LESSON

1
LECTURE
PRACTICAL SHOP METALLURGY
SUB-OBJECTIVE
At the end of the Lesson, the T!"nees #"$$ %e !%$e to des&"%e 'et!$s, the (o(et"es of
'et!$ !nd ho# !$$o)"n* !nd te!t'ent+
1+, INTRO-UCTION
Metallurgy is the study of metals and their properties. It is important to the shop
mechanic for two reasons:
1. Understanding why different metals; require different handling techniques can
make it easier to select the proper tools and materials for.
2. Working cutting grinding lapping etc. and the a!ility to diagnose material
failures can help to pre"ent or minimi#e future failures.
$ metal is a su!stance that is a good conductor of electricity and heat; metals
are typically opaque lustrous fusi!le and ductile. %he last two characteristics
refer to :
1. $ metal&s a!ility to !e 'oined together !y melting two pieces and then letting
them harden.
2. Its a!ility to !e deformed without failure. an opaque su!stance is one that
cannot !e seen through and a lustrous su!stance is one that can !e polished
to a shine. ()trictly speaking ductility is a special property of metals; it will !e
defined more precisely within this conte*t later in this section+.
Metals are commonly descri!ed as ,white, or ,yellow,. %he while group
includes metals such as lead iron nickel and tin. -ellow metals include
copper !ron#e and !rass. .ifference metals can !e mi*ed together to
produce alloys. In many cases alloys ha"e properties that are different from
the properties of the metals used to make the alloy. %he principle of alloying is
illustrated in /ig. 101111. $n e*ample of alloying is the mi*ing of copper and
tin to produce !ron#e which is harder and has greater strength than either
parent metal.
MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE MODULE 16
LESSON 1. PAGE 1 METALLURGY
."*+ 1/-1-1+ A$$o)"n*+
0+, PROPERTIES O. METALS
$ll metals can !e descri!ed in terms of a num!er of common properties. In
order to under stand these properties of metals it is first necessary to
understand the concepts of stress and strain.
$ny force that acts on a material causes the material to !e stressed. )tress is
the internal reaction to the force of a load on piece of metal. $s shown /ig.
101211 a load applied to a !ar that is supported at each end causes stress
throughout the !ar. %he stress is measured as the amount of the load in
pounds or kilograms distri!uted o"er the area of the !ar. )tress is usually
e*pressed in psi (pounds per square inch+ or kg2cm (kilograms per square
centimeter+. %he load could !e simply the force of gra"ity or it could !e an
e*ternal force applied to the material. In either case stress is distri!uted
throughout the !ar. %he stress is concentrated at two points:
1. Where the load is applied and
2. Where the !ar is supported.
."*+ 1/-1-0+ Stess+
."*+ 1/-1-
1+ St!"n+
If the force that is applied to a material is great enough it can cause strain.
)train is the deformation or change in shape of a material as a result of a
load. If the !ar in /ig. 101113 !ends as a result of the force applied the
!ending is the strain. %he amount of strain can !e measured !y measuring
the amount of deformation in the shape of the !ar. %his measurement is
usually e*pressed as in2in (inches of strain or deformation per inch of that
dimension of the !ar+ or as cm2cm meter2meter etc.
)tress occurs in a material in different ways depending on how load is
applied. %he different properties of a metal (descri!ed in the following
paragraphs+ determine how it reacts to certain kinds of stress.
0+1 STRENGTH
$ metal strength is its a!ility to resist strain when it is under stress. %he
ultimate strength of a metal is the ma*imum amount of stress it can take
!efore it fails. )e"eral different terms can !e used to refer to the strength of a
metal including:1
1. %ensile strength
MODULE 16 MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE
METALLURGY LESSON 1. PAGE 2
2. 4ompressi"e strength and
3. )hear strength
%ensile strength is the most common means for descri!ing a metal&s strength.
It refers to the metal&s resistance to !eing pulled apart. %he tensile strength of
a metal is often stated as the force necessary to pull a one1inch square !ar of
the metal until it is strained or permanently deformed. %he metal&s ultimate
tensile strength is the force required to cause the one1inch !ar to separate.
Ultimate tensile strengths of 155555 pounds per square inch or 6578
kilograms per square centimeter are typical of some strong metals.
4ompressi"e strength is the a!ility of a metal to withstand compression.
)hear strength is a metal&s a!ility to resist crosswise stress. /ig. 101117
illustrates how stress is applied for tension compression and shear loading.
/ig. 101117
+0 ELASTICITY
9lasticity refers to a metal&s a!ility to !e deformed under stress without failing.
9lastic deformation is a permanent change in shape as a result of stress.
Modeling clay and soft wa* are two e*amples of highly elastic su!stances.
%hey can e*tensi"ely and permanently deformed without failure. Metals can
e*hi!it two special cases of elasticity:
1. .uctility and
2. Mallea!ility.
0+1 -UCTILITY
.uctility is the a!ility of a metal to !e deformed under tension without pulling
apart. $ good e*ample of a ductile metal is copper which is drawn out into
wire for transmitting electricity.
0+2 MALLEABILITY
MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE MODULE 16
LESSON 1. PAGE 3 METALLURGY
Mallea!ility is the re"erse of ductility; it refers to a metal&s a!ility to resist failure
as it is !eing deformed under compression. /orging is the means !y which
tools and many other high1strength articles are hammered into shape. It relies
on the mallea!ility of metals to produce the finished article.
Most metals e*hi!it !oth types of plasticity to appro*imately the same degree.
If a metal is "ery ductile it is usually equally mallea!le and "ice1"ersa. :ne
e*ception to this rule is lead. ;ead is "ery mallea!le !ut it is not ductile to any
e*tent.
