Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION TO MATERIALS

A familiar item that is fabricated from three different material types is

the beverage container. Beverage are marked in aluminum (metal) cans
(top), glass (ceramic) bottles (center), and plastic (polymer) bottles
(bottom).

1.1 INTRODUCTION
All engineers are involved with materials on a daily basis in
manufacturing and processing and in the design and construction of
components or structures. They select and use materials and analyze the
failure of materials. A number of important decisions must be made when
selecting materials to be incorporated into a design. Including whether the
materials can consistently be formed into the correct shape and

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dimensional tolerances and maintain the correct shape during use,
whether the required properties can be achieved and maintained during
use, whether the materials is compatible with and can easily joined to
other parts of an assembly, and whether the materials can be
economically made into a useful part, mistakes can cause disasters.
Materials selection is the final, practical decision in the engineering
design process and can determine that design's ultimate success or failure.
Table 1.1 listed the bulk mechanical property of the material along with
other common classes of property that the designer must be consider
when choosing his materials. Many of these classes of property will be
unfamiliar to you-we shall only be referring to them by way of example
in this chapter-and they form the basis of this course on materials. The
intent of this text is to help the reader to become aware of the types of
materials available, to understand their general behavior and capabilities
and recognize the effect of the service conditions on their material's
performance. This understanding is necessary for one to be able to
participate in the design of reliable and economical components, systems,
and processes that utilize the wide spectrum of materials
Many improved engineering designs depend on the development of
completely new materials.

Table 1.1 Classes of property

Economic Properties Price and availability

Bulk mechanical Density

properties Modulus and damping
Yield strength, tensile strength, hardness
Fracture toughness
Fatigue strength, thermal fatigue resistance
Creep strength

Bulk non-mechanical Thermal properties

Properties Optical properties
Magnetic properties
Electrical properties

Surface Properties Oxidation and corrosion

Surface roughness, friction

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 Abrasion and wear

Production Properties Ease of manufacture,

Fabrication, joining , finishing

Aesthetic Properties Appearance, texture, feel

1.2 CLASSIFICATION OF MATERIALS

Solid materials have been conveniently grouped into three basic
classifications: metals, ceramics, and polymers. This scheme is based
primarily on chemical makeup and atomic structure, and most materials
fall into one distinct grouping or another, although there are some
intermediates. In addition, there are three other groups of important
engineering materials-composites, semiconductors, and biomaterials.
Composites consist of combinations of two or more different materials,
whereas semiconductors are utilized because of their unusual electrical
characteristics; biomaterials are implanted into the human body.
Materials in each of these groups posses different structures and
properties. Table 1.2 represents for an example some applications and
properties for each category of materials. Materials in each of these
groups possess different structures and properties. The differences in
strength, which are compared in Figure 1.1, illustrate the wide range of
properties available. A brief explanation of the material types and
representative characteristics are offered next.

METALS
If there is a "typical" engineering material that is associated in the public's
mind with modern engineering practice, it is structural steel. This is
versatile construction material has several characteristics, or properties.
Metallic materials are normally combinations of metallic elements. They
have large numbers of non localized electrons; that is, these electrons are
not bound to particular atoms. Many properties of metals are directly
attributable to these electrons.
Metals are extremely good conductors of electricity and heat and are not
transparent to visible light; a polished metal surface has a lustrous
appearance. Furthermore, metals are quite strong, yet deformable, which
accounts for their extensive use in structural applications. An alloy is a
metal composed of more than one element.

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 Engineering alloys include the irons and steels (from Fe), aluminum
alloys (Al), magnesium alloys (Mg), titanium alloys (Ti), nickel alloys
(Ni), zinc alloys (Zn), and copper alloys (Cu) including the brasses (Cu,
Zn). Alloys provide improvement in a particular desirable property or
permit better combinations of properties. The metals and metal alloys
have a wide range of tensile strength; from 40 MN.m-2 for lead to about
2000 MN.m-2 for Cobalt alloy, see Figure 1.1.

Table 1.2 Representative examples applications and properties for each

category of materials
Materials Applications Properties
Metals:
Copper Electrical conductor wire High electrical conductivity,
good formability
Gray cast iron Automobile engine blocks Castable, machinable,
vibration damping, cheap
Alloy steels Wrenches Significantly strengthened
Ceramics: by heat treatment
SiO2 – Na2O - CaO Window glass Optically transparent
thermal insulating
Al2O3 , MgO , SiO2 Refractories for containing Thermal insulating,
molten metal Resistance to high temperature,
Relatively inert to molten metal
Barium titanate Transducers for audio Converts sound to
Equipment electricity
(Piezoelectric behavior)
Polymers:
Polyethylene Food packing Easily formed into thin,
Flexible, airtight film
Epoxy Encapsulation of integrated Electrically insulating and
circuits moisture-resistance
Phenolics Adhesives for joining piles Strong, moisture-resistance
in plywood
Semiconductors:
Silicon Transistors and integrated Unique electrical behavior
circuits

