Age hardening (Precipitation Hardening)

Precipitation Hardening Stainless Steels Alloys, Properties, Fabrication Processes.

Background
Precipitation hardening stainless steels are chromium and nickel containing steels that provide an optimum combination of the properties of martensitic and austenitic grades. Like martensitic grades, they are known for their ability to gain high strength through heat treatment and they also have the corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steel. The high tensile strengths of precipitation hardening stainless steels come after a heat treatment process that leads to precipitation hardening of a martensitic or austenitic matrix. Hardening is achieved through the addition of one or more of the elements Copper, Aluminium, Titanium, Niobium, and Molybdenum. The most well known precipitation hardening steel is 17-4 PH. The name comes from the additions 17% Chromium and 4% Nickel. It also contains 4% Copper and 0.3% Niobium. 17-4 PH is also known as stainless steel grade 630. The advantage of precipitation hardening steels is that they can be supplied in a solution treated condition, which is readily machineable. After machining or another fabrication method, a single, low temperature heat treatment can be applied to increase the strength of the steel. This is known as ageing or age-hardening. As it is carried out at low temperature, the component undergoes no distortion.

Characterisation
Precipitation hardening steels are characterised into one of three groups based on their final microstructures after heat treatment. The three types are: martensitic (e.g. 17-4 PH), semi-austenitic (e.g. 17-7 PH) and austenitic (e.g. A-286).

Martensitic Alloys
Martensitic precipitation hardening stainless steels have a predominantly austenitic structure at annealing temperatures of around 1040 to 1065C. Upon cooling to room temperature, they undergo a transformation that changes the austenite to martensite.

Semi-austenitic Alloys
Unlike martensitic precipitation hardening steels, annealed semi-austenitic precipitation hardening steels are soft enough to be cold worked. Semi-austenitc steels retain their austenitic structure at room temperature but will form martensite at very low temperatures.

Austenitic Alloys
Austenitic precipitation hardening steels retain their austenitic structure after annealing and hardening by ageing. At the annealing temperature of 1095 to 1120C the precipitation hardening phase is soluble. It remains in solution during rapid cooling. When reheated to 650 to 760C, precipitation occurs. This increases the hardness and strength of the material. Hardness remains lower than that for martensitic or semi-austenitic precipitation hardening steels. Austenitic alloys remain nonmagnetic.
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Properties Strength
Yield strengths for precipitation-hardening stainless steels are 515 to 1415 MPa. Tensile strengths range from 860 to 1520 MPa. Elongations are 1 to 25%. Cold working before ageing can be used to facilitate even higher strengths.

Heat Treatment
The key to the properties of precipitation hardening stainless steels lies in heat treatment. After solution treatment or annealing of precipitation hardening stainless steels, a single low temperature age hardening stage is employed to achieve the required properties. As this treatment is carried out at a low temperature, no distortion occurs and there is only superficial discolouration. During the hardening process a slight decrease in size takes place. This shrinking is approximately 0.05% for condition H900 and 0.10% for H1150. Typical mechanical properties achieved for 17-4 PH after solution treating and age hardening are given in the following table. Condition designations are given by the age hardening temperature in F. Table 1. Mechanical property ranges after solution treating and age hardening Cond. A H900 H925 H1025 H1075 H1100 H1150 Hardening Temp and time Annealed 482C, 1 hour 496C, 4 hours 552C, 4 hours 580C, 4 hours 593C, 4 hours 621C, 4 hours Hardness (Rockwell C) 36 44 42 38 36 35 33 Tensile Strength (MPa) 1100 1310 1170-1320 1070-1220 1000-1150 970-1120 930-1080

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Typical Chemical Composition

Table 2. Typical chemical composition for stainless steel alloy 17-4PH 17-4 PH C 0.07% Mn 1.00% Si 1.00% P 0.04% S 0.03% Cr 17.0% Ni 4.0% Cu 4.0% Nb+Ta 0.30%

Typical Mechanical Properties

Table 3. Typical mechanical properties for stainless steel alloy 17-4PH Grade 17-4PH Annealed Cond 900 Tensile Strength (MPa) 1100 1310 Elongation A5 (%) 15 10 Proof Stress 0.2% (MPa) 1000 1170 Elongation A5 (%) 15 10 Cond 1150 930 16 724 16

Typical Physical Properties

Table 4. Typical physical properties for stainless steel alloy 17-4PH Property Value Density 7.75 g/cm3 Melting Point C Modulus of Elasticity 196 GPa Electrical Resistivity 0.080x10-6 .m Thermal Conductivity 18.4 W/m.K at 100C Thermal Expansion 10.8x10-6 /K at 100C

Alloy Designations
Stainless steel 17-4 PH also corresponds to a number of following standard designations and specifications. Table 5. Alternate designations for stainless steel alloy 17-4PH Euronorm UNS BS En Grade 1.4542 S17400 630

Corrosion Resistance
Precipitation hardening stainless steels have moderate to good corrosion resistance in a range of
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environments. They have a better combination of strength and corrosion resistance than when compared with the heat treatable 400 series martensitic alloys. Corrosion resistance is similar to that found in grade 304 stainless steel. In warm chloride environments, 17-4 PH is susceptible to pitting and crevice corrosion. When aged at 550C or higher, 17-4 PH is highly resistant to stress corrosion cracking. Better stress corrosion cracking resistance comes with higher ageing temperatures. Corrosion resistance is low in the solution treated (annealed) condition and it should not be used before heat treatment.

Heat Resistance
17-4 PH has good oxidation resistance. In order to avoid reduction in mechanical properties, it should not be used over its precipitation hardening temperature. Prolonged exposure to 370-480C should be avoided if ambient temperature toughness is critical.

Fabrication
Fabrication of all stainless steels should be done only with tools dedicated to stainless steel materials or tooling and work surfaces must be thoroughly cleaned before use. These precautions are necessary to avoid cross contamination of stainless steel by easily corroded metals that may discolour the surface of the fabricated product.

Cold Working
Cold forming such as rolling, bending and hydroforming can be performed on 17-4PH but only in the fully annealed condition. After cold working, stress corrosion resistance is improved by re-ageing at the precipitation hardening temperature.

Hot Working
Hot working of 17-4 PH should be performed at 950-1200C. After hot working, full heat treatment is required. This involves annealing and cooling to room temperature or lower. Then the component needs to be precipitation hardened to achieve the required mechanical properties.

Machinability
In the annealed condition, 17-4 PH has good machinability, similar to that of 304 stainless steel. After hardening heat treatment, machining is difficult but possible. Carbide or high speed steel tools are normally used with standard lubrication. When strict tolerance limits are required, the dimensional changes due to heat treatment must be taken into account

Welding
Precipitation hardening steels can be readily welded using procedures similar to those used for the 300 series of stainless steels. Grade 17-4 PH can be successfully welded without preheating. Heat treating after welding can be used to give the weld metal the same properties as for the parent metal. The recommended grade of filler rods for welding 17-4 PH is 17-7 PH.

Applications
Due to the high strength of precipitation hardening stainless steels, most applications are in aerospace
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and other high-technology industries. Applications include: Gears Valves and other engine components High strength shafts Turbine blades Moulding dies Nuclear waste casks

Supplied Forms
17-4 PH is typically supplied by Aalco in the following forms: Round bar Hexagonal bar Billet Source: Aalco For more information on this source please visit Aalco

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ALLOYS -- NOTES
ALLOYS
An alloy is a homogeneous mixture of two or more elements, at least one of which is a metal, and where the resulting material has metallic properties. The resulting metallic substance usually has different properties (sometimes substantially different) from those of its components.

Contents

1 Properties 2 Classification 3 Terminology 4 See also

Properties:
Alloys are usually prepared to improve on the properties of their components. For instance, steel is stronger than iron, its primary component. The physical properties of an alloy, such as density, reactivity and electrical and thermal conductivity may not differ greatly from the alloy's elements, but engineering properties, such as tensile strength, shear strength and Young's modulus, can be substantially different from those of the constituent materials. This is sometimes due to the differing sizes of the atoms in the alloylarger atoms exert a compressive force on neighboring atoms, and smaller atoms exert a tensile force on their neighbors. This helps the alloy resist deformation, unlike a pure metal where the atoms move more freely. Unlike pure metals, most alloys do not have a single melting point. Instead, they have a melting range in which the material is a mixture of solid and liquid phases. The temperature at which melting begins is called the solidus, and that at which melting is complete is called the liquidus. However, for most pairs of elements, there is a particular ratio which has a single melting point; this is called the eutectic mixture.

Classification
Alloys can be classified by the number of their constituents. An alloy with two components is called a binary alloy; one with three is a ternary alloy, and so forth. Alloys can be further classified as either substitution alloys or interstitial alloys, depending on their method of formation. In substitution alloys, the atoms of the components are approximately the same size and the various atoms are simply substituted for one another in the crystal structure. An example of a (binary) substitution alloy is brass, made up of copper and zinc. Interstitial alloys occur when the atoms of one component are substantially smaller than the other and the smaller atoms fit into the spaces (interstices) between the larger atoms.

Terminology
In practice, some alloys are used so predominantly with respect to their base metals that the name of the primary constituent is also used as the name of the alloy. For example, 14 karat gold is an alloy of gold with other elements. Similarly, the silver used in jewelry and the aluminium used as a structural building
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material are also alloys. The term "alloy" is sometime used in everyday speech as a synonym for a particular alloy. For example, automobile wheels made of "aluminium alloy" are commonly referred to as simply "alloy wheels". The usage is obviously indefinite, since steels and most other metals in practical use are also alloys.

See also
Look up alloy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

List of alloys Intermetallics Heat treatment

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alloy"

List of alloys
This is a list of alloys for which an article exists in Wikipedia (or is proposed but not yet written). They are grouped by base metal, in order of increasing atomic number. Within these headings they are in no particular order. Some of the main alloying elements are optionally listed after the alloy names.

Contents

1 Alloys of magnesium 2 Alloys of aluminium 3 Alloys of potassium 4 Alloys of iron 5 Alloys of cobalt 6 Alloys of nickel 7 Alloys of copper 8 Alloys of zinc 9 Alloys of gallium 10 Alloys of zirconium 11 Alloys of silver 12 Alloys of indium 13 Alloys of tin 14 Rare earth alloys 15 Alloys of gold 16 Alloys of mercury 17 Alloys of lead 18 Alloys of bismuth 19 Alloys of uranium

Alloys of magnesium

Magnox (aluminium) T-Mg-Al-Zn (Bergman phase) is a complex metallic alloy Elektron

Alloys of aluminium
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Main article: Aluminium alloys

Al-Li (lithium) Duralumin (copper) Nambe (aluminium plus seven other undisclosed metals) Silumin (silicon) AA-8000: used for building wire in the U.S. per the National Electrical Code Magnalium (5% magnesium)/used in airplane bodies, ladders,etc. Aluminium also forms complex metallic alloys, like -Al-Mg, '-Al-Pd-Mn, T-Al3Mn Alnico - alloy of aluminum, nickel, and cobalt used in magnets

Alloys of potassium

NaK (sodium)

Alloys of iron
See also: Category:Ferrous alloys

Steel (carbon) (category:steels) o Stainless steel (chromium, nickel) AL-6XN Alloy 20 Celestrium Marine grade stainless Martensitic stainless steel Surgical stainless steel (chromium, molybdenum, nickel) o Silicon steel (silicon) o Tool steel (tungsten or manganese) o Bulat steel o Chromoly (chromium, molybdenum) o Crucible steel o Damascus steel o HSLA steel o High speed steel o Maraging steel o Reynolds 531 o Wootz steel Iron o Anthracite iron (carbon) o Cast iron (carbon) o Pig iron (carbon) o Wrought iron (carbon) Fernico (nickel, cobalt) Elinvar (nickel, chromium) Invar (nickel) Kovar (cobalt) Spiegeleisen (manganese, carbon, silicon) Ferroalloys (category:Ferroalloys) o Ferroboron o Ferrochrome o Ferromagnesium
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o o o o o o o

Ferromanganese Ferromolybdenum Ferronickel Ferrophosphorus Ferrotitanium Ferrovanadium Ferrosilicon

Alloys of cobalt

Megallium Stellite (chromium, tungsten, carbon) o Talonite Alnico Vitallium

Alloys of nickel

German silver (copper, zinc) Chromel (chromium) Hastelloy (molybdenum, chromium, sometimes tungsten) Inconel (chromium, iron) Monel metal (copper, nickel, iron, manganese) Nichrome (chromium, iron, nickel) Nicrosil (chromium, silicon, magnesium) Nisil (silicon) Nitinol (titanium, shape memory alloy) Cupronickel (bronze, copper) Soft magnetic alloys o Mu-metal (iron)

Alloys of copper
Main article: Copper alloys

Beryllium copper (beryllium) Billon (silver) Brass (zinc) o Calamine brass (zinc) o Chinese silver (zinc) o Dutch metal (zinc) o Gilding metal (zinc) o Muntz metal (zinc) o Pinchbeck (zinc) o Prince's metal (zinc) o Tombac (zinc) Bronze (tin, aluminium or any other element) o Aluminium bronze (aluminium) o Bell metal (tin) o Florentine bronze (aluminium or tin) o Guann
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Gunmetal (tin, zinc) Glucydur Phosphor bronze (tin and phosphorus) Ormolu (Gilt Bronze) (zinc) Speculum metal (tin) Constantan (nickel) Corinthian brass (gold, silver) Cunife (nickel, iron) Cupronickel (nickel) Cymbal alloys (Bell metal) (tin) Devarda's alloy (aluminium, zinc) Hepatizon (gold, silver) Heusler alloy (manganese, tin) Manganin (manganese, nickel) Molybdochalkos (lead) Nickel silver (nickel) Nordic gold (aluminium, zinc, tin) Shakudo (gold) Tumbaga (gold)
o o o o o

Alloys of zinc

Zamak (aluminium, magnesium, copper)

Alloys of gallium

Galinstan

Alloys of zirconium

Zircaloy

Alloys of silver

Sterling silver (copper) Britannia silver (copper) Goloid (copper, gold)

Alloys of indium

Field's metal (bismuth, tin)

Alloys of tin

Britannium (copper, antimony)[1] Pewter (lead, copper) Solder (lead, antimony)

Rare earth alloys

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Mischmetal (various rare earths)

Alloys of gold

Corinthian brass (copper) Electrum (silver, copper) Tumbaga (copper) Rose gold (copper) White gold

Alloys of mercury

Amalgam

Alloys of lead

Molybdochalkos (copper) Solder (tin) Terne (tin) Type metal (tin, antimony)

Alloys of bismuth

Wood's metal (lead, tin, cadmium) Rose metal (lead, tin)

Alloys of uranium

Staballoy (depleted uranium with other metals, usually titanium or molybdenum)

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Bauschinger effect
The Bauschinger effect refers to a property of materials where the material's stress-strain characteristics change as a result of the microscopic stress distribution of the material. For example, an increase in tensile yield strength at the expense of compressive yield strength. The Bauschinger effect is named after the German engineer Johann Bauschinger (de:Johann Bauschinger). While more tensile cold working increases the tensile yield strength, the local initial compressive yield strength after tensile cold working is actually reduced. The greater the tensile cold working, the lower the compressive yield strength. The Bauschinger effect is normally associated with conditions where the yield strength of a metal decreases when the direction of strain is changed. It is a general phenomenon found in most polycrystalline metals. The basic mechanism for the Bauschinger effect is related to the dislocation structure in the cold-worked metal. As deformation occurs, the dislocations will accumulate at barriers and produce dislocation pileups and tangles. Based on the cold work structure, two types of mechanisms are generally used to explain the Bauschinger effect. First, local back stresses may be present in the material, which assist the movement of dislocations in the reverse direction. Thus, the dislocations can move easily in the reverse direction and the yield strength of the metal is lower. The pile-up of dislocations at grain boundaries and Orowan loops around strong precipitates are two main sources of these back stresses. Second, when the strain direction is reversed, dislocations of the opposite sign can be produced from the same source that produced the slip-causing dislocations in the initial direction. Dislocations with opposite signs can attract and annihilate each other. Since strain hardening is related to an increased dislocation density, reducing the number of dislocations reduces strength. The net result is that the yield strength for strain in the opposite direction is less than it would be if the strain had continued in the initial direction.

