School of Vocational Engineering, Health and Sciences

MIET7549C: Use workshop equipment and processes to complete

an engineering project

Common Engineering Materials and Processes

Metals

• Plain Carbon Steels

• Alloy Carbon Steels
• Stainless Steels
• Cast Irons
• Aluminum Alloys
• Copper Alloys

Metal is still a widely used engineering material in the modern manufacturing setting. There is
an almost infinite number of products made of a wide variety of metals. The metals most
commonly used in modern manufacturing are covered in this section.

Carbon Steels

Iron and carbon are the predominant elements in steels. Carbon content ranges from a few
hundredths to about 1.5%. The amount of additional alloying elements determines whether
the steel is considered to be a plain carbon or an alloy steel.

On the basis of carbon content, carbon steels can be divided into three groups. The first group
contains 0.10-0.30% carbon and is considered low-carbon steel. The second group contains
0.30-0.70% carbon and is considered medium-carbon steel. The third group contains
0.70-1.30% carbon and is considered high-carbon steel.

Carbon steels may be classified according to chemical composition, quality, and end-product
forms. Common end-product forms include bar, sheet/strip, plate, wire, tubing, and structural
shapes. Carbon steel may also be classified as hot rolled or cold drawn (cold rolled when
referring to sheets or thin strip). Cold finished steels are produced from hot rolled steel by
several cold finishing processes, resulting in improved surface finishes, dimensional accuracy,
alignment, or machinability; elongation and yield and tensile strengths are increased. Cold
rolled sheets are available in different hardnesses and can be pre-coated with zinc, aluminum,
or tin coatings which protect the steel from corrosion.

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Alloy Steels

Simply stated, an alloy steel is a steel that has one or more alloying elements added to it to
obtain properties not obtainable in carbon steels. A steel is considered an alloy when a definite
range or a minimum quantity is specified or required for aluminum, chromium (up to 3.99%),
cobalt, molybdenum, nickel, titanium, tungsten, vanadium, zirconium, or any other alloying
element.

Alloying Elements

Alloying elements are added to ordinary steels for the purpose of modifying their behavior
during heat treatment, which in turn results in improvement of the mechanical and physical
properties. Specifically, the additions are made for one or more of the following reasons:

• Improve tensile strength without lowering material ductility.

• Improve toughness.
• Increase hardenability, which permits the hardening of larger sections than possible
with plain carbon steels or allows successful quenching with less drastic cooling rates,
reducing the hazard of distortion and quench cracking.
• Retain physical properties at elevated temperatures. Obtain better corrosion
resistance.
• Improve wear resistance.
• Impart a fine grain size to the steel.
• Improve surface (case) hardening characteristics.

Stainless Steels

Stainless steels are iron-based alloys containing 10.50% or more chromium. These steels
achieve their "stainless" characteristics as a result of the invisible and adherent, chromium-rich
oxide film that forms on the material's surface. The oxide film is self-forming and self-healing
in the presence of oxygen. Three major families of stainless steels, Ferritic, Austenitic and
Martensitic. Carbon is normally present in amounts from 0.03% to over 1.00% in certain
martensitic grades, which contributes to improvements in the alloy's strength.

The selection of stainless steels is based on corrosion or heat resistance, mechanical

properties, fabrication characteristics, availability, and the total product cost. Generally,
corrosion resistance and mechanical properties are the predominant factors in selecting the
appropriate grade of stainless steel for a given application.

Cast Irons

The term "cast iron" is a generic term that designates an entire family of cast ferrous metals.
These metals possess a wide variety of properties that distinguish them from the family of
steels. In composition, both steels and cast irons are primarily iron that is alloyed with carbon.
However, steels always contain less than 2% combined carbon (and usually less than 1 %),
while cast irons contain more than 2% carbon. Because of the high carbon and silicon content,
cast irons possess excellent casting characteristics and can be melted more easily than steels.
Molten cast iron also flows better than molten steel and is less reactive with the molding
material because of a lower pouring temperature. Shrinkage and contraction of cast iron during
solidification are nominal and easily compensated for. Machinability is very good. Since most
cast irons are quite brittle and not as ductile as steels, they are not usually rolled or forged.

