Subject : Construction Material Technology

Subject Code : SPL 1223

Credits : 3 Credit Points
Semester : 2
Subject Category : Compulsory
Prerequisite : None
Laboratory Work : Yes
Semester Project : Yes

Objectives: Students be able to describe various properties (mechanical properties, durability,

machineability) of popular construction materials in Civil Engineering world (steel,
concrete, timber, bamboo). Students are also expected to have practical skills of
designing various concrete mixtures.

Lecture Materials:
1. Mechanical Properties of Materials
a. Strengths: in Tension, Compression, Shear, Torsion
b. Elasticty
c. Pasticity
d. Stiffness
e. Workablity
f. Ductility
g. Durability
h. Hardness
i. Toughness
2. Standard Tests for Material Properties:
a. Tension Tests
b. Compression Tests
c. Transverse Tests: Third Point Loading and Centered Point Loading
d. Shear Tests: Direct Shear Test and Punching Shear Test
e. Torsion Tests
f. Impact Tests
g. Fatique Tests
3. The structures of Materials
a. Atomic Structures
b. Atomic Bonding
c. The Structure of Crystalline Solid
d. The Deformations in Crystalline Materials
4. Metals
a. Iron and Steel:
 Phases and Phase Diagrams
 Rapid Cooling
 Slow Cooling
 Heat Treatments
 Alloyed Irons and Steels
b. Other Metals:
 Alluminium
 Copper
  Brass
 Lead
5. Metalic Corrosions:
 Oxidation
 Galvanic Actions
 Diffrerence in Oxygen Contact
6. Metalic Corrosion Preventions:
 Surface Coatings
 Choice of Different Metals in Contact
 Cathodic Protection
7. Concrete
a. Composing Materials and Their Properties
b. The Making of Concrete
c. Properties of Concrete
d. Designing Concrete Mixtures
e. Concrete Casting
f. Concrete Moulding and Scaffolding
g. Corrosion of Concrete
h. Special Concretes
8. Timber
a. Physical Anatomy of Timber Log
b. Mechanical Properties of Timber
c. Durability of Timber
9. Bamboo
a. Physical Anatomy of Bamboo
b. Mechanical Properties of Bamboo
c. Durability of Bamboo
10. Other Materials:
a. Asphalt
b. Ceramics
c. Claybricks
d. Plastics
 Scheduled Weekly Topics of Discussions:

Week Topics of Discussion

1. 1)The delivery of the Lectures, the scoring and the rules
2) Preview of the Lecture Series
2. Material Properties-1: Atoms, Compounds and Alloys
3. Material Property -2: Atomic Bondings
4. Metals-1: Irons and Steels
5. Metals-2: Thermal Works on Steels
6. Metals-3: Corrossions of Steels
7. Metals-4: Other Metals
Mid-Semester Examination
8. Concrete-1: The Composing Materials for Concrete
9. Concrete-2: The Portland Cements
10. Concrete-3: The Hydration of Portlandf Cements
11. Concrete-4: The Properties of Wet and Hardened Concrete
12. Concrete-5: The Concrete Mix Designs
13. Other Materials-1: polymers
14. Other Materials-2: Timber and Bamboo
Final Semester Examination

SCORING:

FINAL SCORE= Homework (30%) + Mid-Semester Test (30%) + Final Semester Test (40%)

GRADING:

No Score Grade Grade Index

.
1 85-100 A 4.00
2 80-84.99 A- 3.70
3 75-79.99 B+ 3.30
4 65-74.99 B 3.00
5 60-64.99 B- 2.70
6 55-59.99 C+ 2.30
7 40-54.99 C 2.00
8 20-39.99 D 1.00
9 0-19.99 E 0.00
 I. The Structures of Materials
I.1. Overview
Matter may exist in the form of solids, liquids or gases. Each matter consists of molecules, and each
molecule is composed of a number of different elements (i.e. atoms). In this chapter, properties of
typical construction materials will be discussed with the help of its making processes which involve the
understandings of the properties of the composing elements.