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BRITTLE FRACTURE |
Version 4 - view current page
what is brittle fracture? Basically, brittle fracture is a rapid run of cracks through a stressed material. The cracks usually travel so fast that you can't tell when the material is about to break. In other words, there is very little plastic deformation before failure occurs. In most cases, this is the worst type of fracture because you can't repair visible damage in a part or structure before it breaks. In brittle fracture, the cracks run close to perpendicular to the applied stress. This perpendicular fracture leaves a relatively flat surface at the break. Besides having a nearly flat fracture surface, brittle materials usually contain a pattern on their fracture surfaces. Some brittle materials have lines and ridges beginning at the origin of the crack and spreading out across the crack surface. Other materials, like some steels have back to back V-shaped markings pointing to the origin of the crack. These V-shaped markings are called chevrons. Very hard or fine grained materials have no special pattern on their fracture surface, and amorphous materials like ceramic glass have shiny smooth fracture surfaces.

Chevron Fracture Surface (Callister p. 185)

Radiating Ridge Fracture Surface (Callister pg. 186, copyright by John Wiley & Sons, inc.) Types of

Brittle Fracture
The first type of fracture is transgranular. In transgranular fracture, the fracture travels through the grain of the material. The fracture changes direction from grain to grain due to the different lattice orientation of atoms in each grain. In other words, when the crack reaches a new grain, it may have to find a new path or plane of atoms to travel on because it is easier to change direction for the crack than it is to rip through. Cracks choose the path of least resistance. You can tell
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when a crack has changed in direction through the material, because you get a slightly bumpy crack surface.

The second type of fracture is intergranular fracture. Intergranular fracture is the crack traveling along the grain boundaries, and not through the actual grains. Intergranular fracture usually occurs when the phase in the grain boundary is weak and brittle ( i.e. Cementite in Iron's grain boundaries). Think of a metal as one big 3-D puzzle. Transgranular fracture cuts through the puzzle pieces, and intergranular fracture travels along the puzzle pieces pre-cut edges.

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Ductile to Brittle Fracture Transition

In fracture, there are many shades of gray. Brittle fracture and ductile fracture are fairly general terms describing the two opposite extremes of the fracture spectrum. I will explain the factors that make a material lean toward one type of fracture as opposed to the other type of fracture. The first and foremost factor is temperature. Basically, at higher temperatures the yield strength is lowered and the fracture is more ductile in nature. On the opposite end, at lower temperatures the yield strength is greater and the fracture is more brittle in nature. This relationship with temperature has to do with atom vibrations. As temperature increases, the atoms in the material vibrate with greater frequency and amplitude. This increased vibration allows the atoms under stress to slip to new places in the material ( i.e. break bonds and form new ones with other atoms in the material). This slippage of atoms is seen on the outside of the material as plastic deformation, a common feature of ductile fracture. When temperature decreases however, the exact opposite is true. Atom vibration decreases, and the atoms do not want to slip to new locations in the material. So when the stress on the material becomes high enough, the atoms just break their bonds and do not form new ones. This decrease in slippage causes little plastic deformation before fracture. Thus, we have a brittle type fracture.
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At moderate temperatures (with respect to the material) the material exhibits characteristics of both types of fracture. In conclusion, temperature determines the amount of brittle or ductile fracture that can occur in a material. Another factor that determines the amount of brittle or ductile fracture that occurs in a material is dislocation density. The higher the dislocation density, the more brittle the fracture will be in the material. The idea behind this theory is that plastic deformation comes from the movement of dislocations. As dislocations increase in a material due to stresses above the materials yield point, it becomes increasingly difficult for the dislocations to move because they pile into each other. So a material that already has a high dislocation density can only deform but so much before it fractures in a brittle manner. The last factor is grain size. As grains get smaller in a material, the fracture becomes more brittle. This phenomena is do to the fact that in smaller grains, dislocations have less space to move before they hit a grain boundary. When dislocations can not move very far before fracture, then plastic deformation decreases. Thus, the material's fracture is more brittle. In ending, I would like to say that these are just the basics of brittle fracture. There are whole books written on just brittle fracture. So, if this section interested you at all, go look the books up at your local university library. Good Luck with your studies MSE 2034/44 students.

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CERAMICS - NOTES |
Version 3 - view current page CeramicS
This article is about ceramic materials. For the fine art, see ceramics (art). Fixed Partial Denture, or "Bridge" The word ceramic is derived from the Greek word (keramikos). The term covers inorganic non-metallic materials whose formation is due to the action of heat. Up until the 1950s or so, the most important of these were the traditional clays, made into pottery, bricks, tiles and are like, along with cements and glass. Clay based ceramics are described in the article on pottery. A composite material of ceramic and metal is known as cermet. The word ceramic can be an adjective, and can also be used as a noun to refer to a ceramic material, or a product of ceramic manufacture. Ceramics is a singular noun referring to the art of making things out of ceramic materials. The technology of manufacturing and usage of ceramic materials is part of the field of ceramic engineering. Many ceramic materials are hard, porous and brittle. The study and development of ceramics includes methods to mitigate problems associated with these characteristics, and to accentuate the strengths of the materials as well as to investigate novel applications. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) defines a ceramic article as an article having a glazed or unglazed body of crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or of glass, which body is produced from essentially inorganic, non-metallic substances and either is formed from a molten mass which solidifies on cooling, or is formed and simultaneously or subsequently matured by the action of the heat.[1]

Contents

1 2 3 4

Types of ceramic materials Examples of structural ceramics Examples of whiteware ceramics Classification of technical ceramics o 4.1 Examples of technical ceramics 5 Properties of ceramics o 5.1 Mechanical properties o 5.2 Electrical properties 5.2.1 Semiconductors 5.2.2 Superconductivity 5.2.3 Ferroelectricity and supersets 5.2.4 Positive thermal coefficient 6 Classification of ceramics Page | 17

6.1 In situ manufacturing 6.2 Sintering-based methods 7 Other applications of ceramics 8 References 9 See also
o o

Types of ceramic materials

For convenience ceramic products are usually divided into four sectors, and these are shown below with some examples:

Structural, including bricks, pipes, floor and roof tiles Refractories, such as kiln linings, gas fire radiants, steel and glass making crucibles Whitewares, including tableware, wall tiles, decorative art objects and sanitary ware Technical, is also known as Engineering, Advanced, Special, and in Japan, Fine Ceramics. Such items include tiles used in the Space Shuttle program, gas burner nozzles, ballistic protection, nuclear fuel uranium oxide pellets, bio-medical implants, jet engine turbine blades, and missile nose cones. Frequently the raw materials do not include clays.

Examples of structural ceramics

Construction bricks. Floor and roof tiles. Sewage pipes

Examples of whiteware ceramics

Bone china Earthenware, which is often made from clay, quartz and feldspar. Porcelain, which are often made from kaolin Stoneware

Classification of technical ceramics

Technical ceramics can also be classified into three distinct material categories:

Oxides: Alumina, zirconia Non-oxides: Carbides, borides, nitrides, silicides Composites: Particulate reinforced, combinations of oxides and non-oxides.

Each one of these classes can develop unique material properties Examples of technical ceramics

Barium titanate (often mixed with strontium titanate) displays ferroelectricity, meaning that its mechanical, electrical, and thermal responses are coupled to one another and also history-dependent. It is widely used in electromechanical transducers, ceramic capacitors, and data storage elements. Grain boundary conditions can create PTC effects in heating elements. Bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide, a high-temperature superconductor Page | 18

Boron carbide (B4C), which is used in ceramic plates in some personnel, helicopter and tank armor. Boron nitride is structurally isoelectronic to carbon and takes on similar physical forms: a graphite-like one used as a lubricant, and a diamond-like one used as an abrasive. Ferrite (Fe3O4), which is ferrimagnetic and is used in the magnetic cores of electrical transformers and magnetic core memory. Lead zirconate titanate is another ferroelectric material. Magnesium diboride (MgB2), which is an unconventional superconductor. Silicon carbide (SiC), which is used as a susceptor in microwave furnaces, a commonly used abrasive, and as a refractory material. Silicon nitride (Si3N4), which is used as an abrasive powder. Steatite is used as an electrical insulator. Uranium oxide (UO2), used as fuel in nuclear reactors. Yttrium barium copper oxide (YBa2Cu3O7-x), another high temperature superconductor. Zinc oxide (ZnO), which is a semiconductor, and used in the construction of varistors. Zirconium dioxide (zirconia), which in pure form undergoes many phase changes between room temperature and practical sintering temperatures, can be chemically "stabilized" in several different forms. Its high oxygen ion conductivity recommends it for use in fuel cells. In another variant, metastable structures can impart transformation toughening for mechanical applications; most ceramic knife blades are made of this material.

Properties of ceramics
Mechanical properties Ceramic materials are usually ionic or covalently-bonded materials, and can be crystalline or amorphous. A material held together by either type of bond will tend to fracture before any plastic deformation takes place, which results in poor toughness in these materials. Additionally, because these materials tend to be porous, the pores and other microscopic imperfections act as stress concentrators, decreasing the toughness further, and reducing the tensile strength. These combine to give catastrophic failures, as opposed to the normally much more gentle failure modes of metals. These materials do show plastic deformation. However, due to the rigid structure of the crystalline materials, there are very few available slip systems for dislocations to move, and so they deform very slowly. With the non-crystalline (glassy) materials, viscous flow is the dominant source of plastic deformation, and is also very slow. It is therefore neglected in many applications of ceramic materials. Electrical properties

Semiconductors There are a number of ceramics that are semiconductors. Most

of these are transition metal oxides that are II-VI semiconductors, such as zinc oxide. While there is talk of making blue LEDs from zinc oxide, ceramicists are most interested in the electrical properties that show grain boundary effects. One of the most widely used of these is the varistor. These are devices that exhibit the property that resistance drops Page | 19

sharply at a certain threshold voltage. Once the voltage across the device reaches the threshold, there is a breakdown of the electrical structure in the vicinity of the grain boundaries, which results in its electrical resistance dropping from several megohms down to a few hundred ohms. The major advantage of these is that they can dissipate a lot of energy, and they self reset after the voltage across the device drops below the threshold, its resistance returns to being high. This makes them ideal for surge-protection applications. As there is control over the threshold voltage and energy tolerance, they find use in all sorts of applications. The best demonstration of their ability can be found in electrical substations, where they are employed to protect the infrastructure from lightning strikes. They have rapid response, are low maintenance, and do not appreciably degrade from use, making them virtually ideal devices for this application. Semiconducting ceramics are also employed as gas sensors. When various gases are passed over a polycrystalline ceramic, its electrical resistance changes. With tuning to the possible gas mixtures, very inexpensive devices can be produced.

Superconductivity Under some conditions, such as extremely low temperature,

some ceramics exhibit superconductivity. The exact reason for this is not known, but there are two major families of superconducting ceramics.

Ferro electricity and supersets Piezoelectricity, a link between electrical

and mechanical response, is exhibited by a large number of ceramic materials, including the quartz used to measure time in watches and other electronics. Such devices use both properties of piezoelectrics, using electricity to produce a mechanical motion (powering the device) and then using this mechanical motion to produce electricity (generating a signal). The unit of time measured is the natural interval required for electricity to be converted into mechanical energy and back again. The piezoelectric effect is generally stronger in materials that also exhibit pyroelectricity, and all pyroelectric materials are also piezoelectric. These materials can be used to inter convert between thermal, mechanical, and/or electrical energy; for instance, after synthesis in a furnace, a pyroelectric crystal allowed to cool under no applied stress generally builds up a static charge of thousands of volts. Such materials are used in motion sensors, where the tiny rise in temperature from a warm body entering the room is enough to produce a measurable voltage in the crystal. In turn, pyroelectricity is seen most strongly in materials which also display the ferroelectric effect, in which a stable electric dipole can be oriented or reversed by applying an electrostatic field. Pyroelectricity is also a necessary consequence of ferroelectricity. This can be used to store information in ferroelectric capacitors, elements of ferroelectric RAM. The most common such materials are lead Page | 20

zirconate titanate and barium titanate. Aside from the uses mentioned above, their strong piezoelectric response is exploited in the design of high-frequency loudspeakers, transducers for sonar, and actuators for atomic force and scanning tunneling microscopes.

Positive thermal coefficient

Increases in temperature can cause grain

boundaries to suddenly become insulating in some semiconducting ceramic materials, mostly mixtures of heavy metal titanates. The critical transition temperature can be adjusted over a wide range by variations in chemistry. In such materials, current will pass through the material until joule heating brings it to the transition temperature, at which point the circuit will be broken and current flow will cease. Such ceramics are used as selfcontrolled heating elements in, for example, the rear-window defrost circuits of automobiles. At the transition temperature, the material's dielectric response becomes theoretically infinite. While a lack of temperature control would rule out any practical use of the material near its critical temperature, the dielectric effect remains exceptionally strong even at much higher temperatures. Titanates with critical temperatures far below room temperature have become synonymous with "ceramic" in the context of ceramic capacitors for just this reason.

