Materials Properties

Properties

Mechanical properties

The general ability of a material to withstand an applied force.

Strength
See tensile and compressive strength below.

Hardness is a measure of how easily a material can be

scratched or indented. Hard materials are often also
very brittle - this means they have a low resistance to impact .
Well known hard materials include diamond and hardened
high carbon steels. Same units as for tensile strength. The
methods used for testing hardness are the Brinell test which
uses a hardened steel ball and produces a hardness
number HB which can be used to compare the hardness of
Hardness materials.

The Vickers hardness test uses a diamond square based

pyramid - a microscope is needed to observe the indent -the
VHN is also used for comparisons.

The Rockwell test uses a ball for softer materials and a

pyramid cone for hard materials - the reading is taken directly
using a dial. This method is less accurate.

A material that has a tendency to break easily or suddenly

without any extension first. Good examples are Cast iron,
Brittleness
concrete, high carbon steels, ceramics, and some polymers
such as urea formaldehyde (UF). Opposite to toughness.

A material that absorbs impact (sudden forces or shocks such

as hammer blows) well is tough - this is the opposite to
Toughness
brittleness. [units for toughness are energy per unit area
- Joules/m]

The materials which deform permanently when small forces

Plasticity are applied show plasticity. Plasticine and clay are good
examples
 The ability of a material to return to its original form after a
Elasticity load has been applied and removed. Good examples include
rubber, mild steel and some plastics such as nylon.

Stiffness The ability to resist bending.

The ability to plastically deform and shape a material by

forging, rolling or by any other method of applying pressure.
Malleability
Being easy to beat into a thin sheet is the literal meaning.
Good examples are lead, gold and copper.

The ability to be drawn out into a thin wire or threads. It is a

measure of how easily a material can be worked. Good
Ductility
examples are gold, copper, titanium, wrought iron, low carbon
steels and brass.

Compressive The ability to withstand pushing or squeezing forces

strength (compression).

Tensile The ability to withstand pulling or stretching forces (tension).

strength The unit for tensile strength is the MN per square metre

A general property. The ability to withstand wear and tear

Durability
through weathering and corrosive attack etc.

Stability A general property of resistance to changes in shape or size.

Physical properties

How well a material conducts heat. most metals are good

conductors of heat, especially copper and aluminium.Unit
Thermal
for thermal conductivity are Watts per metre Kelvin -
conductivity
W/mK
 So copper which is a good conductor has a value of 283
whereas lead has a value of 35 and rubber which is an
insulator has a value of 0.15.

Poor conductors are called insulators - clearly this will often

be the property which is needed.

How well the material conducts electricity - metals and

graphite are good conductors.

Insulators are materials that do not conduct electricity -

plastics (polymers), rubber (elastomers) and ceramics are all
insulators.
Electrical
conductivity
Tables of data usually show the resistivity of materials. The
unit of resistivity is the ohm metre. Very low values are
conductors and high values are insulators. So copper which is
a good conductor has a value of 17 x 10 to the power of
minus 9 while polythene has a value of 100 x 10 to the
power of 9.

Some metals can be magnetised (most steels). Ferrous

metals are generally able to be attracted by a magnet. There
Magnetic
are also some ceramic materials which have magnetic
properties.

The ability to withstand environmental attack and decay.

Plastics have been developed or mofified to withstand hostile
Corrosion environments e.g. uPVC is resistant to the effects of UV light
resistance which would quickly cause normal PVC to become brittle. A
range of coatings and surface finishes are used to enhance
materials appearance and corrosion resistance.

The abilty to change easily into a molten state when heated

(without chemical breakdown/burning). Especially important
Fusibility
for metals and polymers which are to be cast, moulded or
welded.

A measure of light transmission. Opacity light cannot pass

through easily, translucency - light passes through but is
Appearance diffuse, translucency - light passes through but may be
and Optica refracted. Shiny surfaces reflect light.
Propertiesl
Self finishing materials need no further treatment other than
cleaning or polishing.
 Density is mass per unit volume. The unit of density is the
Density
Kg per metre cubed.

Material description - what do your senses tell you. These properties determine how you
you interact with the products i.e. the look and feel. Some are directly related to their
mechanical and physical properties - density/heavy, cold/thermal conductivity, hard/impact
resistance etc.

Metals are :-

Shiny, hard, heavy, cold to the touch.

They can also have sharp edges, ring when struck and have a
metallic shine or sheen - usually silver in colour (some are gold
or reddish).
Metals
Examples of metals include:- copper, aluminium, steels (mild
steel, stainless steel, high and medium carbon steel, mild steel),
silver, gold, zinc. Also includes alloys which are a mixture of a
metal and another element (usually another metal) to give new
properties. e.g. aluminium alloy, solder, magnesium alloy,
brass, bronze, zinc alloy.

Polymers are:-

Dull sheen (usually), slightly flexible, light weight, can be any

colour,warm to the touch.
Polymers
(Plastics) Examples of polymers - thermosets which once formed cannot
be reformed by the use of heat - epoxy resins, polyester resins,
bakelite, melamine, ural. Thermoplastics which can be reformed
- polyethylene, acrylic, ABS, nylon, PET(polyester
teraphthalate), polypropylene, PVC.

Ceramics are:-

Not shiny unless glazed, hard, often brittle, heavy, can be any
colour (often white, pale brown to dark brown), cold to the
Ceramics touch.

Examples include porcelain, china, stoneware.

 Composites are :-

Very strong, usually tough and durable. Dull sheen, can be any
Composites colour, usually warm to the touch.

Examples include Glass reinforced epoxy resin and polysester

resin. Carbon fibre reinforced epoxy resin.

Ductility
Ductility is the property of a material which enables it to be drawn out into a thin wire. Mild steel is a ductile
material. The percentage elongation and the reduction in area in tension are often used as measures of ductility

Malleability
Malleability of a material is its ability to be flattened into thin sheets without cracking by pressing, rolling,
hammering etc. Aluminum, copper, tin, lead, etc. are malleable materials

Brittleness
The brittleness of a material is the property of breaking or shattering without much permanent distortion. Many
materials shatter before much deformation takes place. Such materials are brittle. E.g. Glass and Cast iron.
Therefore, a non ductile material is also called brittle material

Toughness
The toughness of a material is its ability to withstand both plastic and elastic deformation. The measure of
toughness is the amount of energy a material can absorb before actual failure takes place. It is a highly desirable
quality for structural and machine parts which have to withstand shock and vibration. Manganese, steel, wrought
iron, mild steel etc. are tough materials. Toughness related to impact strength