I.2. Atomic Structures

In 1808, John Dalton a Scottish chemist proposed his theory on matters. He claimed that all matters
are composed of indivisible mass called atoms (the word means indivisible matter). His theory on
indivisible atom has been greatly developed by Thomson, Rutherford, Bohr etc. by describing the
structure of an atom as being composed of protons (positively charged) and neutrons (neutrally
charged) in the nucleus and constantly orbiting electrons (negatively charged) as the outer boundary.
The mass of the proton is approximately 1.673x10 -24 gr, and neutron is just slightly heavier of
approximately 1.675x10-24gr. The mass of an electron, however, is much lighter, approximately
1
0.91x10-29gr; it is about the mass of a proton or neutron.
1800
The diameter of the nucleus is in the order of 10 -14m while the diameter of the atom itself is in the
order of 10-10m; this is to show that an atom is composed of small matters (protons and neutrons) in
the centre and orbitted by even much smaller matters (electrons) in its outer boundary and a major
empty space in between.
The number of negatively charged electrons is always identical to the number of positively charged
protons and the number of neutrally charged neutron. However, some elements exist as having some
variations in its number of neutrons. An element having this variations in the number of its neutron is
said to have isotopes. This is to explain why in the Periodic Table of Elements, the Atomic weight
sometimes come up not with whole numbers. The unit of atom weight is “amu” (“atomic mass unit”)
1
defined as of the atomic mass of the most common isotope carbon 12 12C.
12
 Thanks to the pioneering work of Dimitry Mendeleyev 1869 and the successive genuine works by
many other brilliant scientists, most elements have been classified into a systematic way of describing
the properties (mechanical, optical and magnetical). This classification is called the Periodic Table of
Elements. The table lists those elements in the increasing order of their atomic number and group
them in the form of columns and rows. There are 18 columns which consists of Group-IA to Group VII-
A, Group-IB to Group VII-B, Group VIII and Group 0; Elements in the same group have similarity in their
chemical properties. There are 7 rows each is called period. Properties of elements within each period
will also be repeated in the other period.
 Electrons are configured into a number of shells, i.e. shelln=1, shelln=2, …… etc. and each shell can
accommodat 2 n2 maximum number of electrons For example, the first shell can accommodate 2
electrons, the second 8 electrons, the third 18 electrons, etc. Those electrons in each shell are kept in
different sub-shells which are designated as s,p,d and f. Sub-shell f has higher energy level of electrons
than sub-shell d; sub-shell d has higher energy level of electrons than sub-shell p etc. To understand the
configuration of electrons within the third period of the periodic table and beyond, it is important to
realize that the lowest sub-shell s of shelln=4, apparently has an energy level slightly less than sub-shell
d of shelln=3. Accordingly, in Potassium K, the outer electron occupies sub-shell s of shelln=4 despite the
fact that shelln=3 has not been fully filled. Schematically the overlaps of electron energy levels can be
examined in the above chart.

I.3. Atomic Bonding

When atom meets with its matching atom, they will attract one another; both atoms may be of
the same element or of different ones. Once they stick together we call this bonded materials as
compound. The bonding of atoms or molecules are possible by one of the following processes.

