Civil Engineering Materials

CE-115
by
Dr. Muhammad Babar Khan

School of Civil and Environment

Engineering
National University of Sciences and
Technology, Islamabad
Building Materials

1. Building stones
2. Bricks and clay products
3. Timber and wood products
4. Paints, varnishes, distempers
5. Metals and alloys
6. Plastics and fibers
7. Glass
8. Miscellaneous Materials
9. Asphalt, bitumen and tar
10. Insulating Materials
11. Cement concrete
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Learning Objectives

Introduction.
Composition, properties uses and
manufacture of ferrous metals used in
Civil engineering,
Pig Iron, Cost Iron, Wrought Iron and
Steel.
Heat treatments & their effect on steel
properties.
Corrosion and methods of its prevention.
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Metals

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Definitions

Metal: Class of elements existing as oxide,

carbonate, sulphide and phosphate
compounds in natural rocks called ores
Ferrous metals: metals in which iron is the
main constituent. Cast iron, wrought iron,
steel, etc
Non-Ferrous metals: metals in which iron
is not the main constituent. Aluminum,
copper, zinc, lead, tin, etc
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Metals

Metals

Non-Ferrous Ferrous Non-Ferrous

Metals Metals Alloys

Aluminum Pig Iron Brass

Copper Cast Iron Bronze

Zinc Wrought Iron Duralumin

Lead, Tin, etc Steel German Silver

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Iron Ore

Magnetite (Fe3O4) 70-75% iron

Haematite (Fe2O3) 70% iron
Limonite (2Fe2O3. 3H2O) 60% iron
Iron Pyrite (FeS) 47% iron
Siderite (FeCO3) 40% iron

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Production of Iron and Steel

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Pig Iron

Iron ore is crushed to 50 mm size.

Impurities are knocked off.
Ore is calcined to drive off moisture and
then smelted in blast furnace
Iron is deoxidized and limestone is added
as flux to remove sulphur
The refined molten metal is tapped from
furnace and cast in the form of bars called
pigs. Hence the product is called pig iron.
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Blast Furnace for Pig Iron

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Blast Furnace

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Sows and Pigs

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Pig Iron

Crudest form of iron

Classified as Bessemer pig, foundry pig,
forge pig and mottled pig
Uses
Used in production of cast iron, wrought iron
and steel
Due to high compressive strength used in
columns, base plates, door brackets, wheels
and pipe work

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Pig Iron - Properties

Difficult to bend
Melts easily. Fusion temp is 1200C
Can be hardened but not tempered
Can not be magnetized
Has very high compressive strength but
weak in tension and shear
Does not rust
Can not be welded or riveted

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Cast Iron

Pig iron re-melted with limestone and coke

and poured into molds of desired shapes
and sizes to get purer product called cast
iron

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Cast Iron

Classification: grey, white, malleable,

mottled, chilled and toughened cast iron
Uses: castings, rain water pipes, gutters,
gratings, railings, cisterns, manhole covers
and balustrades

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Cast Iron - Properties

Coarse, crystalline and fibrous structure

Brittle, can not withstand shocks and impacts
Can not be welded or riveted
Can not be magnetized
Can be hardened but not tempered
Neither malleable nor ductile
Does not rust
Becomes soft in saline water
Fairly hard, not workable with hand file
Strong in compression, weak in tension and shear
Lacks plasticity, unsuitable for forging work
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Puddling Furnace for Wrought Iron

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Reverberatory Furnace

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Wrought Iron

All carbon and other elements in pig iron

oxidized to obtain wrought iron
Carbon reduced below 0.25%
All impurities reduced below 0.5%
Uses
Roofing sheets, corrugated sheets, rods, gas
and water pipes, boiler tubes, plain and
ornamental iron work like grills, gates, railings,
window guards, electromagnets
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Wrought Iron - Properties
Fibrous structure with silky luster
Ductile and malleable
Tough, can withstand shocks and impacts
Neither be hardened nor tempered
Can be forged and welded
At 900C two pieces can be joined by hammering.
Melts at 1500C
Rusts easily
Unaffected by saline water
Forms temporary magnets
Equally strong in tension, compression and shear
Specific gravity is 7.25