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GaAs Fiber-optic systems Converts electrical signals to
Light
Composites:
Graphite-epoxy Aircraft components High strength-to-weight ratio

Tungesten carbide- Carbide cutting tools for High hardness, yet good shock
cobalt machining resistance
Titanium-clad steel Reactor vessels Has low cost and high strength
of steel, with the corrosion
resistance of titanium

Strength [MN.m-2] METALS

2000 -
Cobalt alloy-

High strength steel-

COMPOSITES
Alloy steel-

Carbon-epoxy Cu-Be alloy-

1000 -
CERAMICS Kevlar-epoxy Nickel alloy-
Titanium alloy-
Boron- Cu-Zn brass-
SiC polymide
POLYMERS Aluminum alloy-
Si3N4
ZrO2 Zinc alloy-
PEEK- Al2O3
Nylon Glass-polyester
Polyethylene Lead-

Figure 1.1 Representative strength of various categories of materials

CERAMICS
Ceramics are compounds between metallic and nonmetallic elements;
they are most frequently oxides, nitrides, and carbides. The wide range of
materials that falls within this classification includes ceramics that are
composed of clay minerals, cement, and glass. These materials are
typically insulative to the passage of electricity and heat, and are more
resistant to high temperatures and harsh environments than metals and
polymers. With regard to mechanical behavior, ceramics are hard but

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very brittle. Thus ceramics are eliminated from many structural
applications. Recent developments in ceramic technology are expanding
the utility of ceramics for structural applications, by increasing their
strength to sufficiently high levels and increasing their resistance to
fracture. Aluminum oxide is typical of the traditional ceramics, with
magnesium oxide (MgO) and silica (SiO2) being other good examples.
Aluminum oxide (Al2O3) has a significantly higher melting point (2020o
C), while the melting point of Aluminum metal is (660o C). This makes
Al2O3 a popular refractory, that is, a high-temperature-resistant material
of wide in industrial furnace construction. Furthermore, the Aluminum
oxide (Al2O3) has a superior chemical resistant property.
New processing technique makes ceramics sufficiently resistant to
fracture that they can be used in load-bearing applications, such as
impellers in turbine engine. This allow turbine engine to operate at higher
temperatures and so with greater efficiency.
The vast majority of commercially important ceramics are chemical
compounds made up of at least one metallic element and one of five
nonmetallic elements (carbon C, nitrogen N, oxygen O, phosphorus P, or
sulfur S).
An example of these new materials is silicon nitride (Si3N4), a primary
candidate for high-temperature, energy-efficient automobile engines-an
application unthinkable for traditional ceramics.

POLYMERS
Polymers include the familiar plastic and rubber materials. Many of
them are organic compounds that are chemically based on carbon,
hydrogen, and other nonmetallic elements; furthermore, they have very
large molecular structures. These materials typically have low densities
and may be extremely flexible. Polymers have low electrical and thermal
conductivities, are low in strength, and are not suitable for use at high
temperatures. Thermoplastic polymers, in which the long molecular
chains are not rigidly connected, have good formability; thermosetting
polymers are stronger but more brittle because the molecular chains are
tightly linked (Figure 1.2). Polymers are used in many applications
including electronic devices such as computer dip switches, where
moisture resistance and low conductivity are required.
Naturally occurring polymers, those derived from plants and
animals, have been used for many centuries. Modern scientific research

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tools have made possible the determination of the molecular structures of
this group of materials, and the development of numerous polymers,
which are synthesized from small organic molecules. Many of our useful
plastics, rubbers, and fiber materials are synthetic polymers. The
synthetics can be produced inexpensively, and their properties may be
managed to the degree that many are superior to their natural
counterparts. In some applications metal and wood parts have been
replaced by plastics, which have satisfactory properties and may be
produced at a lower cost.

FIGURE 1.2 Schematic representations of (a) linear, (b) branched,

(c)cross-linked, and (d) network (three-dimensional)
molecular structures (thermosetting polymer)

COMPOSITES
Many of our modern technologies require materials with unusual
combinations of properties that cannot be met by the conventional metal
alloys, ceramics, and polymeric materials. This is especially true for
materials that are needed for aerospace, underwater, and transportation
applications. For example, aircraft engineers are increasingly searching
for structural materials that have low densities, are strong, stiff, and
abrasion and impact resistant, and are not easily corroded. This is a rather
formidable combination of characteristics. Frequently, strong materials
are relatively dense; also, increasing the strength or stiffness generally
results in a decrease in impact strength.