I.3.1. Ionic Bonding

It is well recognized that the structure of an atom will turn stable if the outer shell contain
eight electrons (or two in the case of the first shell). Take an
example of sodium chloride NaCl or table salt. This molecule
is formed of two atoms, i.e. Natrium Na and Chlorine Cl. The
outer shell of Na has 1 electron, while Cl has 7 electrons. To
make stable atoms, Na will readily give its only electron of
the outer shell to the chlorine atom to make itself a +1
charged ion; on the other hand, Cl will receive that electron
to complete its outer shell, that is to make itself a -1 charged
ion. The attraction between that positive and negative ion is
called ionic bonding. This bonding is very
strong.
I.3.2. Covalent Bonding
A nitrogen atom has 5 electrons in its outer shell, thus
another 3 electrons are needed to stabilize the atom. Hydrogen,
on the other hand, has 1 electron in its outer shell; to make it
stable hydrogen
needs another 1
electron. When
this two atoms
meet, they may
attain a stable
electron structure
by sharing of electrons. The nitrogen will share its 3 electrons to
the three hydrogens, while each hydrogen share its only electron
to the nitrogen. This way of bonding is called Covalent Bonding.
This scheme of bonding is normally found mostly in gas
molecules.

I.3.3. Metallic Bonding

In metals, the positive metallic ions are fixed in their crystal

structure while its electrons form a cloud of electrons
surrounding those positive ions. The metallic bonding is enabled
by the electrostatic attraction between the positive ion cores of
the atoms and this electron cloud.

1.3.4. Van der Waals Bonding

This bonding is also called Secondary Bonding as it normally happens among asymmetrical
molecules with unbalanced distribution of electrons. Although this bonding is weak, but it is
important to determine the structures and properties of many non-metalic materials. Some
examples of this bonding include the water molecules H2O - H2O and hydrogen fluoride
molecule HF – HF.
Water is an interesting example of how this secondary bonding affects its Anomalous
Properties, i.e. the volume expansion when the temperature is lowered from 4 0C. In the room
temperature, interactions among water molecules by way of Van der Walls bonding already
exist there but they are weak. However, when the temperature is lowered below 4 0C the
 interactions form a spatial bonding of water molecules and this spatial structure has less
Molecule Packing Factor which leads to the lower density of the water. Thus when the water
transforms itself into ice, the volume will expand and the density is less than one. That is how
to explain that ice will float on water.

I.4. The Structure of Crystalline Solid

I.4.1. Crystalline Materials vs Non-Crystalline Materials.
Materials in which the arrangement of its atoms or molecules is periodic over a long array
is called Crystalline Materials. Included in this category are all metals, many ceramics and
some polymers. Those materials which do not show regularity of crystal are called Non-
Crystalline Materials or Amorphous Materials. This category includes most organic materials
like cellulose, rubber, timber, etc.. In the coming discussions, the latter category of materials
will not be discussed.
I.4.2. Typical Structures of Crystals
The properties of materials, especially metals, are directly related to their crystal
structures. In fact, there are 32 individual crystal structures known so far. These structures
are normally classified into 7 crystal systems based on their geometries.
 Among the many crystal structures, three of them are relatively simple and found in most
of common metals we are most interested in; they are Face Centered Cubic (=FCC), Body
Centered Cubic and Hexagonal Close Packed (HCP) structures. Some popular metals which
have those simple but common structures are given in the following Table.

a. The Face Centered Cubic Structure

The geometry of this structure is cube with 8 atoms at the corners and 1 atom each on
the centre of the six faces. For each crystal we have 4 whole atoms; 8 corner atoms each
of which is shared by 8 crystals and 6 face atoms each of which is shared by 2 crystals.
The packing of the atoms is such that the size of the composing atoms determine the
size of the cystal as

a=2 R √ 2

Where a: the side of the crystal cube

R: the diameter of the composing atoms
 One important characteristics of a crystal structure is its Atomic Packing Factor (APF)
which is defined as

Volume of atoms∈a unit crystal

APF=
Volume of the crystal

Regardless of the size of the composing atoms, the APF value for an FCC structure is
0.74. The higher the value of APF, the more compact the crystal structure will be.

b. The Body Centered Cubic Structure

The geometry of this structure is cube with 8 atoms at the corners and 1 atom in then
the centre of crystal. For each crystal we have 2 whole atoms; 8 corner atoms each of
which is shared by 8 crystals and 1atom in the centre of the crystal. The packing of the
atoms is such that the size of the composing atoms determine the size of the cystal as
 4R
a=
√3