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Steel

In steel the carbon content is in chemically

combined form and may exist up to 1.5%
For a material to be classified as steel there
should be no free graphite in its composition.
Any free carbon makes it as cast iron
Steel categories
Dead mild steel less than 0.15% carbon
Mild, soft, low carbon steel 0.15 to 0.3% carbon
Medium carbon steel 0.3 to 0.8% carbon
High carbon steel 0.8 to 1.5% carbon

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Bessemer Converter for Steel

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Bessemer Converter

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Classification of Steel

Steel
Carbon Steels Alloy Steels

Mild Steel Stainless Steel

High Carbon
Nickel Steel
Steel
High Tension
Vanadium Steel
Steel
Reinforcing
Tungsten Steel
Steel

Manganese Steel

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Mild steel

Steel with carbon content 0.15 to 0.3%

Called mild steel, low carbon steel or soft steel
Uses
Used in construction work as rolled sections, I-sec, T-
sec, channels, angle irons, etc
MS round bars used in RCC as reinforcement
Plain and corrugated sheets as roofing
Used in manufacture of various tools, equipment,
machine parts
Rail tracks, towers and industrial buildings
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Mild steel

Fibrous structure with dark bluish color

Ductile and malleable
Tough and elastic than cast and wrought iron
More prone to rusting and corrodes easily
Can be permanently magnetized
Easily forged, welded and riveted
Withstands shocks and impacts
Not much affected by saline water
Equally strong in tension, compression and shear
Difficult to harden and temper
Specific gravity is 7.8
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High Carbon Steel

Steel where in the carbon content is from

0.55 to 1.5%
Higher percentage of carbon renders it
harder and tougher
Uses
Manufacture of tools like drills, files, chisels
Fine quality of cutlery
Parts of machines requiring to withstand
shocks and vibrations

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High Carbon Steel

Granular structure
Tough and elastic than mild steel
Easier to harden and temper
More difficult to forge, weld and rivet
Can be permanently magnetized
Strong in compression than tension and
shear
Withstands shocks and impacts

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High Tension Steel

High Tension Steel

Low carbon steel with carbon nearly 0.15%
Also called high strength steel
Less weight is required due to increased tensile
strength
Withstands atmospheric erosion
Tougher and more elastic
More brittle and less ductile
Extensively used in reinforcing prestressed concrete
structures

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Reinforcing Steel

Reinforcing Steel
Mild steel or high tension steel is embedded
as reinforcement in plain cement concrete to
provide tensile strength
Flat, square and round bars used
Welded wire mesh also used as reinforcement

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Alloy Steels

Stainless Steel
Nickel Steel
Vanadium Steel
Tungsten Steel
Manganese Steel

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Stainless Steel

Structural steel with copper content of

0.2% resists atmospheric corrosion better
than structural steel with no copper
Chromium is most effective ingredient for
corrosion resistance. Corrosion protection
is due to dense film of oxide formed over
metal surface.
Steel with chromium over 16% called as
stainless steel
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Stainless Steel

Group-1
Chromium less than 16% and carbon less than 0.4%.
Respond to heat treatment, are not brittle, can be
machined and welded. Resist weather and water
Group-2
Chromium higher than 16% and carbon less than
0.4%. Do not respond to heat treatment, are brittle.
Can be forged, rolled, cold drawn and machined. Can
be welded and resist corrosion.
Group-3
Sufficient chromium to make it non-magnetic. Very
tough and do not respond to heat treatment. Can be
forged, rolled, cold drawn but machined with difficulty.
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Nickel Steel

Contains 0.5 to 1.0% carbon and 3.5%

nickel which imparts hardness, toughness,
strength and reduces rust formation
Used in manufacture of automobile parts,
airplane parts, cables and propeller shafts.
Steel with high nickel content (30 to 40%)
is called invar, with very low coefficient of
thermal expansion, and is used to make
delicate instruments
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Vanadium Steel

Contains 0.1 to 2.0% vanadium

Very strong and ductile
Capable of resisting shocks
High elastic limit

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Tungsten Steel

Contains 14 to 20% tungsten, 3 to 8%

chromium and very small amount of
carbon, vanadium and molybdenum
Also called high speed steel
Hardens at high temperature and retains
temper
Used for making drilling machines and
high speed cutting tools
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Manganese Steel