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 A number of composite materials have been engineered that consist
of more than one material type. Fiberglass is a familiar example, in which
glass fibers are embedded within a polymeric material. A composite is
designed to display a combination of the best characteristics of each of
the component materials. Fiberglass acquires strength from the glass and
flexibility from the polymer. Many of the recent material developments
have involved composite materials.
In designing composite materials, scientists and engineers have
ingeniously combined various metals, ceramics, and polymers to produce
a new generation of extraordinary materials. Most composites have been
created to improve combinations of mechanical characteristics such as
stiffness, toughness, and ambient and high-temperature strength.

SEMICONDUCTORS
Semiconductors have electrical properties that are intermediate
between the electrical conductors and insulators. Furthermore, the
electrical characteristics of these materials are extremely sensitive to the
presence of minute concentrations of impurity atoms, which
concentrations may be controlled over very small spatial regions. The
semiconductors have made possible the advent of integrated circuitry that
has totally revolutionized the electronics and computer industries (not to
mention our lives) over the past two decades. Silicon (Si) and germanium
(Ge), widely used elemental semiconductors, are excellent examples of
this class of materials. Examples include gallium arsenide (GaAs), which
is used as a high-temperature rectifier and a laser material, and cadmium
sulfide (CdS), which is used as a relatively low cost solar cell for
conversion of solar energy to useful electrical energy. With appropriate
impurity additions, some of the ceramics display semiconducting
behavior, for example, zinc oxide (ZnO), which is widely used as a
phosphor in color television screens.

BIOMATERIALS
Biomaterials are employed in components implanted into the human
body for replacement of diseased or damaged body parts, see Figure 1.3.
These materials must not produce toxic substances and must be
compatible with body tissues (i.e., must not cause adverse biological
reactions). All of the above materials—metals, ceramics, polymers,
composites, and semiconductors may be used as biomaterials. For

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example, Various Co–Cr–Mo and Co–Ni–Cr–Mo alloys have been
employed for artificial hip prostheses; one that has been found to be
especially suitable, designated MP35N, has a composition of 35 wt% Co,
35 wt% Ni, 20 wt% Cr, and 10 wt% Mo. It is formed by hot forging and,
as such, has tensile and yield strengths that are superior to 316L stainless
steel.

FIGURE 1.3. Schematic diagram of an artificial hip.

1.3 ADVANCED MATERIALS

Materials that are utilized in high-technology (or high-tech)
applications are sometimes termed advanced materials. By high
technology we mean a device or product that operates or functions using
relatively intricate and sophisticated principles; examples include
electronic equipment (VCRs, CD players, etc.), computers, fiber-optic
systems, spacecraft, aircraft, and military rocketry. These advanced
materials are typically either traditional material whose properties have
been enhanced or newly developed, high-performance materials.
Furthermore, they may be of all material types (e.g., metals, ceramics,
polymers), and are normally relatively expensive.

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1.4 MODERN MATERIALS’ NEEDS
In spite of the tremendous progress that has been made in the
discipline of materials science and engineering within the past few years,
there still remain technological challenges, including the development of
even more sophisticated and specialized materials, as well as
consideration of the environmental impact of materials production. Some
comment is appropriate relative to these issues so as to round out this
perspective. Nuclear energy holds some promise, but the solutions to the
many problems that remain will necessarily involve materials, from fuels
to containment structures to facilities for the disposal of radioactive
waste. Significant quantities of energy are involved in transportation.
Reducing the weight of transportation vehicles (automobiles, aircraft,
trains, etc.), as well as increasing engine operating temperatures, will
enhance fuel efficiency. New high-strength, low-density structural
materials remain to be developed, as well as materials that have higher-
temperature capabilities, for use in engine components.
Furthermore, there is a recognized need to find new, economical sources
of energy, and to use the present resources more efficiently. Materials
will undoubtedly play a significant role in these developments. For
example, the direct conversion of solar into electrical energy has been
demonstrated. Solar cells employ some rather complex and expensive
materials. To ensure a viable technology, materials that are highly
efficient in this conversion process yet less costly must be developed.
Furthermore, environmental quality depends on our ability to control air
and water pollution. Pollution control techniques employ various
materials. In addition, materials processing and refinement methods need
to be improved so that they produce less environmental degradation, that
is, less pollution and less despoil age of the landscape from the mining of
raw materials. Also, in some materials manufacturing processes, toxic
substances are produced, and the ecological impact of their disposal must
be considered.
Many materials that we use are derived from resources that are
nonrenewable, that is, not capable of being regenerated. These include
polymers, for which the prime raw material is oil, and some metals.
These nonrenewable resources are gradually becoming depleted, which
necessitates: 1) the discovery of additional reserves, 2) the development
of new materials having comparable properties with less adverse

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environmental impact, and/or 3) increased recycling efforts and the
development of new recycling technologies. As a consequence of the
economics of not only production but also environmental impact and
ecological factors, it is becoming increasingly important to consider the
‘‘cradle-to-grave’’ life cycle of materials relative to the overall
manufacturing process.