Classification of ceramics
Non-crystalline ceramics: Non-crystalline ceramics, being glasses, tend to be formed from melts. The glass is shaped when either fully molten, by casting, or when in a state of toffee-like viscosity, by methods such as blowing to a mold. If later heat-treatments cause this class to become partly crystalline, the resulting material is known as a glass-ceramic. Crystalline ceramics: Crystalline ceramic materials are not amenable to a great range of processing. Methods for dealing with them tend to fall into one of two categories - either make the ceramic in the desired shape, by reaction in situ, or by "forming" powders into the desired shape, and then sintering to form a solid body. Ceramic forming techniques include shaping by hand (sometimes including a rotation process called "throwing"), slip casting, tape casting (used for making very thin ceramic capacitors, etc.), injection molding, dry pressing, and other variations. (See also Ceramic forming techniques. Details of these processes are described in the two books listed below.) A few methods use a hybrid between the two approaches. In situ manufacturing The most common use of this method is in the production of cement and concrete. Here, the dehydrated powders are mixed with water. This starts hydration reactions, which result in long, interlocking crystals forming around the aggregates. Over time, these result in a Page | 21

solid ceramic. The biggest problem with this method is that most reactions are so fast that good mixing is not possible, which tends to prevent large-scale construction. However, small-scale systems can be made by deposition techniques, where the various materials are introduced above a substrate, and react and form the ceramic on the substrate. This borrows techniques from the semiconductor industry, such as chemical vapour deposition, and is very useful for coatings. These tend to produce very dense ceramics, but do so slowly. Sintering-based methods The principles of sintering-based methods is simple. Once a roughly held together object (called a "green body") is made, it is baked in a kiln, where diffusion processes cause the green body to shrink. The pores in the object close up, resulting in a denser, stronger product. The firing is done at a temperature below the melting point of the ceramic. There is virtually always some porosity left, but the real advantage of this method is that the green body can be produced in any way imaginable, and still be sintered. This makes it a very versatile route. There are thousands of possible refinements of this process. Some of the most common involve pressing the green body to give the densification a head start and reduce the sintering time needed. Sometimes organic binders such as polyvinyl alcohol are added to hold the green body together; these burn out during the firing (at 200350C). Sometimes organic lubricants are added during pressing to increase densification. It is not uncommon to combine these, and add binders and lubricants to a powder, then press. (The formulation of these organic chemical additives is an art in itself. This is particularly important in the manufacture of high performance ceramics such as those used by the billions for electronics, in capacitors, inductors, sensors, etc. The specialized formulations most commonly used in electronics are detailed in the book "Tape Casting," by R.E. Mistler, et al., Amer. Ceramic Soc. [Westerville, Ohio], 2000.) A comprehensive book on the subject, for mechanical as well as electronics applications, is "Organic Additives and Ceramic Processing," by D. J. Shanefield, Kluwer Publishers [Boston], 1996. A slurry can be used in place of a powder, and then cast into a desired shape, dried and then sintered. Indeed, traditional pottery is done with this type of method, using a plastic mixture worked with the hands. If a mixture of different materials is used together in a ceramic, the sintering temperature is sometimes above the melting point of one minor component - a liquid phase sintering. This results in shorter sintering times compared to solid state sintering.

Other applications of ceramics

Ceramics are used in the manufacture of knives. The blade of the ceramic knife will stay sharp for much longer than that of a steel knife, although it is more brittle and can be snapped by dropping it on a hard surface. Page | 22

Ceramics such as alumina and boron carbide have been used in ballistic armored vests to repel large-caliber rifle fire. Such plates are known commonly as small-arms protective inserts (SAPI). Similar material is used to protect cockpits of some military airplanes, because of the low weight of the material. Ceramic balls can be used to replace steel in ball bearings. Their higher hardness means that they are much less susceptible to wear and can often more than triple lifetimes. They also deform less under load meaning they have less contact with the bearing retainer walls and can roll faster. In very high speed applications, heat from friction during rolling can cause problems for metal bearings; problems which are reduced by the use of ceramics. Ceramics are also more chemically resistant and can be used in wet environments where steel bearings would rust. The major drawback to using ceramics is a significantly higher cost. In many cases their electrically insulating properties may also be valuable in bearings. In the early 1980s, Toyota researched production of an adiabatic ceramic engine which can run at a temperature of over 6000 F (3300 C). Ceramic engines do not require a cooling system and hence allow a major weight reduction and therefore greater fuel efficiency. Fuel efficiency of the engine is also higher at high temperature, as shown by Carnot's theorem. In a conventional metallic engine, much of the energy released from the fuel must be dissipated as waste heat in order to prevent a meltdown of the metallic parts. Despite all of these desirable properties, such engines are not in production because the manufacturing of ceramic parts in the requisite precision and durability is difficult. Imperfection in the ceramic leads to cracks, which can lead to potentially dangerous equipment failure. Such engines are possible in laboratory settings, but mass-production is unfeasible with current technology. Work is being done in developing ceramic parts for gas turbine engines. Currently, even blades made of advanced metal alloys used in the engines' hot section require cooling and careful limiting of operating temperatures. Turbine engines made with ceramics could operate more efficiently, giving aircraft greater range and payload for a set amount of fuel. Recently, there have been advances in ceramics which include bio-ceramics, such as dental implants and synthetic bones. Hydroxyapatite, the natural mineral component of bone, has been made synthetically from a number of biological and chemical sources and can be formed into ceramic materials. Orthopedic implants made from these materials bond readily to bone and other tissues in the body without rejection or inflammatory reactions. Because of this, they are of great interest for gene delivery and tissue engineering scaffolds. Most hydroxy apatite ceramics are very porous and lack mechanical strength and are used to coat metal orthopedic devices to aid in forming a bond to bone or as bone fillers. They are also used as fillers for orthopedic plastic screws to aid in reducing the inflammation and increase absorption of these plastic materials. Work is being done to make strongfully dense nano crystalline hydroxapatite ceramic materials for orthopedic weight bearing devices, replacing foreign metal and plastic orthopedic materials with a synthetic natural bone mineral. Ultimately these ceramic materials may be used as bone replacements or with the incorporation of protein collagens, synthetic bones.

Page | 23

Ceramics
The word ceramic is derived from the Greek word (keramikos). The term covers inorganic non-metallic materials whose formation is due to the action of heat. Up until the 1950s or so, the most important of these were the traditional clays, made into pottery, bricks, tiles and are like, along with cements and glass. Clay based ceramics are described in the article on pottery.

A composite material of ceramic and metal is known as cermet. The word ceramic can be an adjective, and can also be used as a noun to refer to a ceramic material, or a product of ceramic manufacture. Ceramics is a singular noun referring to the art of making things out of ceramic materials. The technology of manufacturing and usage of ceramic materials is part of the field of ceramic engineering.

Many ceramic materials are hard, porous and brittle. The study and development of ceramics includes methods to mitigate problems associated with these characteristics, and to accentuate the strengths of the materials as well as to investigate novel applications. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) defines a ceramic article as an article having a glazed or unglazed body of crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or of glass, which body is produced from essentially inorganic, non-metallic substances and either is formed from a molten mass which solidifies on cooling, or is formed and simultaneously Types or subsequently of matured by the action of the heat.[1] materials

ceramic

For convenience ceramic products are usually divided into four sectors, and these are shown below with some examples:

Structural, including bricks, pipes, floor and roof tiles Refractories, such as kiln linings, gas fire radiants, steel and glass making crucibles Whitewares, including tableware, wall tiles, decorative art objects and sanitary ware Technical, is also known as Engineering, Advanced, Special, and in Japan, Fine Ceramics. Such items include tiles used in the Space Shuttle program, gas burner nozzles, ballistic protection, nuclear fuel uranium oxide pellets, bio-medical implants, jet engine turbine blades, and missile nose cones. Frequently the raw materials do not include clays.

Page | 24

Examples of structural ceramics

Construction bricks. Floor and roof tiles. Sewage pipes

Examples of whiteware ceramics

Bone china Earthenware, which is often made from clay, quartz and feldspar. Porcelain, which are often made from kaolin Stoneware

Classification of technical ceramics

Technical ceramics can also be classified into three distinct material categories:

Oxides: Alumina, zirconia Non-oxides: Carbides, borides, nitrides, silicides Composites: Particulate reinforced, combinations of oxides and non-oxides.

Each one of these classes can develop unique material properties Examples of technical ceramics

Barium titanate (often mixed with strontium titanate) displays ferroelectricity, meaning that its mechanical, electrical, and thermal responses are coupled to one another and also history-dependent. It is widely used in electromechanical transducers, ceramic capacitors, and data storage elements. Grain boundary conditions can create PTC effects in heating elements. Bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide, a high-temperature superconductor Boron carbide (B4C), which is used in ceramic plates in some personnel, helicopter and tank armor. Boron nitride is structurally isoelectronic to carbon and takes on similar physical forms: a graphite-like one used as a lubricant, and a diamond-like one used as an abrasive. Ferrite (Fe3O4), which is ferrimagnetic and is used in the magnetic cores of electrical transformers and magnetic core memory. Lead zirconate titanate is another ferroelectric material. Magnesium diboride (MgB2), which is an unconventional superconductor. Silicon carbide (SiC), which is used as a susceptor in microwave furnaces, a commonly used abrasive, and as a refractory material. Silicon nitride (Si3N4), which is used as an abrasive powder. Steatite is used as an electrical insulator. Uranium oxide (UO2), used as fuel in nuclear reactors. Yttrium barium copper oxide (YBa2Cu3O7-x), another high temperature superconductor. Page | 25

Zinc oxide (ZnO), which is a semiconductor, and used in the construction of varistors. Zirconium dioxide (zirconia), which in pure form undergoes many phase changes between room temperature and practical sintering temperatures, can be chemically "stabilized" in several different forms. Its high oxygen ion conductivity recommends it for use in fuel cells. In another variant, metastable structures can impart transformation toughening for mechanical applications; most ceramic knife blades are made of this material.

Properties of ceramics
Mechanical properties Ceramic materials are usually ionic or covalently-bonded materials, and can be crystalline or amorphous. A material held together by either type of bond will tend to fracture before any plastic deformation takes place, which results in poor toughness in these materials. Additionally, because these materials tend to be porous, the pores and other microscopic imperfections act as stress concentrators, decreasing the toughness further, and reducing the tensile strength. These combine to give catastrophic failures, as opposed to the normally much more gentle failure modes of metals.

These materials do show plastic deformation. However, due to the rigid structure of the crystalline materials, there are very few available slip systems for dislocations to move, and so they deform very slowly. With the non-crystalline (glassy) materials, viscous flow is the dominant source of plastic deformation, and is also very slow. It is therefore neglected in many applications of ceramic materials.

Electrical properties Semiconductors There are a number of ceramics that are semiconductors. Most of these are the transition metal oxides that properties are that II-VI semiconductors, show grain such as zinc oxide. effects. While there is talk of making blue LEDs from zinc oxide, ceramicists are most interested in electrical boundary One of the most widely used of these is the varistor. These are devices that exhibit the property that resistance drops sharply at a certain threshold voltage. Once the voltage across the device reaches the threshold, there is a breakdown of the electrical structure in the vicinity of the grain boundaries, which results in its electrical resistance dropping from several megohms down to a few hundred ohms. The major advantage of these is that they can dissipate a lot of energy, and they self reset after the voltage across the device Page | 26

drops

below

the

threshold,

its

resistance

returns

to

being

high.

This makes them ideal for surge-protection applications. As there is control over the threshold voltage and energy tolerance, they find use in all sorts of applications. The best demonstration of their ability can be found in electrical substations, where they are employed to protect the infrastructure from lightning strikes. They have rapid response, are low maintenance, and do not appreciably degrade from use, making them virtually ideal devices for this application.

Semiconducting ceramics are also employed as gas sensors. When various gases are passed over a polycrystalline ceramic, its electrical resistance changes. With tuning to the possible gas mixtures, very inexpensive devices can be produced.

Superconductivity Under some conditions, such as extremely low temperature,

some ceramics exhibit superconductivity. The exact reason for this is not known, but there are two major families of superconducting ceramics.

Ferroelectricity

and

supersets

Piezoelectricity, a link between electrical and mechanical response, is exhibited by a large number of ceramic materials, including the quartz used to measure time in watches and other electronics. Such devices use both properties of piezoelectrics, using electricity to produce a mechanical motion (powering the device) and then using this mechanical motion to produce electricity (generating a signal). The unit of time measured is the natural interval required for electricity to be converted into mechanical energy and back again. The piezoelectric effect is generally stronger in materials that also exhibit pyroelectricity, and all pyroelectric materials are also piezoelectric. These materials can be used to inter convert between thermal, mechanical, and/or electrical energy; for instance, after synthesis in a furnace, a pyroelectric crystal allowed to cool under no applied stress generally builds up a static charge of thousands of volts. Such materials are used in motion sensors, where the tiny rise in temperature from a warm body entering the room is enough to produce a measurable voltage in the crystal.

In turn, pyroelectricity is seen most strongly in materials which also display the ferroelectric effect, in which a stable electric dipole can be oriented or reversed by Page | 27

applying an electrostatic field. Pyroelectricity is also a necessary consequence of ferroelectricity. This can be used to store information in ferroelectric capacitors, elements of ferroelectric RAM.

The most common such materials are lead zirconate titanate and barium titanate. Aside from the uses mentioned above, their strong piezoelectric response is exploited in the design of high-frequency loudspeakers, transducers for sonar, and actuators for atomic force and scanning tunneling microscopes.

Positive

thermal

coefficient

Increases in temperature can cause grain boundaries to suddenly become insulating in some semiconducting ceramic materials, mostly mixtures of heavy metal titanates. The critical transition temperature can be adjusted over a wide range by variations in chemistry. In such materials, current will pass through the material until joule heating brings it to the transition temperature, at which point the circuit will be broken and current flow will cease. Such ceramics are used as self-controlled heating elements in, for example, the rear-window defrost circuits of automobiles.

At the transition temperature, the material's dielectric response becomes theoretically infinite. While a lack of temperature control would rule out any practical use of the material near its critical temperature, the dielectric effect remains exceptionally strong even at much higher temperatures. Titanates with critical temperatures far below room temperature have become synonymous with "ceramic" in the context of ceramic capacitors for just this reason.