Regardless of the size of the composing atoms, the APF value for a BCC structure is
0.68. Compared to the FCC structure, BCC structure is less compact.

c. The Hexagonal Close Packed Structure

The geometry of this structure is a hexagonal with 12 atoms at the corners, 2 atoms
one each on the upper and bottom faces and 3 atoms contained inside the crystal. For
each crystal we have 6 whole atoms; 12 corner atoms each of which is shared by 6
crystals, 2 face atoms each of which is shared by 2 crystals and 3 atoms contained inside
the crystal. The packing of the atoms is such that the size of the composing atoms
determine the size of the cystal as

c=1.633 a

a=D

APF=0.74
 Regardless of the size of the composing atoms, the APF value for a HCP structure is
0.74 which is identical to the FCC structure.

A crystalline material may have different crystal structures in different environments.

Materials having a number of crystal structures is said to have polymorphism or allotropy
phenomenon. Pure iron, for example, has BCC crystal structure from room temperature
to 9120C and FCC crystal structure from 9120C to 13940C and then back to BCC crystal
structure above 13940C.

Another important property of materials, is the Isotropic (having the same mechanical
properties in all directions) or Anisotropic (having non-homogeneous properties for
various directions) properties . Non-crystalline materials show anisotropical properties
because they are lack of regularity in their polymers. On the other hand, metals
demonstrate isotropical properties. Despite the fact that a single metallic crystal may
be said as anisotropical but the aggregate of their crystal grains have random directions
to cause the isotropical properties of the materials.

I.4.3. Deformations in Crystalline Materials

Every material will show elastic as well as plastic deformations. In crystalline materials (like
most metals), however, the zones of the two different kinds of deformations are clear- cut.
a. Elastic Deformations

If crystalline materials are stretched within its elastic limit, the relative configurations
of the atoms inside the crystals will not be messed; rather, they are only compressed or
stretched. This deformation will not remain there for ever; when the loading is removed,
then the deformation will also disappear. This is called elastic deformation.

b. Plastic Deformations
 When the magnitude of the stress has gone beyond the elastic limit, the crystallic
grains starts to slip among themselves along their grain boundaries or within the grains
themselves slips also take place because of imperfections within the grains. These
mechanisms lead to a deformation which will not be recovered or at least will not be fully
recovered once the loading is removed. This permanent deformation left behind by this
level of loading is called plastic deformation.

c. Creep

When materials are stretched with a constant level of stress for a sufficiently length of
time, a sort of viscous movement (which apparently dominant in non-crystallic materials)
appears within the grains; i.e. the slow movement of a group of crystals relative to
another. This slow deformation is called creep. Normally, crystalline materials with
coarse grains and alloyed show less creep phenomenon than those non-alloyed with fine
grains.

Creep could end up with a sudden failure once it has reached its final stage. In fact,
creep has three stages in its development before triggering failure, i.e.

1) Primary Creep

At the beginning of the process, the creep rate is relatively high. But in the
course of time this rate is decreasing. This period is called primary creep.

2) Secondary Creep

In this period, the rate of creep is constant. Thus the increment of

deformation is to follow a straight line.

3) Tertiary Creep

The final period shows a constant acceleration of creep rate and thus making
the creep rate even higher in even a shorter time. This is the mechanism of a
brittle failure once the strength of the material is reached. This mode of failure is
 also called elastic failure because the failure takes place within a seemingly
elastic condition.

Apart from the above discussions, various researches have found the level of
temperature below which creep would not happen. The following table suggests

II. Mechanical Properties of Materials

There are a number of material properties one can discuss, but to the mind of a civil engineer,
mechanical properties are the most concerning problems to study. The following discussions apply
to materials in general; however stresses will be put into the properties of most popular materials
in civil engineering constructions, namely iron, steel, concrete, timber and to some extent bamboo.

