Metals and Alloys

Metals and Alloys

Metal: Class of elements existing as
oxide, carbonate, sulphide and
phosphate compounds in natural rocks
called ores.
Ferrous metals: metals in which iron (Fe)
is the main constituent. Cast iron,
wrought iron, steel, etc.
Non-Ferrous metals: metals in which
iron is not the main constituent.
Aluminum, copper, zinc, lead, tin, etc.
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Metals
Metals
Non-Ferrous
Metals

Ferrous
Metals

Non-Ferrous
Alloys

Aluminu
m

Pig Iron

Brass

Copper

Cast Iron

Bronze

Zinc

Wrought
Iron

Duralumi
n

Lead,
Tin, etc

Steel

German
Silver
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Iron
Iron is available in abundance, but it does not
occur freely in nature. The iron content of
main ores are:
Magnetite (Fe3O4)

70-75% iron

Haematite (Fe2O3)

70% iron

Limonite (2Fe2O3. 3H2O)

60% iron

Iron Pyrite (FeS)

47% iron

Siderite (FeCO3)

40% iron

Iron can combine with other elements and its

properties is markedly altered and improved
for varying conditions of service.
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Fracture

Schematic of brittle & ductile

fractures

Fracture, brittle & ductile behavior

Fracture is the separation of a component into two or
more pieces under the action of a static or slowly
changing imposed load, at temperatures that are low
compared with the melting temperature of the
material.
Brittle fracture occurs when a material absorbs little
or no energy prior to fracture.
Ductile fracture requires a material that can
experience appreciable plastic (i.e. irreversible)
deformation and energy absorption prior to fracture.
The area under the stressstrain curve up to fracture
is a measure of the energy absorbed per unit volume
of material, and is termed the toughness of the
material.
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Mechanical properties of metals

Yield point,
yield stress,
elastic limit

Ultimate
tensile
strength

Elasti
c

Permanen
t strain

Hardening
Hardening involves heating a metal/steel and
cooling rapidly (quenching) in a suitable fluid
e.g. oil, water or air.
After the hardening treatment, steel is often
harder than needed and is too brittle for most
practical uses.
Also, severe internal stresses are set up
during the rapid cooling from the hardening
temperature.

Tempering
To relieve the internal stresses and reduce
brittleness, tempering is needed.
Tempering is heating the steel to a specific
temperature (below its hardening
temperature), holding it at that temperature
for the required length of time, and then
cooling it, usually instill air.
The resultant strength, hardness, and ductility
depend on the temperature to which the steel
is heated during the tempering process.
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Conversion of raw material

Iron ore

Coke

Limestone

Blast
furnace
Pig iron
Open hearth
furnace

Slag
Pig iron
casting

Basic oxygen
furnace
Molten
steel

Continuous
casting

Ingots

Electric arc
furnace

Alloying
agents
Soaking
Primary
pits
rolling

Structural shapes, Rails, Bars,

Wires, Pipes, Plates, Sheets

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Pig iron
It is the basic material from which, wrought
iron and steel are manufactured.
Iron ore is crushed to 50 mm size. Impurities
are knocked off. Ore is calcined to drive off
moisture and then smelted in blast furnace.
Iron is deoxidized and limestone is added as
flux to remove sulphur (Flux is a substance
charged into blast furnace to lower the
melting point of ore and to remove impurities
such as ash, sulphur, etc).
The refined molten metal is tapped from
furnace and cast in the form of bars called
pigs. Hence the product is called pig iron.
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Blast furnace for pig iron

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Pig iron
Pig iron is the crudest form of iron. Pig iron
contains 3-4 % carbon, 0.5-3.5 % silicon, 0.5-2
% manganese, 0.02-0.1 % sulphur and 0.03-1
% phosphorus.
Pig iron is hard and brittle with fusion
temperature of 1200oC and melts easily.
Its compressive strength is high but is weak in
tension and shear.
Pig iron does not rust.
It can not be riveted or welded.
It is most suitable for making columns, base
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plates, door brackets, etc.