Classification of ceramics
Non-crystalline ceramics: Non-crystalline ceramics, being glasses, tend to be formed from melts. The glass is shaped when either fully molten, by casting, or when in a state of toffee-like viscosity, by methods such as blowing to a mold. If later heat-treatments cause this class to become partly crystalline, the resulting material is known as a glass-ceramic. Crystalline ceramics: Crystalline ceramic materials are not amenable to a great range of processing. Methods for dealing with them tend to fall into one of two categories - either make the ceramic in the desired shape, by reaction in situ, or by "forming" powders into the desired shape, and then sintering to form a solid body. Ceramic forming techniques include shaping by hand (sometimes including a rotation process called "throwing"), slip Page | 28

casting, tape casting (used for making very thin ceramic capacitors, etc.), injection molding, dry pressing, and other variations. (See also Ceramic forming techniques. Details of these processes are described in the two books listed below.) A few methods use a hybrid between the two approaches. In situ manufacturing The most common use of this method is in the production of cement and concrete. Here, the dehydrated powders are mixed with water. This starts hydration reactions, which result in long, interlocking crystals forming around the aggregates. Over time, these result in a solid ceramic. The biggest problem with this method is that most reactions are so fast that good mixing is not possible, which tends to prevent large-scale construction. However, small-scale systems can be made by deposition techniques, where the various materials are introduced above a substrate, and react and form the ceramic on the substrate. This borrows techniques from the semiconductor industry, such as chemical vapour deposition, and is very useful for coatings. These tend to produce very dense ceramics, but do so slowly. Sintering-based methods The principles of sintering-based methods is simple. Once a roughly held together object (called a "green body") is made, it is baked in a kiln, where diffusion processes cause the green body to shrink. The pores in the object close up, resulting in a denser, stronger product. The firing is done at a temperature below the melting point of the ceramic. There is virtually always some porosity left, but the real advantage of this method is that the green body can be produced in any way imaginable, and still be sintered. This makes it a very versatile route.

There are thousands of possible refinements of this process. Some of the most common involve pressing the green body to give the densification a head start and reduce the sintering time needed. Sometimes organic binders such as polyvinyl alcohol are added to hold the green body together; these burn out during the firing (at 200350C). Sometimes organic lubricants are added during pressing to increase densification. It is not uncommon to combine these, and add binders and lubricants to a powder, then press. (The formulation of these organic chemical additives is an art in itself. This is particularly important in the manufacture of high performance ceramics such as those used by the billions for electronics, in capacitors, inductors, sensors, etc.

Page | 29

The specialized formulations most commonly used in electronics are detailed in the book "Tape Casting," by R.E. Mistler, et al., Amer. Ceramic Soc. [Westerville, Ohio], 2000.) A comprehensive book on the subject, for mechanical as well as electronics applications, is "Organic Additives and Ceramic Processing," by D. J. Shanefield, Kluwer Publishers [Boston], 1996. A slurry can be used in place of a powder, and then cast into a desired shape, dried and then sintered. Indeed, traditional pottery is done with this type of method, using a plastic mixture worked with the hands.

If a mixture of different materials is used together in a ceramic, the sintering temperature is sometimes above the melting point of one minor component - a liquid phase sintering. This results in shorter sintering times compared to solid state sintering.

Other applications of ceramics

Ceramics are used in the manufacture of knives. The blade of the ceramic knife will stay sharp for much longer than that of a steel knife, although it is more brittle and can be snapped by dropping it on a hard surface. Ceramics such as alumina and boron carbide have been used in ballistic armored vests to repel large-caliber rifle fire. Such plates are known commonly as small-arms protective inserts (SAPI). Similar material is used to protect cockpits of some military airplanes, because of the low weight of the material. Ceramic balls can be used to replace steel in ball bearings. Their higher hardness means that they are much less susceptible to wear and can often more than triple lifetimes. They also deform less under load meaning they have less contact with the bearing retainer walls and can roll faster. In very high speed applications, heat from friction during rolling can cause problems for metal bearings; problems which are reduced by the use of ceramics. Ceramics are also more chemically resistant and can be used in wet environments where steel bearings would rust. The major drawback to using ceramics is a significantly higher cost. In many cases their electrically insulating properties may also be valuable in bearings. In the early 1980s, Toyota researched production of an adiabatic ceramic engine which can run at a temperature of over 6000 F (3300 C). Ceramic engines do not require a cooling system and hence allow a major weight reduction and therefore greater fuel efficiency. Fuel efficiency of the engine is also higher at high temperature, as shown by Carnot's theorem. In a conventional metallic engine, much of the energy released from the fuel must be dissipated as waste heat in order to prevent a meltdown of the metallic parts. Despite all of these desirable properties, such engines are not in production because the manufacturing of ceramic parts in the requisite precision and durability is difficult. Imperfection in the ceramic leads to cracks, which can lead to potentially dangerous equipment failure. Such engines are possible in laboratory settings, but mass-production is unfeasible with current technology. Work is being done in developing ceramic parts for gas turbine engines. Currently, even blades made of advanced metal alloys used in the engines' hot section require Page | 30

cooling and careful limiting of operating temperatures. Turbine engines made with ceramics could operate more efficiently, giving aircraft greater range and payload for a set amount of fuel.

Recently, there have been advances in ceramics which include bio-ceramics, such as dental implants and synthetic bones. Hydroxyapatite, the natural mineral component of bone, has been made synthetically from a number of biological and chemical sources and can be formed into ceramic materials. Orthopedic implants made from these materials bond readily to bone and other tissues in the body without rejection or inflammatory reactions. Because of this, they are of great interest for gene delivery and tissue engineering scaffolds. Most hydroxy apatite ceramics are very porous and lack mechanical strength and are used to coat metal orthopedic devices to aid in forming a bond to bone or as bone fillers. They are also used as fillers for orthopedic plastic screws to aid in reducing the inflammation and increase absorption of these plastic materials. Work is being done to make strongfully dense nano crystalline hydroxapatite ceramic materials for orthopedic weight bearing devices, replacing foreign metal and plastic orthopedic materials with a synthetic natural bone mineral. Ultimately these ceramic materials may be used as bone replacements or with the incorporation of protein collagens, synthetic bones.

Page | 31

Ceramics-2 |
Version 3 - view current page
Ceramics
A ceramic has traditionally been defined as an inorganic, nonmetallic solid that is prepared from powdered materials, is fabricated into products through the application of heat, and displays such characteristic properties as hardness, strength, low electrical conductivity, and brittleness." The word ceramic comes the from Greek word "keramikos", which means "pottery." They are typically crystalline in nature and are compounds formed between metallic and nonmetallic elements such as aluminum and oxygen (aluminaAl2O3), calcium and oxygen (calcia - CaO), and silicon and nitrogen (silicon nitride-Si3N4).

Depending on their method of formation, ceramics can be dense or lightweight. Typically, they will demonstrate excellent strength and hardness properties; however, they are often brittle in nature. Ceramics can also be formed to serve as electrically conductive materials or insulators. Some ceramics, like superconductors, also display magnetic properties. They are also more resistant to high temperatures and harsh environments than metals and polymers. Due to ceramic materials wide range of properties, they are used for a multitude of applications.

The broad categories or segments that make up the ceramic industry can be classified as:

Structural clay products (brick, sewer pipe, roofing and wall tile, flue linings, etc.) Whitewares (dinnerware, floor and wall tile, electrical porcelain, etc.) Refractories (brick and monolithic products used in metal, glass, cements, ceramics, energy conversion, petroleum, and chemicals industries) Glasses (flat glass (windows), container glass (bottles), pressed and blown glass (dinnerware), glass fibers (home insulation), and advanced/specialty glass (optical fibers)) Abrasives (natural (garnet, diamond, etc.) and synthetic (silicon carbide, diamond, fused alumina, etc.) abrasives are used for grinding, cutting, polishing, lapping, or pressure blasting of materials) Cements (for roads, bridges, buildings, dams, and etc.) Advanced ceramics o Structural (wear parts, bioceramics, cutting tools, and engine components) o Electrical (capacitors, insulators, substrates, integrated circuit packages, piezoelectrics, magnets and superconductors) o Coatings (engine components, cutting tools, and industrial wear parts) Page | 32

Chemical and environmental (filters, membranes, catalysts, and catalyst supports)

The atoms in ceramic materials are held together by a chemical bond which will be discussed a bit later. Briefly though, the two most common chemical bonds for ceramic materials are covalent and ionic. Covalent and ionic bonds are much stronger than in metallic bonds and, generally speaking, this is why ceramics are brittle and metals are ductile.

Ceramic Structures
As discussed in the introduction, ceramics and related materials cover a wide range of objects. Ceramics are a little more complex than metallic structures, which is why metals were covered first. A ceramic has traditionally been defined as an inorganic, nonmetallic solid that is prepared from powdered materials and is fabricated into products through the application of heat. Most ceramics are made up of two or more elements. This is called a compound. For example, alumina (Al2O3) is a compound made up of aluminum atoms and oxygen atoms. The two most common chemical bonds for ceramic materials are covalent and ionic. The bonding of atoms together is much stronger in covalent and ionic bonding than in metallic. This is why ceramics generally have the following properties: high hardness, high compressive strength, and chemical inertness. This strong bonding also accounts for the less attractive properties of ceramics, such as low ductility and low tensile strength. The absence of free electrons is responsible for making most ceramics poor conductors of electricity and heat. However, it should be noted that the crystal structures of ceramics are many and varied and this results in a very wide range of properties. For example, while ceramics are perceived as electrical and thermal insulators, ceramic oxide (initially based on Y-Ba-Cu-O) is the basis for high temperature superconductivity. Diamond and silicon carbide have a higher thermal conductivity than aluminum or copper. Control of the microstructure can overcome inherent stiffness to allow the production of ceramic springs, and ceramic composites which have been produced with a fracture toughness about half that of steel. Also, the atomic structures are often of low symmetry that gives some ceramics interesting electromechanical properties like piezoelectricity, which is used in sensors and transducers. The structure of most ceramics varies from relatively simple to very complex. The microstructure can be entirely glassy (glasses only); entirely crystalline; or a combination of crystalline and glassy. In the latter case, the glassy phase usually surrounds small crystals, bonding them together. The main compositional classes of engineering ceramics are the oxides, nitrides and carbides.

Page | 33

COLD WORK AND HOT WORK

Cold working refers to plastic deformation that occurs usually, but not necessarily, at
room temperature.

Hot working refers to plastic deformation carried out above the recrystallization
temperature. Warm working: as the name implies, is carried out at intermediate temperatures. It is a compromise between cold and hot working. The temperature ranges for these 3 categories of plastic deformation are given in the next table in term of a ratio, where T is the working temperature and Tm is the melting point of the metal, both on the absolute scale. Although it is a dimensionless quantity, this ratio is known as the homologous temperature.

Definition:
As stated before, cold working refers to plastic deformation that occurs usually, but not necessarily, at room temperature. For example: Deforming lead at room temperature is a hot working process because the recrystallization temperature of lead is about room temperature. Cold and hot are relative terms. Plastic deformation is a deformation in which the material does not return to its original shape; this is the opposite of an elastic deformation. Effects of Cold Working: The behavior and workability of the metals depend largely on whether deformation takes place below or above the recrystallization temperature. Deformation using cold working results in: Higher stiffness, and strength, but Reduced malleability and ductility of the metal. Anisotropy -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hot Working
Definition
Page | 34

Hot working is the deformation that is carried out above the recrystallization temperature. In these circumstances, annealing takes place while the metal is worked rather than being a separate process. The metal can therefore be worked without it becoming work hardened. Hot working is usually carried out with the metal at a temperature of about 0.6 of its melting point. Effects of hot working At high temperature, scaling and oxidation exist. Scaling and oxidation produce undesirable surface finish. Most ferrous metals needs to be cold worked after hot working in order to improve the surface finish. The amount of force needed to perform hot working is less than that for cold work. The mechanical properties of the material remain unchanged during hot working. The metal usually experiences a decrease in yield strength when hot worked. Therefore, it is possible to hot work the metal without causing any fracture. Quenching is the sudden immersion of a heated metal into cold water or oil. It is used to make the metal very hard. To reverse the effects of quenching, tempering is used (reheated of the metal for a period of time) To reverse the process of quenching, tempering is used, which is the reheat of the metal.

Methods used for Cold, Hot working

ROLLING -- FORGING ------

The advantages of hot working are

Lower working forces to produce a given shape, which means the machines involved don't have to be as strong, which means they can be built more cheaply; The possibility of producing a very dramatic shape change in a single working step, without causing large amounts of internal stress, cracks or cold working; Sometimes hot working can be combined with a casting process so that metal is cast and then immediately hot worked. This saves money because we don't have to pay for the energy to reheat the metal. Hot working tends to break up large crystals in the metal and can produce a favourable alignment of elongated crystals (see DeGarmo Fig. 17-4 below). Hot working can remove some kinds of defects that occur in cast metals. It can close gas pockets (bubbles) or voids in a cast billet; and it may also break up nonmetallic slag which can sometimes get caught in the melt (inclusions).

The main problems, however, are

Page | 35

If the recrystallisation temperature of the worked metal is high e.g. if we are talking about steel, specialised methods are needed to protect the machines that work the metal. The working processes are also dangerous to human operators and very unpleasant to work near (see picture below for some idea why). The surface finish of hot worked steel tends to be pretty crude because (a) the dies or rollers wear quite rapidly; (b) there is a lot of dimensional change as the worked object cools; and (c) there is the constant annoying problem of scale formation on the surface of the hot steel.

Of course smart people have found ways to minimise the problems or work around them more below - and as a result hot working is a very common and useful process. We just have to be aware of its limits and follow the hot working operations with other types of manufacturing process that can fix the problems that occur. Cold working As explained above, when we work a metal below the recrystallisation temperature, there is accumulation of a kind of material damage at the atomic level, through the pile-up of dislocations. However this is not necessarily a bad thing. Many useful engineering objects are deliberately cold-worked as part of the manufacturing process to achieve improved properties. One common example is fencing wire. It is cold-drawn in the final stages, before being galvanised (plated with zinc) and coiled ready for sale. The cold working stages increase the yeild stress of the wire, meaning we can pull harder on the wire before it deforms plastically (stretches). That's helpful when you are stringing a fence. However the cold working does not increase the ultimate strength of the material. So in a sense, cold working uses up some of the safety margin of the material. If a very strongly cold worked material is overloaded, it could well just break like a brittle material with no warning. So we try to design cold working as a compromise. A little bit can be good: too much could be dangerous.

The advantages of cold working are

A better surface finish may be achieved; Dimensional accuracy can be excellent because the work is not hot so it doesn't shrink on cooling; also the low temperatures mean the tools such as dies and rollers can last a long time without wearing out. Usually there is no problem with oxidative effects such as scale formation. In fact, cold rolling (for example) can make such scale come off the surface of a previously hot-worked object. Controlled amounts of cold work may be introduced. As with hot working, the grain structure of the material is made to follow the deformation direction, which can be good for the strength of the final product. Strength and hardness are increased, although at the expense of ductility. OH & S problems related to working near hot metal are eliminated.

However Page | 36

There is a limit to how much cold work can be done on a given piece of metal. See the discussion above about accumulation of damage in the form of piled up dislocations. There are ways to get around this problem, see below. Higher forces are required to produce a given deformation, which means we need heavily built, strong forming machines (= $$$).