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Types of Cast Iron

In most irons, an appreciable portion of the carbon content precipitates during solidification
and appears as a separate constituent in the microstructure of the iron. The form and shape
in which the excess carbon occurs determine the type of cast iron and establish the nature of
its properties. The structure of the matrix metal around the carbon-rich constituent establishes
the class of iron within each category.

The four basic types of cast iron are grey iron, white iron, malleable iron, and ductile iron. In
white iron, the majority of carbon occurs as the compound iron-carbide, which is a very hard
constituent. Malleable iron is characterized by having most of the contained carbon present in
irregularly shaped nodules of temper carbon that forms after annealing. Grey iron has the
carbon occurring as graphite flakes. In ductile iron, the graphite occurs in spheres; and in
compacted graphite iron, the graphite occurs primarily as stubby flakes with some spheres
possible. Cast irons are usually specified by their mechanical properties and microstructure.

Non-Ferrous Metals and Their Alloys

Copper (Cu) and Copper Alloys

The most important physical property of copper is

its very high electrical conductivity. In this respect it is
second only to silver; though, if we take the electrical
conductivity of silver as being 100 units, then that of
pure copper reaches 97. Consequently, the greater
part of the world's production of metallic copper is
used in the electrical industries. Its density is 8940
kg/cubic meter, between that of iron and silver.
Melting Point = 1083C

Much of the copper used for electrical purposes is of

very high purity, as the presence of impurities reduces the electrical conductivity, often very
seriously. The thermal conductivity and corrosion-resistance of copper are also high, making
it a useful material for the manufacture of radiators, boilers, and other heating equipment.
Since copper is also very malleable and ductile, it can be rolled, drawn, deep-drawn, and
forged with ease.

In recent years, the cost of copper production has risen steeply for many purposes-electrical
and otherwise-it has been replaced by aluminium, even though the electrical and thermal
conductivities of the latter are inferior to those of copper.

The brasses

These are copper-base alloys containing up to 45% zinc and, sometimes, small amounts of
other metals, the chief of which are tin, lead, aluminium, manganese, and iron. Brasses are
generally tough and ductile. Brasses containing between 10 and 35% zinc are widely used for
deep-drawing and general presswork the maximum ductility being attained in the case of 70-
30 brass, commonly known as 'cartridge metal', since it is used in the deep drawing of cartridge
and shell-cases of all calibres.

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Brasses with less than 37% zinc are usually cold-working
alloys whilst those with more than 37% zinc are hot-working
alloys. A copper-zinc alloy containing more than 50% zinc
would be useless for engineering purposes, since it would be
very brittle. Up to 1% tin is sometimes added to brasses, to
improve their resistance to corrosion, particularly under marine
conditions. Lead is insoluble in both molten and solid brass and
exists in the structure as tiny globules. About 2% lead will
improve the machinability of brass. Small amounts of arsenic
are said to improve corrosion-resistance and inhibit
dezincification.

Aluminium (Al) and its Alloys

Although aluminium has a high affinity for oxygen, and might therefore be expected to oxidise
(or 'rust') very easily, in practice it has an excellent resistance to corrosion. This is due largely
to the thin but very dense film of oxide which forms on the surface of the metal and effectively
protects it from further atmospheric attack. The reader will be familiar with the comparatively
dull appearance of the surface of polished aluminium; this is due to the oxide film which
immediately forms. The protective oxide skin can be artificially thickened by a process known
as 'anodising'. Since aluminium oxide is extremely hard, anodising also makes the surface
more wear-resistant.

The fact that it has a high thermal conductivity and good

corrosion resistance, and that any corrosion products
which are formed are nonpoisonous, makes aluminium
very suitable for the manufacture of domestic cooking-
utensils such as kettles, saucepans, and frying-pans,
whilst its high malleability makes it possible to produce
very thin foil which is excellent for food-packaging.

Aluminium has a very good electrical conductivity,

which, though only about half that of copper, when considered weight for weight, can make
aluminium a better proposition in some circumstances. Thus, if conductors of copper and
aluminium of equal length and equal weight are taken, that of aluminium is a better overall
conductor, because it has a greater cross-sectional area than that of the copper one.
Aluminium conductors are used extensively in the grid system, generally strengthened by a
steel core.

For use as a constructional material, pure aluminium lacks strength. In the 'soft' condition, its
tensile strength is only 90 N/mm2, whilst even in the work-hardened state it is no more than
135 N/mm2. Hence, for most engineering purposes, aluminium is alloyed, in order to give a
higher strength/weight ratio. Some of the high-strength alloys have a tensile strength in excess
of 600 N/mm2 when suitably heat-treated.

