies
that iron is a large percentage of the elemental
composition.
Example of Ferrous Metals

Cast Iron
• Cast iron is a man-made alloy of iron, carbon, and silicon. A
portion of the carbon exists as free carbon or graphite.
Total carbon content is between 1.7 and 4.5 percent.
• It has more carbon than most other types. This gives it a
high amount of strength.
• Although high in strength, it is quite brittle.
• The lack of other alloying elements outside of iron and
carbon makes it a relatively affordable ferrous metal.
Types of Cast Iron

Gray Cast Iron

If the molten pig iron is permitted to cool slowly, the
chemical compound of iron and carbon breaks up to a certain
extent. Much of the carbon separates as tiny flakes of
graphite scattered throughout the metal.
• Gray cast iron is easy to machine but cannot withstand a
heavy shock.
• Gray cast iron consists of 90 to 94 percent metallic iron
with a mixture of carbon, manganese, phosphorus, sulfur,
and silicon.
Types of Cast Iron

White Cast Iron

When gray cast iron is heated to the molten state, the
carbon completely dissolves in the iron, probably combining
chemically with it. If this molten metal is cooled quickly, the
two elements remain in the combined state, and white cast
iron is formed.
• The carbon in this type of iron measures above 2.5 to 4.5
percent by weight and is referred to as combined carbon.
• White cast iron is very hard and brittle, often impossible to
machine, and has a silvery-white fracture.
Types of Cast Iron

Malleable Cast Iron

Malleable cast iron is made by heating white cast iron from 1400
to 1700°F (760 and 927°C) for abut 150 hours in boxes
containing hematite ore or iron scale. This heating causes a part of
the combined carbon to change into the free or uncombined state.
This free carbon separates in a different way from the carbon in
gray cast iron and is called temper carbon.
• Has the ability to bend before breaking and to withstand shock
better than gray cast iron. The castings have properties more
like those of pure iron: high strength, ductility, toughness, and
ability to resist shock.
• Malleable cast iron can be welded and brazed.
Example of Ferrous Metals

Wrought Iron
Wrought iron is one of the ferrous metals that is an alloy that
is almost pure iron. It is made from pig iron in a puddling
furnace and has a carbon content of less than 0.08 percent.
Carbon and other elements present in pig iron are taken out,
leaving almost pure iron.
• Wrought iron resists corrosion and oxidation.
• Wrought iron is used for porch railings, fencing, farm
implements, nails, barbed wire, chains, modern household
furniture, ornaments, and decorations.
Example of Ferrous Metals

Steel
A form of iron, steel is one of the ferrous metals that contain
less carbon than cast iron, but considerably more than
wrought iron.
• The carbon content is from 0.03 to 1.7 percent.
• Basic carbon steels are alloyed with other elements, such
as chromium and nickel, to increase certain physical
properties of the metal.
Types of Steel

Carbon Steel
Carbon steels are possibly the most widely used type of
ferrous metal.
• They are primarily made up of iron, with over 90% of their
chemical composition being that element.
• The only other major alloying element in carbon steel is
carbon. There are only trace amounts of other elements.
Types of Carbon Steel

Medium-Carbon Steel (Carbon Content Ranging From .30%

To .50%)
• This steel may be heat-treated after fabrication.
• It is used for general machining and forging of parts that
require surface hardness and strength. It is made in bar
form in the cold-rolled or the normalized and annealed
condition.
• During welding, the weld zone will become hardened if
cooled rapidly and must be stress-relieved after welding.
Types of Carbon Steel

High-Carbon Steel (Carbon Content Ranging From .50% To .90%)

• This steel is used for the manufacture of drills, taps, dies,
springs, and other machine tools and hand tools that are heat-
treated after fabrication to develop the hard structure necessary
to withstand high shear stress and wear.
• It is manufactured in a bar, sheet, and wire forms, and in the
annealed or normalized condition in order to be suitable for
machining before heat treatment.
• This steel is difficult to weld because of the hardening effect of
heat at the welded joint.
Types of Steel

Stainless Steel
• Stainless steels have a high amount of chromium that helps
them to resist corrosion better than carbon steels.
• Common applications of stainless steel include appliances,
pharmaceutical and medical equipment, food-grade
equipment, and knives.
Types of Steel

Alloy Steel
• Alloy steels are a type of ferrous metal specially formulated to
serve specific purposes.
• While composed primarily of iron, differing amounts of copper,
vanadium, tungsten, manganese, and other elements can be used
to tailor alloy steel to have higher toughness, ductility, tensile
strength, hardness, and other properties.
• Common applications of alloy steels include tools, dies, and
machining equipment.
• Nickel, chromium, vanadium, tungsten, molybdenum, and silicon
are the most common elements used in alloy steel.
Alloy Steel