A neat trick: cold work then normalise Cold working has many advantages and is very much the more common type of metal forming. However if a large overall deformation is desired, how can we do it using only cold working? The answer is: do some cold work, then put the object through a heattreatment cycle to relieve the atomic-scale damage caused by the cold work. This is called annealing or normalising the metal. It is done by heating the metal object above the recrystallisation temperature, waiting a few minutes, then allowing it to cool. Of course we have to pay for the energy to do the heating. This type of cold-work/anneal/cold-work/anneal sequence is used by plumbers who shape copper tube on a building site. When a piece of tube has to bent sharply, it is done in easy stages with a proper annealing between each stage (usually done using a hand-held gas flame). This ensures that metal won't crack during the bending operations. Think about working with a sheet of lead on a nice warm day in the Australian sun. The lead will likely be above its recrystallisation temperature, with no special heating required. This can actually be very useful. It means you can shape your sheet of lead for hours bend it back and forth, hammer it out, whatever - and it will probably accept all the deformation with cracking. This is one of the reasons lead sheet was so popular in ancient times as a roofing/guttering material (for those who could afford it). Any strange shape needed could be hammered out of a sheet or even a lump, right on site, and with no special furnaces or other technology.

The advantages of hot working are

Lower working forces to produce a given shape, which means the machines involved don't have to be as strong, which means they can be built more cheaply; The possibility of producing a very dramatic shape change in a single working step, without causing large amounts of internal stress, cracks or cold working; Sometimes hot working can be combined with a casting process so that metal is cast and then immediately hot worked. This saves money because we don't have to pay for the energy to reheat the metal. Hot working tends to break up large crystals in the metal and can produce a favourable alignment of elongated crystals (see DeGarmo Fig. 17-4 below). Hot working can remove some kinds of defects that occur in cast metals. It can close gas pockets (bubbles) or voids in a cast billet; and it may also break up nonmetallic slag which can sometimes get caught in the melt (inclusions). Page | 37

The main problems, however, are

If the recrystallisation temperature of the worked metal is high e.g. if we are talking about steel, specialised methods are needed to protect the machines that work the metal. The working processes are also dangerous to human operators and very unpleasant to work near (see picture below for some idea why). The surface finish of hot worked steel tends to be pretty crude because (a) the dies or rollers wear quite rapidly; (b) there is a lot of dimensional change as the worked object cools; and (c) there is the constant annoying problem of scale formation on the surface of the hot steel.

Of course smart people have found ways to minimise the problems or work around them more below - and as a result hot working is a very common and useful process. We just have to be aware of its limits and follow the hot working operations with other types of manufacturing process that can fix the problems that occur. Cold working As explained above, when we work a metal below the recrystallisation temperature, there is accumulation of a kind of material damage at the atomic level, through the pile-up of dislocations. However this is not necessarily a bad thing. Many useful engineering objects are deliberately cold-worked as part of the manufacturing process to achieve improved properties. One common example is fencing wire. It is cold-drawn in the final stages, before being galvanised (plated with zinc) and coiled ready for sale. The cold working stages increase the yeild stress of the wire, meaning we can pull harder on the wire before it deforms plastically (stretches). That's helpful when you are stringing a fence. However the cold working does not increase the ultimate strength of the material. So in a sense, cold working uses up some of the safety margin of the material. If a very strongly cold worked material is overloaded, it could well just break like a brittle material with no warning. So we try to design cold working as a compromise. A little bit can be good: too much could be dangerous. The advantages of cold working are

A better surface finish may be achieved; Dimensional accuracy can be excellent because the work is not hot so it doesn't shrink on cooling; also the low temperatures mean the tools such as dies and rollers can last a long time without wearing out. Usually there is no problem with oxidative effects such as scale formation. In fact, cold rolling (for example) can make such scale come off the surface of a previously hot-worked object. Controlled amounts of cold work may be introduced. As with hot working, the grain structure of the material is made to follow the deformation direction, which can be good for the strength of the final product. Strength and hardness are increased, although at the expense of ductility. OH & S problems related to working near hot metal are eliminated.

However Page | 38

There is a limit to how much cold work can be done on a given piece of metal. See the discussion above about accumulation of damage in the form of piled up dislocations. There are ways to get around this problem, see below. Higher forces are required to produce a given deformation, which means we need heavily built, strong forming machines (= $$$).

A neat trick: cold work then normalise Cold working has many advantages and is very much the more common type of metal forming. However if a large overall deformation is desired, how can we do it using only cold working? The answer is: do some cold work, then put the object through a heattreatment cycle to relieve the atomic-scale damage caused by the cold work. This is called annealing or normalising the metal. It is done by heating the metal object above the recrystallisation temperature, waiting a few minutes, then allowing it to cool. Of course we have to pay for the energy to do the heating. This type of cold-work/anneal/cold-work/anneal sequence is used by plumbers who shape copper tube on a building site. When a piece of tube has to bent sharply, it is done in easy stages with a proper annealing between each stage (usually done using a hand-held gas flame). This ensures that metal won't crack during the bending operations. Think about working with a sheet of lead on a nice warm day in the Australian sun. The lead will likely be above its recrystallisation temperature, with no special heating required. This can actually be very useful. It means you can shape your sheet of lead for hours bend it back and forth, hammer it out, whatever - and it will probably accept all the deformation with cracking. This is one of the reasons lead sheet was so popular in ancient times as a roofing/guttering material (for those who could afford it). Any strange shape needed could be hammered out of a sheet or even a lump, right on site, and with no special furnaces or other technology.

Page | 39

Composite material
Composite materials (or composites for short) are engineered materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties and which remain separate and distinct on a macroscopic level within the finished structure.

Background The most primitive composite materials comprised straw and mud in the form of bricks for building construction; the Biblical book of Exodus speaks of the Israelites being oppressed by Pharaoh, by being forced to make bricks without straw. The ancient brick-making process can still be seen on Egyptian tomb paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art[1]. The most advanced examples perform routinely on spacecraft in demanding environments. The most visible applications pave our roadways in the form of either steel and aggregate reinforced portland cement or asphalt concrete. Those composites closest to our personal hygiene form our shower stalls and bath tubs made of fiberglass. Solid surface, imitation granite and cultured marble sinks and counter tops are widely used to enhance our living experiences.

There are two categories of constituent materials: matrix and reinforcement. At least one portion of each type is required. The matrix material surrounds and supports the reinforcement materials by maintaining their relative positions. The reinforcements impart their special mechanical and physical properties to enhance the matrix properties. A synergism produces material properties unavailable from the individual constituent materials, while the wide variety of matrix and strengthening materials allows the designer of the product or structure to choose an optimum combination. Engineered composite materials must be formed to shape. The matrix material can be introduced to the reinforcement before or after the reinforcement material is placed into the mold cavity or onto the mold surface.

The matrix material experiences a melding event, after which the part shape is essentially Page | 40

set. Depending upon the nature of the matrix material, this melding event can occur in various ways such as chemical polymerization or solidification from the melted state. A variety of molding methods can be used according to the end-item design requirements. The principal factors impacting the methodology are the natures of the chosen matrix and reinforcement materials. Another important factor is the gross quantity of material to be produced. Large quantities can be used to justify high capital expenditures for rapid and automated manufacturing technology. Small production quantities are accommodated with lower capital expenditures but higher labor and tooling costs at a correspondingly slower rate.

Most commercially produced composites use a polymer matrix material often called a resin solution. There are many different polymers available depending upon the starting raw ingredients. There are several broad categories, each with numerous variations. The most common are known as polyester, vinyl ester, epoxy, phenolic, polyimide, polyamide, polypropylene, PEEK, and others. The reinforcement materials are often fibers but also commonly Molding ground minerals. methods

In general, the reinforcing and matrix materials are combined, compacted and processed to undergo a melding event. After the melding event, the part shape is essentially set, although it can deform under certain process conditions. For a thermoset polymeric matrix material, the melding event is a curing reaction that is initiated by the application of additional heat or chemical reactivity such as an organic peroxide. For a thermoplastic polymeric matrix material, the melding event is a solidification from the melted state. For a metal matrix material such as titanium foil, the melding event is a fusing at high pressure and a temperature near the melt point.

For many molding methods, it is convenient to refer to one mold piece as a "lower" mold and another mold piece as an "upper" mold. Lower and upper refer to the different faces of the molded panel, not the mold's configuration in space. In this convention, there is always a lower mold, and sometimes an upper mold. Part construction begins by applying materials to the lower mold. Lower mold and upper mold are more generalized descriptors than more common and specific terms such as male side, female side, a-side, b-side, tool side, bowl, hat, mandrel, etc. Continuous manufacturing processes use a different nomenclature. Page | 41

The molded product is often referred to as a panel. For certain geometries and material combinations, it can be referred to as a casting. For certain continuous processes, it can be referred Open to as a profile. molding

A process using a rigid, one sided mold which shapes only one surface of the panel. The opposite surface is determined by the amount of material placed upon the lower mold. Reinforcement materials can be placed manually or robotically. They include continuous fiber forms fashioned into textile constructions and chopped fiber. The matrix is generally a resin, and can be applied with a pressure roller, a spray device or manually. This process is generally done at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. Two variations of open molding are Hand Layup and Spray-up.

Vacuum

bag

molding

A process using a two-sided mold set that shapes both surfaces of the panel. On the lower side is a rigid mold and on the upper side is a flexible membrane. The flexible membrane can be a reusable silicone material or an extruded polymer film such as nylon. Reinforcement materials can be placed on the lower mold manually or robotically, generally as continuous fiber forms fashioned into textile constructions. The matrix is generally a resin. The fiber form may be pre-impregnated with the resin in the form of prepreg fabrics or unidirectional tapes. Otherwise, liquid matrix material is introduced to dry fiber forms prior to applying the flexible film. Then, vacuum is applied to the mold cavity. This process can performed at either ambient or elevated temperature with ambient atmospheric pressure acting upon the vacuum bag. Autoclave molding A process using a two-sided mold set that forms both surfaces of the panel. One the lower side is a rigid mold and on the upper side is a flexible membrane made from silicone or an extruded polymer film such as nylon. Reinforcement materials can be placed manually or robotically. They include continuous fiber forms fashioned into textile constructions. Most often, they are pre-impregnated with the resin in the form of prepreg fabrics or unidirectional tapes. In some instances, a resin film is placed upon the lower mold and dry reinforcement is placed above. The upper mold is installed and vacuum is applied to the mold cavity. Then, the assembly is placed into an autoclave pressure vessel. This process is generally performed at both elevated pressure and elevated temperature. The use of elevated pressure facilitates a high fiber volume fraction and low void content for Page | 42

maximum

structural

efficiency.

Resin

transfer

molding

A process using a two-sided mold set that forms both surfaces of the panel. The lower side is a rigid mold. The upper side can be a rigid or flexible mold. Flexible molds can be made from composite materials, silicone or extruded polymer films such as nylon. The two sides fit together to produce a mold cavity. The distinguishing feature of resin transfer molding is that the reinforcement materials are placed into this cavity and the mold set is closed prior to the introduction of matrix material. Resin transfer molding includes numerous varieties which differ in the mechanics of how the resin is introduced to the reinforcement in the mold cavity. These variations include everything from vacuum infusion to vacuum assisted resin transfer molding. This process can be performed at either ambient or elevated temperature.

Other Other types of molding include press molding, transfer molding, pultrusion molding, filament winding, casting, centrifugal casting and continuous casting.

Tooling
Some types of tooling materials used in the manufacturing of composites structures include invar, steel, aluminum, reinforced silicon rubber, nickle, and carbon fiber. Selection of the tooling material is typically based on, but not limited to, the coefficient of thermal expansion, expected number of cycles, end item tolerance, desired or required surface condition, method of cure, glass transition temperature of the material being molded, molding method, matrix, cost and a variety of other considerations.

Mechanics of composite materials

The physical properties of composite materials are generally not isotropic in nature, but rather are typically orthotropic. For instance, the stiffness of a composite panel will often depend upon the directional orientation of the applied forces and/or moments. Panel Page | 43

stiffness is also dependent on the design of the panel. For instance, the fiber reinforcement and matrix used, the method of panel build, thermoset versus thermoplastic, type of weave, and orientation of fiber axis to the primary force. In contrast, isotropic materials (for example, aluminium or steel), in standard wrought forms, typically have the same stiffness regardless of the directional orientation of the applied forces and/or moments.

The relationship between forces/moments and strains/curvatures for an isotropic material can be described with the following material properties: Young's Modulus, the Shear Modulus and the Poisson's ratio, in relatively simple mathematical relationships. For the anisotropic material, it requires the mathematics of a second order tensor and can require up to 21 material property constants. For the special case of orthogonal isotropy, there are three different material property constants for each of Young's Modulus, Shear Modulus and Poisson's Ratio for a total of 9 material property constants to describe the relationship between forces/moments and strains/curvatures.

Categories of fiber reinforced composite materials

Fiber reinforced composite materials can be divided into two main categories normally referred to as short fiber reinforced materials and continuous fiber reinforced materials. Continuous reinforced materials will often constitute a layered or laminated structure. The woven and continuous fiber styles are typically available in a variety of forms, being preimpregnated with the given matrix (resin), dry, uni-directional tapes of various widths, plain weave, harness satins, braided, and stitched.

The short and long fibers are typically employed in compression molding and sheet molding operations. These come in the form of flakes, chips, and random mate (which can also be made from a continuous fiber laid in random fashion until the desired thickness of the ply / laminate is achieved).

Failure of Composites
Shocks, impact, loadings or repeated cyclic stresses can cause the laminate to separate at Page | 44

the interface between two layers, a condition known as delamination. Individual fibers can separate from the matrix e.g. fiber pull-out.

Examples of composite materials

Fiber Reinforced Polymers or FRPs include Wood comprising (cellulose fibers in a lignin and hemicellulose matrix), Carbon-fiber reinforced plastic or CFRP, Glass-fiber reinforced plastic or GFRP (also GRP). If classified by matrix then there are Thermoplastic Composites, short fiber thermoplastics, long fiber thermoplastics or long fiber reinforced thermoplastics There are numerous thermoset composites, but advanced systems usually incorporate aramid fibre and carbon fibre in an epoxy resin matrix. Composites can also utilise metal fibres reinforcing other metals, as in Metal matrix composites or MMC. Ceramic matrix composites include Bone (hydroxyapatite reinforced with collagen fibers), Cermet (ceramic and metal) and Concrete. Organic matrix/ceramic aggregate composites include Asphalt concrete, Mastic asphalt, Mastic roller hybrid, Dental composite, Syntactic foam and Mother of Pearl. Chobham armour is a special composite used in military applications.

Additionally, thermoplastic composite materials can be formulated with specific metal powders resulting in materials with a density range from 2 g/cc to 11 g/cc (same density as lead). These materials can be used in place of traditional materials such as aluminum, stainless steel, brass, bronze, copper, lead, and even tungsten in weighting, balancing, vibration dampening, and radiation shielding applications. High density composites are an economically viable option when certain materials are deemed hazardous and are banned (such as lead) or when secondary operations costs (such as machining, finishing, or coating) are a factor. Engineered wood includes a wide variety of different products such as Plywood, Oriented strand board, Wood plastic composite (recycled wood fiber in polyethylene matrix), Pykrete (sawdust in ice matrix), Plastic-impregnated or laminated paper or textiles, Arborite, Formica (plastic) and Micarta.