Engineering Materials: Nonmetals

• Engineering Plastics
• Advanced Composites
• Ceramics

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Plastics

Plastics are nonmetallic materials that can be

formed and shaped by many methods. Most
plastics used in industrial applications are produced
from man-made synthetic resins. Plastics have
become one of the most common classes of
engineering materials in the past decade. For the
last five years, the production of plastics, on a
volume basis, exceeded steel output. Engineering plastics, those grades devised to resist
severe service conditions or structural loads, are in widespread use and their applications are
increasing rapidly.

Basic Terminology

The term "polymer" is commonly used interchangeably

with the term "plastics." Neither term is entirely accurate
in its delineation. Plastic means pliable, yet most
engineering polymers are not plastic at room
temperature. Polymer, on the other hand, can include
every kind of material made by polymerization with
repeating molecules.

In broad terms, plastics are man-made polymers.

Polymer is the generic name for all materials composed
of long, chainlike molecules. Most living tissue and cells
are polymeric. Plastics are created either by modifying
natural polymers, such as cellulose fibres, or by causing
small synthetic molecules to bond together into a chain.
Compared to other classes of materials, the plastics
molecular chain is enormous, giving it the term
"macromolecule." Millions of macromolecular chains
must be put together to make industrially useful quantities.

Strength. The strength of unreinforced plastics is dependent primarily on the forces holding
the chains together. These forces arise from the natural intertwining of chains and from
structural manipulations made by resin manufacturers. One of the oldest strengthening
mechanisms is "crosslinking," or using a small molecule to bond resin chains together as in
epoxy. Crosslinked plastics are strong because the chains cannot move. Most crosslinked
plastics are thermosets. Plastics that melt are thermoplastics.

Mechanical Properties

Both metals and plastics are characterized by similar types of mechanical properties. Metals,,
however, tend to be consistent in the sense that their behavior is adequately characterized by
stress-strain relationships. In contrast, while the individual plastics materials also display
distinctive stress-strain characteristics, the mechanical properties of plastics are more
dependent on the additional factors of temperature and time (under load). In the design
application, and to some extent in processing, creep data are of significant importance in the
field of plastics materials.

The engineering plastics materials have ultimate tensile and compressive strengths and
stiffness properties that are significantly lower than those of metals. This difference is
especially true when comparing plastics to tool steels and high-strength steels. However, the

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differential in ultimate mechanical strength is much less when plastics are compared with
metals such as aluminum, magnesium, zinc, and copper.

Engineering Plastics

The thermoplastic engineering resins are usually

characterized as those resins having the
following combinations of properties:

• Thermal, mechanical, chemical, corrosion

resistance, and fabricability.
• Ability to sustain high mechanical loads, in
harsh environments, for long periods of time.
• Predictable, reliable performance.

Thermosets have long been available as

insulators in electrical and electronic
applications, offering a wide range of capabilities in resistance to heat and other environmental
conditions. Thermoset molding compounds may be formulated to satisfy one or more
important uses. Typical distinctive properties of thermosets include dimensional stability,
low-to-zero creep, low water absorption, maximum physical strength, good electrical
properties, high heat deflection temperatures, high heat resistance, minimal values of
coefficient of thermal expansion, low heat transfer, and specific gravities in the 1.35 to 2.00
range.

Processing advantages have allowed thermoplastics to replace thermosets in many markets,

but competition remains in some of the more demanding uses. Thermoplastics in general offer
faster molding, lighter weight, the possibility for thinner walls and more complex design, and
greater impact resistance. Thermosets do not commonly exhibit as much creep at elevated
temperatures as thermoplastics, including the reinforced grades.

Advanced Composites

A composite material is created by the

combination of two or more materials-a
reinforcing element and a compatible resin binder
(matrix)-to obtain specific characteristics and
properties. The components do not dissolve
completely into each other or otherwise
chemically merge, although they do act
synergistically. Normally, the separate
components can be physically identified, as well
as the interface between components.

A common example of a composite material is fibreglass. Glass fibres are very strong. If
notched, however, they fracture readily; or if put in compression, they buckle easily. By
encapsulating the glass fibres in a resin matrix, they are protected from damage; at the same
time, the resin matrix transfers applied loads to the unified fibres so that their stiffness and
strength can be fully utilized in both tension and compression.