1.5 SELECTION OF MATERIALS

We must now face an obvious question: “Which material do I now select
for a particular application?”
Materials selection is the final, practical decision in the engineering
design process and can determine that design’s ultimate success or
failure. In fact, there are two decisions to be made. First, one must decide
which general type of material is appropriate (metal, ceramic, etc. ).
Second, the best specific material within that category must be found
(e.g., is a magnesium alloy preferable to aluminum or steel?). We can
now consider a simple illustration of both levels of decision making. In
addition, we will look at the process of selecting an alternative material
for a given design.

Plastic-handled screwdriver

A typical screwdriver has a shaft and blade made of high-carbon steel, a

metal. Steel is chosen because its modulus is high. The modulus measures
the resistance of the material to elastic deflection or bending. If you made
the shaft out of a polymer like polyethylene instead, it would twist far too
much. This property (the modulus) is one criterion in the selection of a
material for this application. But it is not only one. The shaft must have
high yield strength. If it does not, it will bend plastically or permanently
if you twist it hard (bad screwdrivers do). And the blade must have a high
hardness, otherwise it will be indented by the material of the head of the
screw., and thereby damaged. The handle of the screwdriver is made of
polymer or plastic. The handle has a much larger section than the shaft,
so its twisting, and thus its modulus, is less important. You could not
make it satisfactorily out of a rubber (another polymer) because its
modulus is much too low. Finally, the handle of the screwdriver is made
of a polymer or plastic, in this instance polymethylmethacrylate, other
known as PMMA or Perspex.

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 Material Selection for an Aircraft Wing

Describe some of the key mechanical properties to consider in selecting a

material for an aircraft wing.
First, let’s consider mechanical properties. The material must have
strength to resist the force acting on the wing. The wing is also exposed
to a cyclical application of force during landing and takeoff, as well as
vibration during flight, suggesting that fatigue properties are important. In
supersonic flight, the wing may become very hot, so resistance to creep
may be critical.

Table 1.3 Strength-to-weight ratio of various materials.

Material Strength Density Strength-to-weight
-2 -3
MN.m Mg.m ratio kg.m2.s-2
Polyethylene 7 0.83 8
Pure aluminum 45 2.7 17
Al2O3 205 3.2 64
Epoxy 100 1.4 71
Heat-treated alloy 1650 7.8 212
steel
Heat-treated 590 2.7 210
aluminum alloy
Carbon-carbon 415 1.8 230
composite
Kevlar-epoxy 1170 4.4 260
composite
Carbon-epoxy 450 1.4 321
composite
Heat-treated 550 1.4 393
titanium alloy

Physical properties are also important. Because the wing should be as

light as possible, the material should have a low density. If the wing is
exposed to a marine atmosphere, corrosion resistance is needed. In the
event of a lightning strike, the electrical charge should be dissipated to
avoid localized damage: consequently, the material must possess good
conductively. Traditionally, aluminum alloys have been used to meet

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these requirements. Now, however, fiber-reinforced polymer matrix
composites are being increasingly used in many advanced, high-
performance aircraft because of their better strength-to-weight ratio and
stiffness, see Table 1.3.

1.6 ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS ON MATERIAL BEHAVIOUR

The structure-property-processing relationship is influenced by the
surroundings to which the material is subjected, including high
temperature and corrosion.

Carbon-carbon composite

Ceramic

1000 2000 3000

Temperature [oC]

FIGURE 1.3. Effect of temperature on the strength of materials.

Temperature changes in temperature dramatically alter the properties of

materials (Figure 1.3). Metals that have been strengthened by certain heat
treatment or forming techniques may suddenly lose their strength when
heated. High temperatures change the structure of ceramics and cause

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polymers to melt or char (very low temperatures, at the other extreme,
may cause a metal or polymer to fail in a brittle manner, even though the
applied loads are low.)
Figure 1.3 Increasing temperature normally reduces the strength of a
material. Polymers are suitable only at low temperatures. Some
composites, such as carbon-carbon composites, special alloys, and
ceramics, have excellent properties at high temperatures.
Corrosion Materials are also attacked by corrosive liquids, leading to
premature failure (Figure 1.4). The engineer faces the challenge of
selecting materials or coatings that prevent these reactions and permit
operation in extreme environments. Figure 1.4. showing a bar of steel that
has been bent into a ‘‘horseshoe’’ shape using a nut-and-bolt assembly.
While immersed in seawater, stress corrosion cracks formed along the
bend at those regions where the tensile stresses are the greatest.

FIGURE 1.4. A nut-and-bolt assembly of a steel U-shape “horseshoe”.

Most metals and polymers react with oxygen or other gases, particularly
at elevated temperatures. Metals and ceramics may disintegrate; polymers
may become brittle.

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