Typical Products
Composite materials have gained popularity (despite their generally high cost) in highperformance products such as aerospace components (tails, wings , fuselages, propellors), boat and scull hulls, and racing car bodies. More mundane uses include fishing rods and Page | 45

storage

tanks.

See also

Alloy Fibre Polymer Thermoplastic Thermoset

----------------------------------------------

Fibre

reinforced

composites

Composites are multilayer materials, consisting of different layers with distinct properties in each layer. The composite is made to better utilize a combination of properties from different layers.

Polypropylene and bicomponent fibres can be very important component of fibre reinforced composites, as they function not only as a reinforcing element, but also as a binder fibre between the individual layers.

Polypropylene and bicomponent fibres are used in many different composite products:

fibre-reinforced concrete (to reinforce and prevent cracks), insulation material (to avoid the use of chemical binders), multifunctional liquid transport media (acquisition and distribution layers), woven fabrics (as a dimensional stability network) laminated products (lamination between textiles and boards)

Polypropylene and bicomponent (PP/PE) fibres have the ability to add structural performance, and functionality to the composite material.

Polypropylene and bicomponent (PP/PE) fibres provide the following advantages in fibre reinforced composites:

Enable lightweight constructions (PP fibres have the lowest specific gravity of all fibres) Easy to process and environmentally friendly thermoplastics Mechanical properties, toughness and impact strength Page | 46

Stability in rigid environments (Resistant to deterioration from chemicals, mildew, perspiration, rot and weather) Ability to add bulkiness and softness to the composite (if needed).

----------------------------------------------------------

Nano-composite materials
Nano-composite materials with enhanced thermal performance that can be used for thermal management in a wide range of applications, including heat sinks, device packaging, semiconductor device layers, printed circuit boards and other components of electronic, optical and/or mechanical systems. One type of nano-composite material has a base material and nanostructures (e.g., nanotubes) dispersed in the base material. Another type of nano-composite material has layers of a base material with nanotube films disposed thereon.

Page | 47

CORROSION
Corrosion is deterioration of essential properties in a material due to reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means a loss of an electron of metals reacting with water and oxygen. Weakening of iron due to oxidation of the iron atoms is a wellknown example of electrochemical corrosion. This is commonly known as rust. This type of damage usually affects metallic materials, and typically produces oxide(s) and/or salt(s) of the original metal. Corrosion also includes the dissolution of ceramic materials and can refer to discoloration and weakening of polymers by the sun's ultraviolet light. Most structural alloys corrode merely from exposure to moisture in the air, but the process can be strongly affected by exposure to certain substances (see below). Corrosion can be concentrated locally to form a pit or crack, or it can extend across a wide area to produce general deterioration. While some efforts to reduce corrosion merely redirect the damage into less visible, less predictable forms, controlled corrosion treatments such as passivation and chromate-conversion will increase a material's corrosion resistance.

Corrosion

in

nonmetals

Most ceramic materials are almost entirely immune to corrosion. The strong ionic and/or covalent bonds that hold them together leave very little free chemical energy in the structure; they can be thought of as already corroded. When corrosion does occur, it is almost always a simple dissolution of the material or chemical reaction, rather than an electrochemical process. A common example of corrosion protection in ceramics is the lime added to soda-lime glass to reduce its solubility in water; though it is not nearly as soluble as pure sodium silicate, normal glass does form sub-microscopic flaws when exposed to moisture. Due to its brittleness, such flaws cause a dramatic reduction in the strength of a glass object during its first few hours at room temperature.

The degradation of polymeric materials is due to a wide array of complex and often poorlyunderstood physiochemical processes. These are strikingly different from the other processes discussed here, and so the term "corrosion" is only applied to them in a loose sense of the word. Because of their large molecular weight, very little entropy can be Page | 48

gained by mixing a given mass of polymer with another substance, making them generally quite difficult to dissolve. While dissolution is a problem in some polymer applications, it is relatively simple to design against. A more common and related problem is swelling, where small molecules infiltrate the structure, reducing strength and stiffness and causing a volume change. Conversely, many polymers (notably flexible vinyl) are intentionally swelled with plasticizers, which can be leached out of the structure, causing brittleness or other undesirable changes. The most common form of degradation, however, is a decrease in polymer chain length. Mechanisms which break polymer chains are familiar to biologists because of their effect on DNA: ionizing radiation (most commonly ultraviolet light), free radicals, and oxidizers such as oxygen, ozone, and chlorine. Additives can slow these process very effectively, and can be as simple as a UV-absorbing pigment (i.e., titanium dioxide or carbon black). Plastic shopping bags often do not include these additives so that they break down more easily as litter. The remainder of this article is about electrochemical corrosion.

Electrochemical theory
Main article: Electrochemistry One way to understand the structure of metals on the basis of particles is to imagine an array of positively-charged ions sitting in a negatively-charged "gas" of free electrons. Coulombic attraction holds these oppositely-charged particles together, but the positivelycharged ions are attracted to negatively charged particles outside the metal as well, such as the negative ions (anions) in an electrolyte. For a given ion at the surface of a metal, there is a certain amount of energy to be gained or lost by dissolving into the electrolyte or becoming a part of the metal, which reflects an atom-scale tug-of-war between the electron gas and dissolved anions. The quantity of energy then strongly depends on a host of variables, including the types of ions in a solution and their concentrations, and the number of electrons present at the metal's surface. In turn, corrosion processes cause electrochemical changes, meaning that they strongly affect all of these variables. The overall interaction between electrons and ions tends to produce a state of local thermodynamic equilibrium that can often be described using basic chemistry and a knowledge of initial conditions. Galvanic series Main article: Galvanic series In a given environment (one standard medium is aerated, room-temperature seawater), one metal will be either more noble or more active than the next, based on how strongly its ions are bound to the surface. Two metals in electrical contact share the same electron gas, so that the tug-of-war at each surface is translated into a competition for free Page | 49

electrons between the two materials. The noble metal will tend to take electrons from the active one, while the electrolyte hosts a flow of ions in the same direction. The resulting mass flow or electrical current can be measured to establish a hierarchy of materials in the medium of interest. This hierarchy is called a Galvanic series, and can be a very useful in predicting and understanding corrosion.

Resistance to corrosion
Some metals are more intrinsically resistant to corrosion than others, either due to the fundamental nature of the electrochemical processes involved or due to the details of how reaction products form. For some examples, see galvanic series. If a more susceptible material is used, many techniques can be applied during an item's manufacture and use to protect its materials from damage. Intrinsic chemistry

Gold nuggets do not corrode, even on a geological time scale. The materials most resistant to corrosion are those for which corrosion is thermodynamically unfavorable. Any corrosion products of gold or platinum tend to decompose spontaneously into pure metal, which is why these elements can be found in metallic form on Earth, and is a large part of their intrinsic value. More common "base" metals can only be protected by more temporary means. Some metals have naturally slow reaction kinetics, even though their corrosion is thermodynamically favorable. These include such metals as zinc, magnesium, and cadmium. While corrosion of these metals is continuous and ongoing, it happens at an acceptably slow rate. An extreme example is graphite, which releases large amounts of energy upon oxidation, but has such slow kinetics that it is effectively immune to electrochemical corrosion under normal conditions. Passivation Main article: Passivation Given the right conditions, a thin film of corrosion products can form on a metal's surface spontaneously, acting as a barrier to further oxidation. When this layer stops growing at less than a micrometre thick under the conditions that a material will be used in, the phenomenon is known as passivation (rust, for example, usually grows to be much thicker, and so is not considered passivation, because this mixed oxidized layer is not protective). Page | 50

While this effect is in some sense a property of the material, it serves as an indirect kinetic barrier: the reaction is often quite rapid unless and until an impermeable layer forms. Passivation in air and water at moderate pH is seen in such materials as aluminium, stainless steel, titanium, and silicon.

These conditions required for passivation are specific to the material. The effect of pH is recorded using Pourbaix diagrams, but many other factors are influential. Some conditions that inhibit passivation include: high pH for aluminum, low pH or the presence of chloride ions for stainless steel, high temperature for titanium (in which case the oxide dissolves into the metal, rather than the electrolyte) and fluoride ions for silicon. On the other hand, sometimes unusual conditions can bring on passivation in materials that are normally unprotected, as the alkaline environment of concrete does for steel rebar. Exposure to a liquid metal such as mercury or hot solder can often circumvent passivation mechanisms. Surface treatments

Galvanized surface [edit]

Applied coatings
Main article: Galvanization Plating, painting, and the application of enamel are the most common anti-corrosion treatments. They work by providing a barrier of corrosion-resistant material between the damaging environment and the (often cheaper, tougher, and/or easier-to-process) structural material. Aside from cosmetic and manufacturing issues, there are tradeoffs in mechanical flexibility versus resistance to abrasion and high temperature. Platings usually fail only in small sections, and if the plating is more noble than the substrate (for example, chromium on steel), a galvanic couple will cause any exposed area to corrode much more rapidly than an unplated surface would. For this reason, it is often wise to plate with a more active metal such as zinc or cadmium.

Reactive coatings If the environment is controlled (especially in recirculating systems),

corrosion inhibitors can often be added to it. These form an electrically insulating and/or chemically impermeable coating on exposed metal surfaces, to suppress electrochemical Page | 51

reactions. Such methods obviously make the system less sensitive to scratches or defects in the coating, since extra inhibitors can be made available wherever metal becomes exposed. Chemicals that inhibit corrosion include some of the salts in hard water (Roman water systems are famous for their mineral deposits), chromates, phosphates, and a wide range of specially-designed chemicals that resemble surfactants (i.e. long-chain organic molecules with ionic end groups).

This figure-8 descender is annodized with a yellow finish. Climbing equipment is available in a wide range of anodized colors.

Anodization
Main article: Anodising Aluminium alloys often undergo a surface treatment. Electrochemical conditions in the bath are carefully adjusted so that uniform pores several nanometers wide appear in the metal's oxide film. These pores allow the oxide to grow much thicker than passivating conditions would allow. At the end of the treatment, the pores are allowed to seal, forming a harder-than-usual surface layer. If this coating is scratched, normal passivation processes take over to protect the damaged area. Cathodic protection Main article: Cathodic protection Cathodic protection (CP) is a technique to control the corrosion of a metal surface by making that surface the cathode of an electrochemical cell. It is a method used to protect metal structures from corrosion. Cathodic protection systems are most commonly used to protect steel, water, and fuel pipelines and tanks; steel pier piles, ships, and offshore oil platforms. For effective CP, the potential of the steel surface is polarized (pushed) more negative until the metal surface has a uniform potential. With a uniform potential, the driving force for the corrosion reaction is halted. For galvanic CP systems, the anode material corrodes under the influence of the steel, and eventually it must be replaced. The polarization is caused by the current flow from the anode to the cathode, driven by the difference in electrochemical potential between the anode and the cathode. Page | 52

For larger structures, galvanic anodes cannot economically deliver enough current to provide complete protection. Impressed Current Cathodic Protection (ICCP) systems use anodes connected to a DC power source (a cathodic protection rectifier). Anodes for ICCP systems are tubular and solid rod shapes of various specialized materials. These include high silicon cast iron, graphite, mixed metal oxide or platinum coated titanium or niobium coated rod and wires.

Corrosion in passivated materials

Passivation is extremely useful in alleviating corrosion damage, but care must be taken not to trust it too thoroughly. Even a high-quality alloy will corrode if its ability to form a passivating film is hindered. Because the resulting modes of corrosion are more exotic and their immediate results are less visible than rust and other bulk corrosion, they often escape notice and cause problems among those who are not familiar with them. Pitting corrosion Main article: Pitting corrosion Certain conditions, such as low concentrations of oxygen or high concentrations of species such as chloride which compete as anions, can interfere with a given alloy's ability to reform a passivating film. In the worst case, almost all of the surface will remain protected, but tiny local fluctuations will degrade the oxide film in a few critical points. Corrosion at these points will be greatly amplified, and can cause corrosion pits of several types, depending upon conditions. While the corrosion pits only nucleate under fairly extreme circumstances, they can continue to grow even when conditions return to normal, since the interior of a pit is naturally deprived of oxygen. In extreme cases, the sharp tips of extremely long and narrow can cause stress concentration to the point that otherwise tough alloys can shatter, or a thin film pierced by an invisibly small hole can hide a thumb sized pit from view. These problems are especially dangerous because they are difficult to detect before a part or structure fails. Pitting remains among the most common and damaging forms of corrosion in passivated alloys, but it can be prevented by control of the alloy's environment, which often includes ensuring that the material is exposed to oxygen uniformly (i.e., eliminating crevices). Weld decay and knifeline attack Main article: Intergranular corrosion Stainless steel can pose special corrosion challenges, since its passivating behavior relies on the presence of a minor alloying component (Chromium, typically only 18%). Due to the elevated temperatures of welding or during improper heat treatment, chromium carbides can form in the grain boundaries of stainless alloys. This chemical reaction robs the Page | 53

material of chromium in the zone near the grain boundary, making those areas much less resistant to corrosion. This creates a galvanic couple with the well-protected alloy nearby, which leads to weld decay (corrosion of the grain boundaries near welds) in highly corrosive environments. Special alloys, either with low carbon content or with added carbon "getters" such as titanium and niobium (in types 321 and 347, respectively), can prevent this effect, but the latter require special heat treatment after welding to prevent the similar phenomenon of knifeline attack. As its name applies, this is limited to a small zone, often only a few micrometres across, which causes it to proceed more rapidly. This zone is very near the weld, making it even less noticeable1.

Galvanic corrosion
Main article: Galvanic corrosion Galvanic corrosion occurs when two different metals electrically contact each other and are immersed in an electrolyte. In order for galvanic corrosion to occur, an electrically conductive path and an ionically conductive path are necessary. This effects a galvanic couple where the more active metal corrodes at an accelerated rate and the more noble metal corrodes at a retarded rate. When immersed, neither metal would normally corrode as quickly without the electrically conductive connection (usually via a wire or direct contact). Galvanic corrosion is often utilised in sacrificial anodes. What type of metal(s) to use is readily determined by following the galvanic series. For example, zinc is often used as a sacrificial anode for steel structures, such as pipelines or docked naval ships. Galvanic corrosion is of major interest to the marine industry and also anywhere water can contact pipes or metal structures. Factors such as relative size of anode (smaller is generally less desirable), types of metal, and operating conditions (temperature, humidity, salinity, &c.) will affect galvanic corrosion. The surface area ratio of the anode and cathode will directly affect the corrosion rates of the materials.