The more advanced structural composites use fibres of glass, carbon/graphite, boron, Kevlar
(aramid), and other organic materials. These fibres are very stiff and strong, yet lightweight.
The strengthening effects of the fibre reinforcements in composites are derived from (a) the
percentage of fibres (fibre-resin ratio), (b) the type of fibres, and (c) the fibre orientation with
respect to the direction of the loads.

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The majority of aerospace, military, and commercial product applications for advanced
composites use the carbon or graphite fibres with organic matrices; hence, these are the
principal composites discussed in this section of the chapter.

Composite structural materials have evolved as a class of engineering materials that offer
some unique properties and combinations of characteristics not exhibited by the more
traditional materials systems such as "pure" metals, ceramics, and polymers. Homogeneous
metal and fibre-resin composite material. The industrial appeal of advanced structural
composites is based on their inherent ability to replace conventional high-strength metals with
lighter weight, higher strength material.

Ceramics

Ceramics have become an important engineering

material due primarily to their ability to withstand high
temperatures and resist wear. Their usefulness in solid
state electronics has also enhanced their importance.
Ceramics have the following characteristics:

• They are hard.

• They are brittle.
• They have a high melting point.
• They have low electrical and thermal
conductivity.
• They are thermally and chemically stable.
• They have high compressive strength.
• They are able to resist creep.

Most ceramic materials have crystal structures and are compounds of both metallic and
nonmetallic elements such as oxides, carbides, and nitrites. Some ceramics have a non-
crystalline structure. These ceramics are known as glasses.

Most people are familiar with clay-based ceramic products. By adding quartz and feldspar to
clay, mixing the compound with water, shaping, drying, and heating, the wide variety of
ceramic products with which most people are familiar can be produced. These include bricks,
tile, drainage pipes, and porcelain.

Ceramics that have been designed especially for use in high-temperature applications are
known as refractory materials. Most refractory materials are based on stable oxide
compounds.

By mixing ceramics and metals using the same processes used in powder metallurgy, cermets
are produced. Products made of cermets are pressed in molds at high pressure and sintered.
Cermets are particularly valuable for applications that require strength and toughness at high
temperatures.

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Common Manufacturing Processes

Hot rolling is usually carried out at high temperatures this promoting complete grain refinement
and the development of a uniform fine-grained structure in the metal.
The following shapes and sections are commonly produced by hot rolling:
1. Blooms: the first stage in
the breakdown of an ingot
and are large bars, often
square in section, having a
minimum thickness of 150
mm.
2. Billets: rolled bars formed
by a further breakdown of
the ingot; they vary from 40
mm to 150 mm thick and
are not of finished shape.
3. Slabs: blooms are often
broken down into slabs
which are much wider than
they are thick. Slabs
provide the raw stock from
which sheet material is
made and are never less
than 250 mm wide.
4. Special sections: railway line sections, universal beams, angles, channels, round,
square and rectangular sections are all hot-rolled to shape. In contrast to billets,
blooms and slabs, these special sections are rolled in closed rolls that control the
lateral spread of the metal during rolling.

Quality of Hot-Rolled Stock

Hot rolled stock usually leaves the rolling mill covered with a strong and hard mill scale which
forms at the high temperatures used. In Australia this type of steel is commonly known as
‘Black’ due to the oxidation scale formed on the surface. Dimensional tolerances vary from
about 2% to 5%, and uniform quality is obtained by the close control of rolling procedures and
temperatures.

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Cold Rolling

Cold working involves the controlled plastic deformation of a metal at a temperature well below
to that of hot rolling, normally at room temperature. In Australia this type of metal is commonly
known as ‘Bright’ due insignificant oxidation scale formed on the surface.

Cold Working Compared with Hot Working

Advantages of Cold Working
No necessity for heating.
Improved surface finish.
Improved dimensional control.
Improved strength properties.
Development of directional properties.
Less metal loss and tool wear from scaling.
Disadvantages of Cold Working
Heavier, more powerful and more rigid
equipment required.
Higher deformation forces required.
Strain hardening occurs.
Metals are usually less ductile at ordinary
temperatures.
Undesirable directional properties may develop.
Metal surfaces must be free from oxides and
scale prior to working.

