ALLOYS

Alloys are homogeneous solid

mixtures of two or more metals or
metals and non-metals.
 PROPERTIES OF ALLOYS
• Alloys are harder, less malleable and possess
lower melting points than their components.

• Alloys possess low electrical conductivity.

• Alloys resist corrosion and action of chemicals

SIGNIFICANCE OF ALLOYING
1.To increase the hardness of the metal

Eg i) Gold and silver are soft metals. Their

hardness is increased by alloying
with copper
ii) Addition of carbon improves the
hardness of steel.
2. To lower the melting point of the metal

Eg : Wood’s metal ( an alloy of Pb, Bi, Sn

and Cd ) has a melting point of
71° C which is lower than the melting
points of the constituent metals.
3. To resist the corrosion of the metal.

Eg: i) Pure iron gets rusted, but when

alloyed with carbon or chromium,
it resists corrosion
ii) Bronze an alloy of copper and tin is
more corrosion resistant than copper
4.To modify the chemical activity of the metal

Eg: Sodium amalgam is less active than

sodium but aluminium amalgam is more
active than aluminium
5. To modify the colour and brightness of the
metal.

Eg : Brass is a bright yellow alloy of

copper (brown) and zinc (silver white)
6. To get good casting of metal

Metals expand on solidification and

are soft and brittle.But alloys are
hard and fusible and gives good casting.

Eg: Lead alloyed with 5% tin and

2% antimony gives TYPE metal
which has good casting property.
7. To enhance the tensile strength

Eg: Addition of 1% carbon to pure iron

increases the tensile strength o
iron
 EFFECT OF ALLOYING
ELEMENTS

Addition of small amounts of certain metals

like Ni, Cr, Mn, Mo, Si, V etc., improves the
properties like hardness, tensile strength,
corrosion resistance etc., of steel.
• Nickel : Increases toughness, ductility,
elasticity and corrosion resistance
• Chromium : Increases the hardness and
corrosion resistance
• Manganese : Increases the toughness and
brittleness
• Molybdenum : Increases the strength,
corrosion resistance and
abrasion resistance
• Vanadium : Increases the tensile strength,
ductility and abrasion resistance
• Tungston : Increases magnetic property,
cutting hardness and abrasion
resistance and roughness
 Classification of alloys
• Ferrous Alloys : They contain iron as one of
the main components
Eg: Stainless steel, Nichrome, Alnico

• Non Ferrous Alloys: They do not contain iron

as one of the main
components
Eg: Brass, Bronze, Solder etc.,
 Ferrous alloys
NICHROME
Composition:
Nickel - 60 %
Chromium - 12%
Iron - 26 %
Manganese -2%
 PROPERTIES OF NICHROME

• Withstands heat upto 1100° C

• Has high melting point, high electrical

resistance, high chemical resistance.

• Shows good resistance to oxidation and heat.

 USES OF NICHROME
Used for making
• rsistance coils
• heating elements in iron boxes and electrical
stoves
• equipments which are used at high tmperatures
• Parts of boilers and aeroplane engine valves.
.
 STAINLESS STEEL
• Addition of Cr and Ni improves the corrosion
resistance property of steel.
• Reason : Cr present in the steel undergoes
oxidation to form a dense and tough film of
chromium oxide at the surface of the metal.
This prevents further reaction with
atmospheric chemicals. If this film cracks, it
gets automatically healed up by oxygen of air.
 Types of stainless steel
1. Heat Treatable Stainless Steel :
• Composition :
Carbon : 1.2 %
Chromium : 12-16 %
• Properties :
- Magnetic, tough, can be worked in cold state
- can be used upto 800°C
- Have good resistance to weather and water.
• Uses: Surgical instruments, scissors,blades etc.
 2. Non-Heat Treatable Stainless Steel :
(a) Magnetic type steels:
• Composition :
Chromium : 12 – 22 %
Carbon : 0.35 %
• Properties :
• - can be rolled and forged
- has higher corrosive resistance than heat treatable
stainless steel
• Uses : For making chemical equipments and
automobile parts
 (b) Non-Magnetic type steels:
• Composition :
Chromium : 18-26 %
Nickel : 8-21 %
Carbon : 0.15 %
• Total of Ni and Cr shoud be more than 23%
• 18 / 8 Stainless Steel : 18 % Cr and 8 % Ni
• Properties : Very high corrosive resistance which can
be increased by adding little Mo.
• Uses : Household utensils,sinks, dental and surgical
instruments
 HEAT TREATMENT OF STEEL

Heat treatment is the process of heating and

cooling of alloys under controlled conditions
in order to achieve certain desired properties.
 SIGNIFICANCE OF HEAT TREATMENT

• Refinement of grain structure

• Removal of imprisoned trapped gases
• Removal of internal stresses
• Increases the strength, toughness, workability and
corrosion resistance.
• Improves the electrical, mechanical and magnetic
properties.
TYPES OF HEAT TREATMENT
1. Annealing
2. Hardening
3.Tempering
4. Normalising
5. Carburizing
6. Nitriding
 1.ANNEALING
• It is the process of heating steel to a higher
temperature and cooling it slowly in a furnace.
• Significnce of annealing:
- Increases machinability
- Removes the imprisoned gases and
internal resistance
 Types of Annealing
(i) Process Annealing or Low Temperature
Annealing :
Heating of steel to a temperature below the
lower critical temperature and cooling it
slowly.
Significance :
• To improve machinabiliy and ductility
• To reduce hardness of steel
(ii) Full Annealing or High Temperature
Annealing :
Heating of steel to a temperature about 30-50°C
above the critical temperature,holding it for
sufficient time and cooling it slowly.

Significance :
To improve machinabiliy and ductility and
tughness.
 2. HARDENING (OR) QUENCHING

• It is the process heating steel beyond critical

temperature and suddenly cooling it by
immersing in oil or water
• Significance of Hardening :
- To increase hardness, abrasion resistance
and wear resistance
- To increase the cutting ability
 3. TEMPERING
• It is the process of heating the already
hardened steel to a temperature lower than its
own hardening temperature and cooling slowly
to room temperature.
• For retaining strength and hardness, the
reheating temperature should not exceed400°C
• For developing ductility and toughness the
reheating temperature should be within
400°C - 600°C
 Sinificance of Tempering :
• Removes the stress and strain developed
during hardening
• Reduces brittleness and some hardness but
increases toughness and ductility
• Cutting tools like blades, cutters etc., require
tempering.
 4. NORMALISING

It is the process of heating steel to a definite

temperature above the higher critical
temperature and cooling slowly in air.
 Significance of Normalizing
• It recovers the homogeneity of the steel
structure
• It refines grains
• It removes the internal stress
• It increases the toughness
• Normalised steel is suitable for engineering
works
 5. CARBURIZING
• The mild steel article is taken in a cast iron box
containing charcoal. It is then heated to about 900 –
950°C and kept it as such for sufficient time. During
this period carbon is absorbed to required depth. The
steel is then allowed to cool slowly within the iron
box itself. The outer skin of the article is converted
into high carbon steel containing 0.8-1.2 % carbon.
• Significance :
To produce very hard- wearing surface on steel
article.
 NITRIDING
• It is the process of heating the steel in the
presence of Ammonia at 550°C. The nitrogen
obtained by dissociation of ammonia combines
with the surface of the alloy to form a hard
nitride.