Cast iron
Pig iron is re-melted with limestone (flux) and
coke and poured into molds of desired shapes
and sizes to get purer product called cast iron.
Methods of casting
Sand casting
Hollow casting
Vertical sand casting
Centrifugal casting
Die casting

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Cast iron
Classification: grey, white, malleable,
mottled, chilled and toughened cast iron
Uses: castings, rain water pipes, gutters,
gratings, railings, cisterns, manhole
covers and balustrades

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Cast iron - properties

Coarse, crystalline and fibrous structure
Brittle, can not withstand shocks and impacts
Can not be welded or riveted
Can not be magnetized
Can be hardened but not tempered
Neither malleable (soft) nor ductile
Does not rust
Becomes soft in saline water
Fairly hard, not workable with hand file
Strong in compression, weak in tension and shear
Lacks plasticity, unsuitable for forging work
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Wrought iron
All carbon and other elements in pig iron
oxidized to obtain wrought iron
Carbon reduced below 0.25%
All impurities reduced below 0.5%

Uses
Roofing sheets, corrugated sheets, rods, gas
and water pipes, boiler tubes, plain and
ornamental iron work like grills, gates,
railings, window guards, electromagnets
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Wrought iron - properties

Fibrous structure with silky luster

Ductile and malleable
Tough, can withstand shocks and impacts
Neither be hardened nor tempered
Can be forged and welded
At 900C two pieces can be joined by hammering.
Melts at 1500C
Rusts easily
Unaffected by saline water
Forms temporary magnets
Equally strong in tension, compression and shear
Specific gravity is 7.25
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Steel
In steel the carbon content is in chemically
combined form and may exist up to 1.5%
For a material to be classified as steel there
should be no free graphite in its composition.
Any free carbon makes it as cast iron
Steel categories
Dead mild steel
less than 0.15% carbon
Mild, soft, low carbon steel 0.15 to 0.3% carbon
Medium carbon steel
0.3 to 0.8% carbon
High carbon steel

0.8 to 1.5% carbon

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Classification of steel
Steel
Carbon Steels

Alloy Steels

Mild Steel

Stainless Steel

High Carbon
Steel

Nickel Steel

High Tension
Steel

Vanadium Steel

Reinforcing
Steel

Tungsten Steel
Manganese Steel
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Mild steel
Steel with carbon content 0.15 to 0.3%
Called mild steel, low carbon steel or soft steel
Uses
Used in construction work as rolled sections, I-sec,
T-sec, channels, angle irons, etc
MS round bars used in RCC as reinforcement
Plain and corrugated sheets as roofing
Used in manufacture of various tools, equipment,
machine parts
Rail tracks, towers and industrial buildings
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Mild steel
Fibrous structure with dark bluish color
Ductile and malleable
Tough and elastic than cast and wrought iron
More prone to rusting and corrodes easily
Can be permanently magnetized
Easily forged, welded and riveted
Withstands shocks and impacts
Not much affected by saline water
Equally strong in tension, compression and shear
Difficult to harden and temper
Specific gravity is 7.8
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High carbon steel

Steel where in the carbon content is
from 0.55 to 1.5%
Higher percentage of carbon renders it
harder and tougher
Uses
Manufacture of tools like drills, files, chisels
Fine quality of cutlery
Parts of machines requiring to withstand
shocks and vibrations
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High carbon steel

Granular structure
Tough and elastic than mild steel
Easier to harden and temper
More difficult to forge, weld and rivet
Can be permanently magnetized
Strong in compression than tension and
shear Strong in compression than
tension and shear
Withstands shocks and impacts
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High tension steel

High Tension Steel
Low carbon steel with carbon nearly 0.15%
Also called high strength steel
Less weight is required due to increased tensile
strength
Withstands atmospheric erosion
Tougher and more elastic
More brittle and less ductile
Extensively used in reinforcing prestressed
concrete structures
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Reinforcing steel
Reinforcing Steel
Mild steel or high tension steel is embedded
as reinforcement in plain cement concrete
to provide tensile strength
Flat, square and round bars used
Welded wire mesh also used as
reinforcement

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Alloy steels
Stainless Steel
Nickel Steel
Vanadium Steel
Tungsten Steel
Manganese Steel

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Stainless steel
Structural steel with copper content of
0.2% resists atmospheric corrosion
better than structural steel with no
copper
Chromium is most effective ingredient
for corrosion resistance. Corrosion
protection is due to dense film of oxide
formed over metal surface.
Steel with chromium over 16% called as
stainless steel
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Stainless steel
Group-1
Chromium less than 16% and carbon less than
0.4%. Respond to heat treatment, are not brittle,
can be machined and welded. Resist weather and
water

Group-2
Chromium higher than 16% and carbon less than
0.4%. Do not respond to heat treatment, are brittle.
Can be forged, rolled, cold drawn and machined.
Can be welded and resist corrosion.