• Chromium - to increase hardenability, corrosion resistance,

and shock resistance. It imparts high strength with little
loss in ductility.
• Nickel increases the toughness, strength, and ductility of
steels, and lowers the hardening temperatures so that an
oil quench, rather than a water quench, is used for
hardening.
• Manganese is used in steel to produce greater toughness,
wear resistance, easier hot rolling, and forging. An increase
in manganese content decreases the weldability of steel.
Alloy Steel

• Molybdenum increases hardenability, which is the depth of

hardening possible through heat treatment. The impact fatigue
property of the steel is improved with up to 0.60 percent
molybdenum. Above 0.60 percent molybdenum, the impact
fatigue property is impaired. Wear resistance is improved with
molybdenum content above 0.75 percent. Molybdenum is
sometimes combined with chromium, tungsten, or vanadium to
obtain desired properties.
• Titanium and columbium (niobium) are used as additional
alloying agents in low-carbon content, corrosion-resistant steels.
They support resistance to intergranular corrosion after the
metal is subjected to high temperatures for a prolonged time
period.
Alloy Steel

• Tungsten produces a fine, dense grain when used in small quantities.

When used in larger quantities, from 17 to 20 percent, and in
combination with other alloys, it produces steel that retains its
hardness at high temperatures.
• Vanadium is used to help control grain size. It tends to increase
hardenability and causes marked secondary hardness, yet resists
tempering. It is also added to steel during manufacture to remove
oxygen.
• Silicon is added to steel to obtain greater hardenability and corrosion
resistance and is often used with manganese to obtain strong, tough
steel. High-speed tool steels are usually special alloy compositions
designed for cutting tools. The carbon content ranges from 0.70 to 0.80
percent. They are difficult to weld except by the furnace induction
method.
Non-Ferrous Metals

• Non-ferrous metals are those which do not contain iron as

the main constituent or base metal.
• Non-ferrous metals have industrial applications because of
their case of fabrication (like rolling, forging, casting,
welding, and machining), electrical and thermal
conductivity, resistance to corrosion, light-weight, etc.
• However, at high temperatures, their strength is lowered,
and shrinkage is more than ferrous metals.
Non-Ferrous Metals

• To put it simply, non-ferrous metals are all those metals

that do not contain any amount of iron and, therefore, lack
two of the most prominent properties of iron – magnetism,
and corrosion on exposure to oxygen, whether atmospheric
or in any other form.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Aluminum:
• Mainly obtained from bauxite ore. Aluminum is a very
common component (about 8 percent ) of the earth's
crust, the most common ore of aluminum is Bauxite (Al2O3.
n H2O).
• Aluminum is highly resistant to corrosion. When exposed to
moist air, aluminum forms a thin film of oxide at the top,
which is impervious to air/moisture, and thus saves the
metal from further corrosion.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Copper:
• Copper is extracted from copper ores such as copper
pyrites, etc.
• Metallic copper and its various alloys have been used in
engineering industries and for many other activities for 100
years. This is due to some of the useful properties of
copper.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Lead:
• Lead has been used for centuries in buildings and other
engineering industries. Lead is extracted from three chief
ore minerals: Galena, Cerussite, and Anglesite.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Zinc:
• It is obtained from zinc ores like zinc blends and calamine.
The chief ore mineral of zinc is sulfide called sphalerite.
Smithsonite, Zincite (ZnO), and Calamine (ZnCO3) are
other common zinc minerals.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Nickel:
• It is manufactured from its sulfide ore named pentlandite
[NiFe(S)]. The ore is first concentrated by froth flotation
process and then roasted and smelted like other non-
ferrous metals.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Magnesium:
• Magnesium forms the lightest materials used in structural
engineering. It has a set of properties that make it suitable
as an engineering material.
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Tin is one metal that cannot be specifically put under either

the ferrous or non-ferrous category. Although it does not
have any iron content, it does exhibit paramagnetic (white
tin) and diamagnetic (gray tin) properties. Also, it does not
rust like iron.

Paramagnetic – slightly attracted by a magnetic field

Diamagnetic – slightly repelled by a magnetic field
Examples of Non-Ferrous Metals

Alloy metals such as Duralumin (which is composed of a

combination of copper and manganese in a 4:1 ratio besides
aluminum), brass (which is 35% zinc and 65% copper) and
Gliding metal (an alloy of 15% zinc and 85% copper) are some
of the most prominent non-ferrous metal examples that are
made by combining two or more other non-ferrous base
metals. All these alloys share the same two basic non-ferrous
qualities with their base metallic components – indifference
towards magnets and resistance to corrosion.