Microbial corrosion
Main article: Microbial corrosion Microbial corrosion, or bacterial corrosion, is a corrosion caused or promoted by microorganisms, usually chemoautotrophs. It can apply to both metals and non-metallic materials, in both the presence and lack of oxygen. Sulfate-reducing bacteria are common in lack of oxygen; they produce hydrogen sulfide, causing sulfide stress cracking. In presence of oxygen, some bacteria directly oxidize iron to iron oxides and hydroxides, other bacteria oxidize sulfur and produce sulfuric acid causing biogenic sulfide corrosion. Concentration cells can form in the deposits of corrosion products, causing and enhancing galvanic corrosion. Page | 54

High temperature corrosion

High temperature corrosion is chemical deterioration of a material (typically a metal) under very high temperature conditions. This non-galvanic form of corrosion can occur when a metal is subject to a high temperature atmosphere containing oxygen, sulphur or other compounds capable of oxidising (or assisting the oxidation of) the material concerned. For example, materials used in aerospace, power generation and even in car engines have to resist sustained periods at high temperature in which they may be exposed to an atmosphere containing potentially highly corrosive products of combustion. The products of high temperature corrosion can potentially be turned to the advantage of the engineer. The formation of oxides on stainless steels, for example, can provide a protective layer preventing further atmospheric attack, allowing for a material to be used for sustained periods at both room and high temperature in hostile conditions. Such high temperature corrosion products in the form of compacted oxide layer glazes have also been shown to prevent or reduce wear during high temperature sliding contact of metallic (or metallic and ceramic) surfaces.

Economic impact
The US Federal Highway Administration released a study, entitled Corrosion Costs and Preventive Strategies in the United States, in 2002 on the direct costs associated with metallic corrosion in nearly every U.S. industry sector. The study showed that for 1998 the total annual estimated direct cost of corrosion in the U.S. was approximately $276 billion (approximately 3.1% of the US gross domestic product). FHWA Report Number:FHWA-RD01-156. The NACE International website has a summary slideshow of the report findings. Jones1 writes that electrochemical corrosion causes between $8 billion and $128 billion in economic damage per year in the United States alone, degrading structures, machines, and containers. This is when Dampney Company came up with a solution for corrosion or "corrosion under insulation" coatings to prevent this reaction.

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CREEP |
Version 3 - view current page CREEP
Creep is the term used to describe the tendency of a material to move or to deform permanently to relieve stresses. Material deformation occurs as a result of long term exposure to levels of stress that are below the yield or ultimate strength of the material. Creep is more severe in materials that are subjected to heat for long periods and near melting point. Creep is often observed in glasses, and there is a direct proportionality between increasing temperature and creep. The rate of this damage is a function of the material properties, exposure time, exposure temperature and the applied load (stress). Depending on the magnitude of the applied stress and its duration, the deformation may become so large that a component can no longer perform its function for example creep of a turbine blade will cause the blade to contact the casing, resulting in the failure of the blade. Creep is usually a concern to engineers and metallurgists when evaluating components that operate under high stresses or temperatures. Creep is not necessarily a failure mode, but is instead a damage mechanism. Moderate creep in concrete is sometimes welcomed because it relieves tensile stresses that may otherwise have led to cracking.

Overview

Rather than failing suddenly with a fracture, the material permanently strains over a longer period of time until it finally fails. Creep does not happen upon sudden loading but the accumulation of creep strain in longer times causes failure of the material. This makes creep deformation a "time-dependent" deformation of the material. Creep deformation of various materials may occur in time under all temperatures i.e. Tungsten requires a temperature in the thousands of degrees before creep can occur while Page | 56

the ceramic ice Antarctica ice cap creeps even during freezing temperatures. Generally 30-40% of the melting point for metals and 40-50% of melting point for ceramics is required before creep can occur. This deformation behavior is not only important in systems for which high temperatures are endured, such as nuclear power plants, jet engines, heat exchangers etc. It is also a factor in the design of everyday objects/appliances/etc, i.e. lead pipes are not used anymore because it can creep at room temperature, also metal paper clips are stronger than plastic ones because plastics also creep in room temperatures. It is also a consideration in the design of magnesium alloy engines. Since the relevant temperature is relative to melting point (usually at temperatures greater than half the melting temperature), creep can be seen at relatively low temperatures depending upon the alloy. Plastics and low-melting-temperature metals, including many solders creep at room temperature, as can be seen markedly in older lead hot-water pipes. Planetary ice is often at a high temperature (relative to its melting point), and creeps. Virtually any material will creep upon approaching its melting temperature. Glass windows are often erroneously used as an example of this phenomenon: creep would only occur at temperatures above the glass transition temperature (around 900F/500C). An example of an application involving creep deformation is the design of tungsten lightbulb filaments. Sagging of the filament coil between its supports increases with time due to creep deformation caused by the weight of the filament itself. If too much deformation occurs, the adjacent turns of the coil touch one another, causing an electrical short and local overheating, which quickly leads to failure of the filament. The coil geometry and supports are therefore designed to limit the stresses caused by the weight of the filament, and a special tungsten alloy with small amounts of oxygen trapped in the grain boundaries is used to slow the rate of Coble creep. Steam piping within fossil-fuel fired power plants with superheated vapour work under high temperature (1050F/565.5C and high pressure (often at 3500 psig/ 24.1 MPa or greater). In a jet engine temperatures may reach to 1000C, which may initiate creep deformation in a weak zone. Because of these reasons, understanding and studying creep deformation behaviour of engineering materials is very crucial for public and operational safety.

Stages of creep
Initially, the strain rate slows with increasing strain. This is known as primary creep. The strain rate eventually reaches a minimum and becomes near-constant. This is known as secondary or steady-state creep. It is this regime that is most well understood. The "creep strain rate" is typically the rate in this secondary stage. The stress dependence of this rate depends on the creep mechanism. In tertiary creep, the strain-rate exponentially increases with strain. Page | 57

Mechanisms of creep
The mechanism of creep depends on temperature and stress. The various methods are:

Thermally activated glide - e.g. via cross-slip Climb assisted glide - here the climb is an enabling mechanism, allowing dislocations to get around obstacles Climb - here the strain is actually accomplished by climb Grain boundary diffusion Bulk diffusion

The most common mechanism is climb-assisted glide.

General creep equation

where C is a constant dependent on the material and the particular creep mechanism, m and b are exponents dependent on the creep mechanism, Q is the activation energy of the creep mechanism, is the applied stress, d is the grain size of the material, k is Boltzmann's constant, and T is the temperature. Dislocation creep At high stresses (relative to the shear modulus), creep is controlled by the movement of dislocations. When a stress is applied to a material, plastic deformation occurs due to the movement of dislocations in the slip plane. Materials contain a variety of defects, for example solute atoms, that act as obstacles to dislocation motion. Creep arises from this because of the phenomenon of dislocation climb. At high temperatures vacancies in the crystal can diffuse to the location of a dislocation and cause the dislocation to move to an adjacent slip plane. By climbing to adjacent slip planes dislocations can get around obstacles to their motion, allowing further deformation to occur. Because it takes time for vacancies to diffuse to the location of a dislocation this results in time dependent strain, or creep. For dislocation creep Q = Qself diffusion, m = 4-6, and b=0. Therefore dislocation creep has a strong dependence on the applied stress and no grain size dependence. Some alloys exhibit a very large stress exponent (n > 10), and this has typically been explained by introducing a "threshold stress," th, below which creep can't be measured.

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The modfied power law equation then becomes: can all be explained by conventional mechanisms (so ).

where A, Q and n

Nabarro-Herring Creep
Nabarro-Herring creep is a form of diffusion controlled creep. In N-H creep atoms diffuse through the lattice causing grains to elongate along the stress axis. For Nabarro-Herring creep k is related to the diffusion coefficient of atoms through the lattice, Q = Qself diffusion, m=1, and b=2. Therefore N-H creep has a weak stress dependence and a moderate grain size dependence, with the creep rate decreasing as grain size is increased. Nabarro-Herring creep is found to be strongly temperature dependent. For lattice diffusion of atoms to occur in a material, neighboring lattice sites or interstitial sites in the crystal structure must be free. A given atom must also overcome the energy barrier to move from its current site (it lies in an energetically favorable potential well) to the nearby vacant site (another potential well). The general form of the diffusion equation is D = DoExp(Ea / KT) where Do has a dependence on both the attempted jump frequency and the number of nearest neighbor sites and the probability of the sites being vacant. Thus there is a double dependence upon temperature. At higher temperatures the diffusivity increases due to the direct temperature dependence of the equation, the increase in vacancies through Shottky defect formation, and an increase in the average energy of atoms in the material. NabarroHerring creep dominates at very high temperatures relative to a material's melting temperature.

Coble Creep
Main article: Coble creep Coble creep is a second form of diffusion controlled creep. In Coble creep the atoms diffuse along grain boundaries to elongate the grains along the stress axis. This causes Coble creep to have a stronger grain size dependence than N-H creep. For Coble creep k is related to the diffusion coefficient of atoms along the grain boundary, Q = Qgrain boundary diffusion, m=1, and b=3. Because Qgrain boundary diffusion < Qself diffusion, Coble creep occurs at lower temperatures than N-H creep. Coble creep is still temperature dependent, as the temperature increases so does the grain boundary diffusion. However, since the number of nearest neighbors is effectively limited along the interface of the grains, and thermal generation of vacancies along the boundaries is less prevalent, the

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temperature dependence is not as strong as in Nabarro-Herring creep. It also exhibits the same linear dependence on stress as N-H creep. Creep of Polymers Creep can occur in polymers and metals which are considered viscoelastic materials. When a polymeric material is subjected to an abrupt force, the response can be modeled using the Kelvin-Voigt Model. In this model, the material is represented by a Hookean spring and a Newtonian dashpot in parallel. The creep strain is given by:

Where:

= applied stress C0 = instantaneous creep compliance C = creep compliance coefficient = retardation time f() = distribution of retardation times

Applied stress (a) and induced strain (b) as functions of time over an extended period for a viscoelastic material.

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Applied stress (a) and induced strain (b) as functions of time over a short period for a viscoelastic material. When subjected to a step constant stress, viscoelastic materials experience a timedependent increase in strain. This phenomenon is known as viscoelastic creep. At a time t0, a viscoelastic material is loaded with a constant stress that is maintained for a sufficiently long time period. The material responds to the stress with a strain that increases until the material ultimately fails. When the stress is maintained for a shorter time period, the material undergoes an initial strain until a time t1, after which the strain immediately decreases (discontinuity) then gradually decreases at times t > t1 to a residual strain. Viscoelastic creep data can be presented in one of two ways. Total strain can be plotted as a function of time for a given temperature or temperatures. Below a critical value of applied stress, a material may exhibit linear viscoelasticity. Above this critical stress, the creep rate grows disproportionately faster. The second way of graphically presenting viscoelastic creep in a material is by plotting the creep modulus (constant applied stress divided by total strain at a particular time) as a function of time.[1] Below its critical stress, the viscoelastic creep modulus is independent of stress applied. A family of curves describing strain versus time response to various applied stress may be represented by a single viscoelastic creep modulus versus time curve if the applied stresses are below the material's critical stress value. Additionally, the molecular weight of the polymer of interest is known to affect its creep behavior. The effect of increasing molecular weight tends to promote secondary bonding between polymer chains and thus make the polymer more creep resistant. Similarly, aromatic polymers are even more creep resistant due to the added stiffness from the Page | 61

rings. Both molecular weight and aromatic rings add to polymers' thermal stability, increasing the creep resistance of a polymer. (Meyers and Chawla, 1999, 573) Both polymers and metals can creep.[2] Polymers experience significant creep at all temperatures above ~-200C, however there are three main differences between polymetric and metallic creep. Metallic creep:[2]

is not linearly viscoelastic in not recoverable only significant at high temperatures

Other examples

The Collapse of the World Trade Center was due in part to creep. The creep rate of hot pressure-loaded components in a nuclear reactor at power can be a significant design-constraint, since the creep rate is enhanced by the flux of energetic particles. Creep was blamed on the Big Dig tunnel ceiling collapse in Boston, Massachusetts that occurred in July 2006 [1]

See also

Stress relaxation Hysteresis Viscoelasticity Biomaterial Biomechanics Brittle-ductile transition zone

Strength / Mechanics of Material Basics, General Equations and Definitions

Strength of Materials Summary and Overview Stress Strain Hookes Law Youngs Modulus Material Strength Yield Strength Ductility Malleability Toughness Hardness Cold and Hot Working Work ( Strain ) Hardening Creep Heat Treatment Page | 62

Von Mises Criterion ( Maximum Distortion Energy Criterion )

Material Specifications and Characteristics - Ferrous and Non-Ferrous

Properties of Metals / Materials Modulus of Elasticity, Ultimate Strength, Thermal Properties, Aluminum Tempers, Brass, Density, more...

Vibration

Acoustics and Mechanical Vibration General Vibration Definitions and Terminology Miles Equation - Vibration Deflection of Uniform Bar with Free Ends Mechanical Vibration

Pinned Columns

Ideal Pinned Column Buckling Equation and Calculation, Euler's Formula

Fatique

Fatigue Failure Method of Virtual Mean Stress Fatigue Curve Equation Modified Godman Method Fatigue Curve Equation Quadratic ( Elliptic ) Method Fatigue Curve Equation Keccecioglu, Chester and Dodge Method Fatigue Curve Equation Bagci Method Fatigue Curve Equation Soderberg Method Fatigue Curve Equation

Fastener Thread Strength

Bolt / Stud Preload Calculator Fastener / Thread Tensile Area of External Thread Formula Fastener / Threaded Pitch Circle Diameter Formula and Calculation Fastener / Threaded Shear Area Formula and Calculation Minimum Thread Engagement Formula and Calculation ISO Minimum Length of Thread Engagement Formula and Calculations Per FED-STDH28/2B Shear Area Internal and External Thread Formula and Calculation Per FED-STDH28/2B

Machine Design

Press Fit Engineering and Design Equations Press Fit Design Equations and Calculator

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Deformation
In engineering mechanics, deformation is a change in shape due to an applied force. This can be a result of tensile (pulling) forces, compressive (pushing) forces, shear, bending or torsion (twisting). Deformation is often described in terms of strain. In the figure it can be seen that the compressive loading (indicated by the arrow) has caused deformation in the cylinder so that the original shape (dashed lines) has changed (deformed) into one with bulging sides. The sides bulge because the material, although strong enough to not crack or otherwise fail, is not strong enough to support the load without change, thus the material is forced out laterally. Deformation may be temporary, as a spring returns to its original length when tension is removed, or permanent as when an object is irreversibly bent or broken.

The concept of a rigid body can be applied if the deformation is negligible.

Diagram of a Stress-strain curve, showing the relationship between stress (force applied) and strain (deformation) of a ductile metal.