Examples of cold rolled products are tin plate used for food and drink cans, stainless
steel sheets.

Forging

If metal is worked by the application of localised compressive forces, it is said to have been
forged, and the following three basic processes are used in forging:

1. The metal may be drawn out, so that its length is increased while its cross-sectional
area is reduced.
2. It may be upset, in which case the section is increased while length is reduced.
3. It may be squeezed or hammered in between special dies so that the metal flows and
takes up the shape of the die cavity.

Forging may be done by hand using the tools and techniques of the old "village blacksmith";
or steam, air or mechanical hammers may be used. However, presses and forging machines
are always used if special dies are to be employed. Perhaps the most important forging
process is drop forging in which single and double-action drop forging machines of up to 10
MN capacity are used. Drop forging is an essential mass-production technique and a series
of dies, or one die with several impressions, is nearly always needed.

Examples of drop forging are car steering parts eg tie rod ends, and many hand tools eg
spanners and sockets.

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Casting

Casting involves the pouring of molten metal into a prepared mould cavity which has the shape
of the article to be made. Looked at this way, ingots are also castings, but differ, however,
from most other castings in that the latter are usually made as closely to their final shapes as
possible, whereas ingots are subsequently changed in shape by rolling, extrusion or some
other forming process. In general, casting produces articles more cheaply than forging or
fabrication, so casting is economically desirable. Metallurgical considerations also make
casting a desirable procedure since, in some circumstances, castings possess no directional
properties. Tank armour, for example, is always cast, as are cylinder linings, engine blocks
and gun tubes.

Sand moulds are always gravity fed; thus a good system of runners and risers is necessary if
sound castings are to be produced. Risers are usually located so that they will "feed" the
heavier sections of the casting as it is cooling and contracting. Holes and other cavities in the
casting are cored out using suitably shaped sand cores.

Figure left: A variety of sand cast

aluminium parts

Sand casting is particularly useful for casting complex

3D shapes such as automobile cylinder heads or
large castings as shown

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Machining

Machining is the process of removing unwanted material from a work piece in the form of
chips. If the work piece is metal, the process is often called metal cutting or metal removal.
U.S. industries annually spend over US$100 billion to perform metal removal operations
because the vast majority of manufactured products require machining at some stage in their
production, ranging from relatively rough or non-precision work, such as cleanup of castings
or forgings, to high-precision work involving tolerances of 0.002 mm or less and high-quality
finishes. Thus machining undoubtedly is the most important of the basic manufacturing
processes. Common processes are shown below.

Joining processes

Apart from purely mechanical methods such as riveting or bolting the chief methods available
for joining materials are soldering, brazing, welding or the use of adhesives. Industrial
applications of these processes are many and varied and range from the soldering of sardine
cans to the fabrication by welding of mass-produced ship. Enormous progress in welding
techniques since then has led to the replacement of riveted joints in steel structures by welded
ones for almost every application. Modern welding produces a joint that saves up to 15 % of
the mass of the structure as compared with riveting. Moreover the joint is free from gaps and
crevices and is easier to maintain by surface coating. The development of welding has made
possible the replacement of many of the larger iron castings by welded components, resulting
in tougher, lighter and sounder structures.

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 In soldering, brazing or welding
complete fusion takes place at the
surfaces of the two pieces of metal
being joined so that a more or less
continuous crystal structure exists as
we pass across the region of the joint.
Soldering and brazing are
fundamentally similar processes in that
the joining material always melts at a
temperature that is lower than that of
the work pieces, but the distinction
between the two processes is
imprecise. However, it is generally agreed that soldering or soft soldering as it is often called
can be described as a process in which temperatures below 450C are involved, whereas
brazing temperatures are generally between 600C and 900C

Welding

Some of the welding processes resemble both soldering and

brazing in so far as molten metal is applied to produce a joint
between the two pieces. However, in welding, the added
metal is, more often than not, of similar composition to the
metals being joined, and a more positive state of fusion
exists at the metal surfaces. Thus, differences between the
weld metal and the pieces being joined are microstructural
rather than compositional. The method of production of a
weld calls for rather different technique to that employed in
brazing and soldering. Generally, work pieces and filler
metal are of similar compositions weld.

Of recent years, welding has become one of the principal methods of fabricating and repairing
metal products. It is an economical means of joining metals in almost all assembly processes
and, assuming good welding technique, produces a very dependable result.

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