Group-3
Sufficient chromium to make it non-magnetic. Very
tough and do not respond to heat treatment. Can
be forged, rolled, cold drawn but machined with
difficulty.
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Nickel steel
Contains 0.5 to 1.0% carbon and 3.5%
nickel which imparts hardness,
toughness, strength and reduces rust
formation
Used in manufacture of automobile
parts, airplane parts, cables and
propeller shafts.
Steel with high nickel content (30 to
40%) is called invar, with very low
coefficient of thermal expansion, and is
used to make delicate instruments
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Vanadium steel
Contains 0.1 to 2.0% vanadium
Very strong and ductile
Capable of resisting shocks
High elastic limit

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Tungsten steel
Contains 14 to 20% tungsten, 3 to 8%
chromium and very small amount of
carbon, vanadium and molybdenum
Also called high speed steel
Hardens at high temperature and
retains temper
Used for making drilling machines and
high speed cutting tools
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Manganese steel
Contains 12 to 15% manganese
Very hard, tough and non-magnetic
Used for making machine parts and
points and crossings in rail tracks

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Preservation of steel
Rusting: Oxidation of iron at the surface,
which is activated by presence of
moisture and carbon dioxide and
accelerated by atmospheric pollution
Iron ferrous bicarbonate ferric
bicarbonate hydrated ferric oxide
Corrosion: Phenomenon of slow but
steady eating away of metal due to rust
formation
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Preservation of steel
Tarring: dipping of iron in hot coal tar to
form a film on metal. Pipes or pole ends
Painting: application of lead paints on
exposed metal surfaces like roof
trusses, bridge structure, etc
Enameling: smaller surfaces treated
with enamel
Galvanizing: depositing a fine film of
zinc or iron surface
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Preservation of steel
Sheradizing: acid solution washed metal
surface is covered with zinc dust and
heated in furnace to form a thin layer of
molten zinc
Tin plating: dipping in bath of molten tin
Electroplating: depositing a thin film of
nickel, chromium, cadmium, copper or
zinc by the electrolysis process. Metal
surface is cathode and deposition metal
is anode
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Heat Treatment - Annealing

Heating slowly to a temperature of 800 to
1000C, maintaining it and then cooling very
slowly in some non-conducting material
Steel is annealed to release internal stresses
due to
Working of metal
unequal contraction in casting

Annealing is done to soften the steel to enable

it to be machined

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Heat Treatment - Normalizing

Heating slowly to a temperature of
1000C, and then cooling slowly in air
Steel is normalized to refine the
crystalline structure and remove cold
working strain
Normalizing is also required after steel is
heated to very high temperatures for
forging etc

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Heat Treatment - Hardening

Heating steel to red hot, and then
suddenly cooling by dipping it in bath of
cold water or oil
Process also called quenching and we
get quenched steel which is hard and
brittle
Hardness of quenched steel depends
upon quenching medium, and rate of
cooling
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Heat Treatment - Tempering

Heating steel to below critical or
tempering temperature and then letting
it cool off or quenched
Process causes partial transformation
thereby reducing steels hardness but
making it tougher
Tempering temperature depends upon
the purpose of tempering

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Heat Treatment Case Hardening

Hardening only the metal surface up to
a depth of 1.5 mm
Process comprises of
Converting the outer skin to high carbon
steel
Hardening the case and refining the core

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Property

Cast Iron

Wrought
Iron

Steel

Compositio
n

Crude. 2-4%
carbon

Purest. Less
than 0.25%
carbon

0.5 to 1.5%
carbon

Structure

Crystalline

Fibrous, silky
luster

Granular

Sp Gravity

7 to 7.50

7.70

7.85

Melting
point

1200C

1500C

1300 to 1400C

Hardness

Quite hardened
by heating and
cooling

Can not be
hardened or
tempered

Can be
hardened and
tempered

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Property

Cast Iron

Wrought
Iron

Steel

Strength

Compressive 6.3
to 7.1 ton/cm2
Tensile 1.26 to
1.57 ton/cm2

Compressive
6.3 to 2.0
ton/cm2
Tensile 3.15 to
3.94 ton/cm2

Compressive
4.72 to 25.2
ton/cm2
Tensile 5.51 to
11.02 ton/cm2

Shock
reaction

Does not absorb

shocks

Can not stand

sudden heavy
shocks

Absorbs shocks

Magnetizati
on

Can not be
magnetized

Temporary
magnetization
only

Permanent
magnets

Rusting

Does not rust

easily

Rusts more
than cast iron

Rusts easily
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Property

Cast Iron

Wrought Iron
Tough,
malleable,
ductile and
moderately
elastic

Steel

Malleability
ductility

Neither malleable
nor ductile

Forging and
welding

Brittle, can not be Can be easily

welded or sheet
forged and
rolled
welded

Can be rapidly
forged or welded

Uses

Water pipes,
sewers, drain
pipes, lamp posts,
columns, railings

Reinforcement in
RCC and RBC,
structural
members, bolts,
rivets, sheets,
files, machine
tools
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Chains, crane
hooks, railway
couplings,
components
under constant
shock

Tough, malleable
and ductile