Contains 12 to 15% manganese

Very hard, tough and non-magnetic
Used for making machine parts and points
and crossings in rail tracks

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Preservation of Steel

Rusting: Oxidation of iron at the surface,

which is activated by presence of moisture
and carbon dioxide and accelerated by
atmospheric pollution
Iron ferrous bicarbonate ferric
bicarbonate hydrated ferric oxide
Corrosion: Phenomenon of slow but
steady eating away of metal due to rust
formation
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Preservation of Steel

Tarring: dipping of iron in hot coal tar to

form a film on metal. Pipes or pole ends
Painting: application of lead paints on
exposed metal surfaces like roof trusses,
bridge structure, etc
Enameling: smaller surfaces treated with
enamel
Galvanizing: depositing a fine film of zinc
or iron surface
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Preservation of Steel

Sherardizing: acid solution washed metal

surface is covered with zinc dust and
heated in furnace to form a thin layer of
molten zinc
Tin plating: dipping in bath of molten tin
Electroplating: depositing a thin film of
nickel, chromium, cadmium, copper or zinc
by the electrolysis process. Metal surface
is cathode and deposition metal is anode
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Heat Treatment - Annealing

Heating slowly to a temperature of 800 to

1000C, maintaining it and then cooling very
slowly in some non-conducting material
Steel is annealed to release internal stresses
due to
Working of metal
unequal contraction in casting
Annealing is done to soften the steel to enable it
to be machined

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Heat Treatment - Normalizing

Heating slowly to a temperature of

1000C, and then cooling slowly in air
Steel is normalized to refine the crystalline
structure and remove cold working strain
Normalizing is also required after steel is
heated to very high temperatures for
forging etc

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Heat Treatment - Hardening

Heating steel to red hot, and then

suddenly cooling by dipping it in bath of
cold water or oil
Process also called quenching and we get
quenched steel which is hard and brittle
Hardness of quenched steel depends
upon quenching medium, and rate of
cooling

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Heat Treatment - Tempering

Heating steel to below critical or tempering

temperature and then letting it cool off or
quenched
Process causes partial transformation
thereby reducing steels hardness but
making it tougher
Tempering temperature depends upon the
purpose of tempering

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Heat Treatment Case Hardening

Hardening only the metal surface up to a

depth of 1.5 mm
Process comprises of
Converting the outer skin to high carbon steel
Hardening the case and refining the core

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Composition, Properties, Uses

Property Cast Iron Wrought Iron Steel

Composition Crude. 2-4% Purest. Less than 0.5 to 1.5% carbon
carbon 0.25% carbon
Structure Crystalline Fibrous, silky luster Granular

Sp Gravity 7 to 7.50 7.70 7.85

Melting point 1200C 1500C 1300 to 1400C

Hardness Quite hardened by Can not be Can be hardened

heating and cooling hardened or and tempered
tempered
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Composition, Properties, Uses

Property Cast Iron Wrought Iron Steel

Strength Compressive 6.3 to Compressive 6.3 Compressive 4.72
7.1 ton/cm2 to 2.0 ton/cm2 to 25.2 ton/cm2
Tensile 1.26 to 1.57 Tensile 3.15 to Tensile 5.51 to
ton/cm2 3.94 ton/cm2 11.02 ton/cm2
Shock Does not absorb Can not stand Absorbs shocks
reaction shocks sudden heavy
shocks
Magnetization Can not be Temporary Permanent magnets
magnetized magnetization only
Rusting Does not rust easily Rusts more than Rusts easily
cast iron
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Composition, Properties, Uses

Property Cast Iron Wrought Iron Steel

Malleability Neither malleable Tough, malleable, Tough, malleable
ductility nor ductile ductile and and ductile
moderately elastic
Forging and Brittle, can not be Can be easily Can be rapidly
welding welded or sheet forged and welded forged or welded
rolled
Uses Water pipes, Chains, crane Reinforcement in
sewers, drain pipes, hooks, railway RCC and RBC,
lamp posts, couplings, structural members,
columns, railings components under bolts, rivets, sheets,
constant shock files, machine tools

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