0+3 BRITTLENESS
<rittleness in a metal is the tendency to !reak a!ruptly with little or no
deformation prior to failing. It would !e appropriate to descri!e !rittleness as a
lack of plasticity. $ !rittle metal can fail without warning. =o e*ternal sign of
stress appears prior to !reakage.
4ertain metals are !rittle !y nature !ut they can !e worked to produce a less
!rittle product. 4ast iron is a good e*ample of this. It is !rittle in cast form !ut
working the metal under high pressure and temperature yields wrought iron
that is much less !rittle. )ome other metals are !rittle regardless of the way
they are worked. $n e*ample of such a metal is )atellite an alloy used in
making seats for safety "al"es in mechanical seals and other applications
where !rittleness is no pro!lem.
0+/ TOUGHNESS AN- HAR-NESS
%oughness and hardness of metals often go hand1in1hand. $ relati"ely hard
metal is ordinarily quite tough and a relati"ely tough metal is often hard.
>owe"er toughness and hardness are distinct from each other as indi"idual
properties of a metal. :ne has no direct effect on the other. $ tough metal
can withstand shock and endure stress repeatedly without failure. %ough
metals are not easily cut or separated. %hey can !e deformed without
!reaking and still retain much of their original strength. $ hard metal resists
indentation. >ard metals are resistant to wear from a!rasion and are also
difficult to cut. >ardness is usually associated with a metal&s strength. %he
stronger a metal is the harder it usually is. >ard metals are often !rittle.
%oughness and hardness can !e controlled in "arious metals !y different
methods of heat treatment. In general a specific treatment increase one
property while decreasing the other. /or e*ample if steel is heat1treated to
high hardness it loses much of its toughness. >eat treatment of steel to !ring
!ack toughness reduces the metal&s hardness. (>eat treatment is discussed
in detail in ;esson 8 of this Module+.
%oughness and hardness determine how a metal must !e machined. /or
e*ample turning a metal such as stainless steel on a lathe requires a slower
feed and shallower cut than !rass which is less tough. /or this reason it can
!e said that toughness determines the degree of ease or difficulty with which a
metal can !e cut. $ less tough metal is cut more easily than a tougher metal.
>ardness on the other hand determines how fast a metal can !e cut. %he
harder a metal is the longer it takes to cut through it. /or instance when
cutting !rass with a hacksaw a coarse !lade is used and each stroke remo"es
a large amount of metal. >igh car!on steel is much harder and requires a
finer !lade. ;ess metal is remo"ed on each stroke. %herefore a harder metal
cannot !e cut through as fast as a softer metal e"en though the speed of the
stroke can !e greater when cutting the harder metal.
MODULE 16 MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE
METALLURGY LESSON 1. PAGE 4
0+4 .ATI5UE, CORROSION AN- HEAT RESISTANCE
/atique occurs in a metal that is repeatedly stressed. $ relati"ely light oad that
is applied repeatedly will cause failure e"en though a much larger single load
would !e require to !reak the metal. $ common plant e*ample of fatigue
failure is the failure of !oiler tu!es after repeated cycles of e*pansion and
contraction. )uch cycles occur as a !oiler is fed then cooled then fired
again and so forth. 4yclic fatigue failure can also occur in shafts and
!earings of rotating and reciprocating machinery due to "i!ration. %oughness
in a metal helps resist failure due to fatigue.
4orrosion is the ,eating away, of a metal due to chemical action of other
su!stances 4hemical impurities in !rackish water used as cooling water in
large condensers in one e*ample of a common cause of corrosion in a typical
plant. )ome metals are more resistant to corrosion than others. ?ro!lems
from corrosion can !e reduced !y :
1. Using corrosion1resistant metals.
2. $lloying metals for corrosion resistance or
3. ?lating or coating one metal with another that resists corrosion.
$ fourth method and one that is often found in condensers is
the use of sacrificial plates. When these plates are attached to
the metal to !e protected an electrolytic action is set up that
causes the plates to !e eaten away rather than the metal of the
condenser.
>eat affects all metals reducing strength and affecting hardness and other
properties. %he !asic structure of a metal is changed at certain critical
temperatures and e"en the state of the metal changes from solid to liquid
when the temperature gets high enough. >eat resistance refers to a metal&s
a!ility to retain its strength or hardness at high temperatures. @enerally
metals with high melting temperature are stronger at any gi"en temperature
than metals with lower melting points.
0+6 7OR8ABILITY, MACHINABILITY AN- 7EL-ABILITY
Worka!ility Machina!ility and Welda!ility are not true properties of a metal.
%hey are com!inations of the properties already named. @enerally the softer
a metal is the more worka!le or easily formed it is hot or cold. $ "ery hard
metal may ha"e to !e tempered !y heat treatment to make it more easily
machina!le. )ome softer metals are more easily welded than harder tougher
metals !ut this is not always the case. 9*perience with different metals and
alloys will help maintenance personnel learn how the true properties of metals
affect the ways in which they are used.
0+9 .ACTORS A..ECTING PROPERTIES O. METALS
%he !asic properties of metals can !e affected !y four factors (and "arious
com!inations of these four factors+:
1. Impurities in the metal.
2. >eat treatment
MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE MODULE 16
LESSON 1. PAGE 5 METALLURGY
3. $lloying.
7. Working of the metal. Indeed all four factors can !e applied to
carefully control the desired properties of a gi"en metal.
Impurities in a metal can !e controlled to remo"e weakness or enhance
desired properties. $n e*cellent e*ample of this factor in use is the presence
of car!on in iron. <y controlling the percentage of car!on in iron strength
hardness and toughness can !e greatly increased.
MODULE 16 MECHANICAL MAINTENANCE COURSE
METALLURGY LESSON 1. PAGE 6