Lecture 1 Introduction
Lecture 1 Introduction
Lecture 1 Introduction
To equip students with the criteria for selecting materials for a given purpose.
6. Non-metallic materials
Ceramics and glass
Polymers
Wood
Reference Book:
The traditional examples of materials are metals, ceramics and polymers. New and
advanced materials that are being developed include semiconductors, nanomaterials,
biomaterials etc.
Historical Perspective
In the Stone Age, people used only natural materials like stone, clay, skins, and
wood.
The Stone Age ended about 5000 years ago with introduction of Bronze in the
Far East.
Bronze is an alloy (a metal made up of more than one element), copper + < 25%
of tin + other elements. Bronze: can be hammered or cast into a variety of
shapes, can be made harder by alloying.
The Iron Age began about 3000 years ago and continues today. Use of iron and
steel, a stronger and cheaper material drastically changed the daily life of a
common person.
The next big step was the discovery of a cheap process to make steel around
1850, which enabled the railroads and the building of the modern infrastructure
of the industrial world.
Age of Advanced materials: throughout the Iron Age many new
types of materials have been introduced (ceramic,
semiconductors, polymers, composites…).
i. Metals:
In Metals, the valence electrons are detached from atoms,
and spread in an 'electron sea' that "glues" the ions together.
Metals are usually strong, conduct electricity and heat well
and are opaque to light (shiny if polished).
Examples: aluminium, steel, brass, gold.
Bonding in metals
ii. Semiconductors:
The bonding is covalent (electrons are shared between atoms). Their
electrical properties depend extremely strongly on minute proportions of
contaminants. They are opaque to visible light but transparent to the
infrared. Examples: Si, Ge, Ga, As.
v. Composites:
Composites are made of different materials in intimate contact to achieve
specific properties. Examples: fibre-glass, concrete, etc.).
vi. Biomaterials
These can be any type of material that is biocompatible and are used for
instance, to replace human body parts.
vii. Advanced Materials:
Are materials used in "High-Tec" applications, usually designed for
maximum performance and normally expensive.
Examples are titanium alloys for supersonic airplanes, magnetic alloys for
computer disks, special ceramics for the heat shield of the space shuttles,
etc.
Modern Material's Needs
Engine efficiency increases at high temperatures: This requires high temperature
withstanding materials.
Use of nuclear energy requires solving problems with residues, or advances in nuclear
waste processing.
Hypersonic flight requires materials that are light, strong and resistant to high
temperatures.
Structures require materials that are strong like metals and resist corrosion like
plastics.
Next lecture to look at: Structure, properties and processing
of Materials.