Types

of

deformation

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Depending on the type of material, size and geometry of the object, and the forces applied, various types of deformation may result. Elastic deformation This type of deformation is reversible. Once the forces are no longer applied, the object returns to its original shape. As the name implies, elastic (rubber) has a rather large elastic deformation range. Soft thermoplastics and metals have moderate elastic deformation ranges while ceramics, crystals, and hard thermosetting plastics undergo almost no elastic deformation.

Metal

fatigue

A phenomenon only discovered in modern times is metal fatigue, which occurs primarily in ductile metals. It was originally thought that a material deformed only within the elastic range returned completely to its original state once the forces were removed. However, faults are introduced at the molecular level with each deformation. After many deformations, cracks will begin to appear, followed soon after by a fracture, with no apparent plastic deformation in between. Depending on the material, shape, and how close to the elastic limit it is deformed, failure may require thousands, millions, billions, or trillions of deformations. Metal fatigue has been a major cause of aircraft failure, such as the De Havilland Comet, especially before the process was well understood. There are two ways to determine when a part is in danger of metal fatigue; either predict when failure will occur due to the material/force/shape/iteration combination, and replace the vulnerable materials before this occurs, or perform inspections to detect the microscopic cracks and perform replacement once they occur. Selection of materials which are not likely to suffer from metal fatigue during the life of the product is the best solution, but not always possible. Avoiding shapes with sharp corners limits metal fatigue by reducing force concentrations, but does not eliminate it. Plastic deformation This type of deformation is not reversible. However, an object in the plastic deformation range will first have undergone elastic deformation, which is reversible, so the object will return part way to its original shape. Soft thermoplastics have a rather large plastic deformation range as do ductile metals such as copper, silver, and gold. Steel does, too, but not iron. Hard thermosetting plastics, rubber, crystals, and ceramics have minimal plastic deformation ranges. Perhaps the material with the largest plastic deformation range is wet chewing gum, which can be stretched dozens of times its original length. Page | 65

Fracture This type of deformation is also not reversible. A break occurs after the material has reached the end of the elastic, and then plastic, deformation ranges. At this point forces accumulate until they are sufficient to cause a fracture. All materials will eventually fracture, if sufficient forces are applied.

Misconceptions
A popular misconception is that all materials that bend are "weak" and all those which don't are "strong". In reality, many materials which undergo large elastic and plastic deformations, such as steel, are able to absorb stresses which would cause brittle materials, such as glass, with minimal elastic and plastic deformation ranges, to break. There is even a parable to describe this observation (paraphrased below):"The mighty oak stands strong and firm before the wind, while the willow yields to the slightest breeze. However, in the strongest storm, the oak will break while the willow will bend, and thus survive. So, in the end, which is the stronger of the two?"

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Dislocation Theory
Dislocations and Strengthening Mechanisms
Dislocations and Strengthening Mechanisms
1. Introduction The key idea of the chapter is that plastic deformation is due to the motion

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

of a large number of dislocations. The motion is called slip. Thus, the strength (resistance to deformation) can be improved by putting obstacles to slip. Basic Concepts Dislocations can be edge dislocations, screw dislocations and exist combination of the two (Ch. 4.4). Their motion (slip) occurs by sequential bond breaking and bond reforming (Fig. 7.1). The number of dislocations per unit volume is the dislocation density, in a plane they are measured per unit area. Characteristics of Dislocations There is strain around a dislocation which influences how they interact with other dislocations, impurities, etc. There is compression near the extra plane (higher atomic density) and tension following the dislocation line (Fig. 7.4) Dislocations interact among themselves (Fig. 7.5). When they are in the same plane, they repel if they have the same sign and annihilate if they have opposite signs (leaving behind a perfect crystal). In general, when dislocations are close and their strain fields add to a larger value, they repel, because being close increases the potential energy (it takes energy to strain a region of the material). The number of dislocations increases dramatically during plastic deformation. Dislocations spawn from existing dislocations, and from defects, grain boundaries and surface irregularities. Slip Systems In single crystals there are preferred planes where dislocations move (slip planes). There they do not move in any direction, but in preferred crystallographic directions (slip direction). The set of slip planes and directions constitute slip systems. The slip planes are those of highest packing density. How do we explain this? Since the distance between atoms is shorter than the average, the distance perpendicular to the plane has to be longer than average. Being relatively far apart, the atoms can move more easily with respect to the atoms of the adjacent plane. (We did not discuss direction and plane nomenclature for slip systems.) BCC and FCC crystals have more slip systems, that is more ways for dislocation to propagate. Thus, those crystals are more ductile than HCP crystals (HCP crystals are more brittle). Slip in Single Crystals

A tensile stress will have components in any plane that is not perpendicular to the stress. These components are resolved shear stresses. Their magnitude depends on orientation (see Fig. 7.7). R = cos cos If the shear stress reaches the critical resolved shear stress CRSS, slip (plastic deformation) can start. The stress needed is: y= CRSS / (cos cos )max at the angles at which CRSS is a maximum. The minimum stress needed for yielding is when = = 45 degrees: y=2 CRSS. Thus, dislocations will occur first at slip planes oriented close to this angle with respect to the applied stress (Figs. 7.8 and 7.9).

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6. Plastic Deformation of Polycrystalline Materials Slip directions vary from crystal to

crystal. When plastic deformation occurs in a grain, it will be constrained by its neighbors which may be less favorably oriented. As a result, polycrystalline metals are stronger than single crystals (the exception is the perfect single crystal, as in whiskers.) 7. Deformation by Twinning This topic is not included. Mechanisms of Strengthening in Metals General principles. Ability to deform plastically depends on ability of dislocations to move. Strengthening consists in hindering dislocation motion. We discuss the methods of grain-size reduction, solid-solution alloying and strain hardening. These are for single-phase metals. We discuss others when treating alloys. Ordinarily, strengthening reduces ductility.
8. Strengthening by Grain Size Reduction This is based on the fact that it is difficult

for a dislocation to pass into another grain, especially if it is very misaligned. Atomic disorder at the boundary causes discontinuity in slip planes. For high-angle grain boundaries, stress at end of slip plane may trigger new dislocations in adjacent grains. Small angle grain boundaries are not effective in blocking dislocations. The finer the grains, the larger the area of grain boundaries that impedes dislocation motion. Grain-size reduction usually improves toughness as well. Usually, the yield strength varies with grain size d according to:

y = 0 + ky / d1/2
Grain size can be controlled by the rate of solidification and by plastic deformation.
9. Solid-Solution Strengthening Adding another element that goes into interstitial or

substitutional positions in a solution increases strength. The impurity atoms cause lattice strain (Figs. 7.17 and 7.18) which can "anchor" dislocations. This occurs when the strain caused by the alloying element compensates that of the dislocation, thus achieving a state of low potential energy. It costs strain energy for the dislocation to move away from this state (which is like a potential well). The scarcity of energy at low temperatures is why slip is hindered. Pure metals are almost always softer than their alloys. 10. Strain Hardening Ductile metals become stronger when they are deformed plastically at temperatures well below the melting point (cold working). (This is different from hot working is the shaping of materials at high temperatures where large deformation is possible.) Strain hardening (work hardening) is the reason for the elastic recovery discussed in Ch. 6.8. The reason for strain hardening is that the dislocation density increases with plastic deformation (cold work) due to multiplication. The average distance between dislocations then decreases and dislocations start blocking the motion of each one. The measure of strain hardening is the percent cold work (%CW), given by the relative reduction of the original area, A0 to the final value Ad : %CW = 100 (A0Ad)/A 11. Recovery, recrystallization and Grain Growth 12. Plastic deformation causes 1) change in grain size, 2) strain hardening, 3) increase in the dislocation density. Restoration to the state before cold-work is done by heating
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through two processes: recovery and recrystallization. These may be followed by grain growth. 13. Recovery Heating increased diffusion enhanced dislocation motion relieves internal strain energy and reduces the number of dislocation. The electrical and thermal conductivity are restored to the values existing before cold working. 14. Recrystallization Strained grains of cold-worked metal are replaced, upon heating, by more regularly-spaced grains. This occurs through short-range diffusion enabled by the high temperature. Since recrystallization occurs by diffusion, the important parameters are both temperature and time. The material becomes softer, weaker, but more ductile (Fig. 7.22). Recrystallization temperature: is that at which the process is complete in one hour. It is typically 1/3 to 1/2 of the melting temperature. It falls as the %CW is increased. Below a "critical deformation", recrystallization does not occur. 15. Grain Growth The growth of grain size with temperature can occur in all polycrystalline materials. It occurs by migration of atoms at grain boundaries by diffusion, thus grain growth is faster at higher temperatures. The "driving force" is the reduction of energy, which is proportional to the total area. Big grains grow at the expense of the small ones.

Important Terms:
Cold working Critical resolved Shear stress Dislocation density Grain growth Lattice strain Recovery Recrystallization Recrystallization temperature Resolved shear stress Slip Slip system Strain hardening Solid-solution strengthening

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Ductile Fracture
Ductile Fracture One of the most important and key concepts in the entire
field of Materials Science and Engineering is fracture. In its simplest form, fracture can be described as a single body being separated into pieces by an imposed stress. For engineering materials there are only two possible modes of fracture, ductile and brittle. In general, the main difference between brittle and ductile fracture can be attributed to the amount of plastic deformation that the material undergoes before fracture occurs. Ductile materials demonstrate large amounts of plastic deformation while brittle materials show little or no plastic deformation before fracture. Figure 1 (below), a tensile stress-strain curve, represents the degree of plastic deformation exhibited by both brittle and ductile materials before fracture.

Crack initiation and propagation are essential to fracture. The manner through which the crack propagates through the material gives great insight into the mode of fracture. In ductile materials (ductile fracture), the crack moves slowly and is accompanied by a large amount of plastic deformation. The crack will usually not extend unless an increased stress is applied. On the other hand, in dealing with brittle fracture, cracks spread very rapidly with little or no plastic deformation. The cracks that propagate in a brittle material will continue to grow and increase in magnitude once they are initiated. Another important mannerism of crack propagation is the way in which the advancing crack travels through the material. A crack that passes through the grains within the material is undergoing transgranular fracture. However, a crack that propagates along the grain boundaries is termed an intergranular fracture. Figure 2 (below) shows a scanning electron fractograph of ductile cast iron, examining a transgranular fracture surface.

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On

both

macroscopic

and

microscopic levels, ductile fracture surfaces have distinct features. Macroscopically, ductile fracture surfaces have larger necking regions and an overall rougher appearance than a brittle fracture surface. Figure 3 (below) shows the macroscopic differences between two ductile specimens(a,b) and the brittle specimen (c).

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On the microscopic level, ductile fracture surfaces also appear rough and irregular. The surface consists of many microvoids and dimples. Figure 4 (below left) and Figure 5 (below right) demonstrate the microscopic qualities of ductile fracture surfaces.

The failure of many ductile materials can be attributed to cup and cone fracture. This form of ductile fracture occurs in stages that initiate after necking begins. First, small microvoids form in the interior of the material. Next, deformation continues and the microvoids enlarge to form a crack. The crack continues to grow and it spreads laterally towards the edges of the specimen. Finally, crack propagation is rapid along a surface that makes about a 45 degree angle with the tensile stress axis. The new fracture surface has a very irregular appearance. The final shearing of the specimen produces a cup type shape on one fracture surface and a cone shape on the adjacent connecting fracture surface, hence the name, cup and cone fracture. Figure 6 (below) shows cup and cone, and brittle fracture in aluminum.

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The Charpy and Izod tests measure the impact energy of a specimen. By using an apparatus and impacting a specimen with a weighted pendulum hammer the impact energy can be measured. A primary use of the Charpy and Izod tests is to determine if a material experiences brittle to ductile transition with decreasing temperature. Brittle to ductile transition is directly related to the temperature dependency of the impact energy absorbed. Also an examination of the failure surface can prove very beneficial. If a section of the failure surface seems to demonstrate the visual properties of both brittle and ductile fracture, then brittle to ductile transition is evident at that temperature range. It is very important to remember that with most specimens, there is a fairly wide band of temperatures that support brittle to ductile transition. Therefore, for many specimens it is nearly impossible to predict any one temperature as the transition temperature. In figure 7 (below), a graph is given that determines brittle to ductile transition through an impact test for a 1018 hotrolled steel.

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In most design situations a material that demonstrates ductile fracture is usually preferred for several reasons. First and foremost, brittle fracture occurs very rapidly and catastrophically without any warning. Ductile materials plastically deform, thereby slowing the process of fracture and giving ample time for the problem to be corrected. Second, because of the plastic deformation, more strain energy is needed to cause ductile fracture. Next, ductile materials are considered to be "forgiving" materials, because of their toughness you can make a mistake in the use, design of a ductile material and still the material will probably not fail. Also, the properties of a ductile material can be enhanced through the use of one of the strengthening mechanisms. Strain hardening is a perfect example, as the ductile material is deformed more and more its strength and hardness increase because of the generation of more and more dislocations. Therefore, in engineering applications, especially those that have safety concerns involved, ductile materials are the obvious choice. Safety and dependability are the main concerns in material design, but in order to attain these goals there has to be a thorough understanding of fracture, both brittle and ductile. Understanding fracture and failure of materials will lead the materials engineer to develop safer and more dependable materials and products. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Page | 74

Griffith theory
The Griffiths equation describes the relationship between applied nominal stress and crack length at fracture, i.e. when it becomes energetically favourable for a crack to grow. Griffith was concerned with the energetics of fracture, and considered the energy changes associated with incremental crack extension. For a loaded brittle body undergoing incremental crack extension, the only contributors to energy changes are the energy of the new fracture surfaces (two surfaces per crack tip) and the change in potential energy in the body. The surface energy term (S) represents energy absorbed in crack growth, while the some stored strain energy (U) is released as the crack extends (due to unloading of regions adjacent to the new fracture surfaces). Surface energy has a constant value per unit area (or unit length for a unit thickness of body) and is therefore a linear function of (crack length), while the stored strain energy released in crack growth is a function of (crack length)2, and is hence parabolic. These changes are indicated in the figure below:

The next step in the development of Griffith's argument was consideration of the rates of energy change with crack extension, because the critical condition corresponds to the maximum point in the total energy curve, i.e. dW/da = 0, where a = a*. For crack lengths greater than this value (under a given applied stress), the body is going to a lower energy state, which is favourable, and hence fast fracture occurs. dW/da = 0 occurs when dS/da = dU/da. The sketch below shows these energy rates, or differentials with respect to a.

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R is the resistance to crack growth (= dS/da) and G is the strain energy release rate (= dU/da). When fracture occurs, R = G and we can define Gcrit as the critical value of strain energy release, and equate this to R. Hence Gcrit represents the fracture toughness of the material. In plane stress the Griffith equation is:

where, to get the fracture stress in MPa (the standard SI engineering unit), the critical strain energy release rate is in N/m, E is in N/m2, and a is in m. This provides an answer in N/m2 (Pa), which needs to be divided by 106 to get the standard engineering unit of MPa. In plane strain:

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