II.1. Tension Strength:

II.1.1 Direct Tension Test

Members which undergo DirectTensile Force should also experience Tensile Stress and Tensile
strain. It is important to note that Force has a unit of Newton (=N) while Stress and Strain
successively have units of N/m2 and unitless. Stress is the force acting on a unit cross section area
while strain is the longitudinal elongation of a member relative to its initial length.
 When a member is longitudinally stretched, and the required stresses are plotted against its
corresponding strains, it will produce a Stress-Strain Diagram ( Diagram) which is very typical
for each material. Stronger material will depict diagram with higher peak compared to the one of
weaker material; Ductile materials will show a much wider area of graph while brittle materials
narrower graph areas; The same diagram also indicate whether the material is Highly Elastic
Material or Limitedly Elastic Material; highly elastic means having an extensively long section of
straight line while limitedly elastic means having a limited section of straight line.
In general, the ( Diagram) consists of five zones: 1) Linear Elastic Zone, 2) Non-linear Elastic
Zone, 3)Plastic Zone, 4) Hardening Zone and 5) Fracture Zone. Within this linear elastic zone,
material will behave elastically and the stress is proportional to its strain. The second zone still
shows elasticity of the material but the stress is not proportional to the strain anymore. Elastic
behavior means the ability of the material to snap back to its original shape and size once the
loading is removed. The third zone which is considerably flat demonstrate the yielding process; the
stress does not significantly increase with the sudden increase of considerable strain. Ductile
materials should have a much flatter slope for this zone compared to that of brittle materials. As a
matter of fact, the onset of this zone indicates the starting process of reduction in the cross-
sectional area of the member. In the fourth zone, the necking process apparently has hardened the
tensile characteristics of the material causing the increase of the stress. And in the last zone, it is
very clear that the cross-section starts to undergo a progressive failure.
 The end point of zone-1 is called the Elastic Point with its σ e =Elastic Stress and
❑e =Elastic Strain. The end of Zone-2 or the start of Zone-3 is called the Yielding Point with its
σ y =Yielding Stress and ❑ y =Yielding Strain. The peak of the graph which is nothing but the end
of the hardening process and the start of the failure is called Ultimate Point with its
σ u =Ultimate Stress and ❑u=Ultimate Strain. Finally, the end of the last zone is called Fracture
Point with its σ f =Fracture Stress and ❑f =Fracture Strain .

Testing of this tensile strength is normally conducted in a Hydraulically Loaded Universal Testing
Machine (=UTM). First of all, the specimen should be prepared according the standard code
referred to. Then the specimen should be mounted into the UTM by following the instruction
manual of the machine. The increment of the forces must not be too big to cause the missing of
detailed informations; better take 10% maximum of the predicted value. Then, the paired data of
stress and strains are recorded carefully. Special attention should be paid when the member
reaches its hardening zone, better reduce the force increment for not missing the point of
maximum loading. And finally record the fracture stress (based on initial cross-section area) and its
strain.

The Stress-Strain Diagram produced is once again based on the initial cross-section area. Should
it consider the continuous deformations of the cross sections, then the real graph should lie just
above this nominal graph with a growing gap when the specimen approaches its failure point. To
avoid complications, practically nominal graph (based on constant cross-sectional area) is used. To
specify the quality of the material one has to do some statistical calculations, and for that purpose
quite a number of specimens is needed.

When the tensile force is removed, member will get back to its initial size and form; there is no
residual stress or strain left behind. This situation applies provided that the tensile stress level has
not gone beyond its elastic point. And the member is said to behave elastically.

If the stress has gone beyond the elastic point (entering yielding zone and beyond) and the
tensile force is removed, the member will try to get back to its initial size and form; however, some
residual strain will remain and this residual strain is called plastic strain.

By the end of the yielding zone, the shrinking of the cross-section has nearly reached its
maximum process causing the material to gain an extra strength. Because this extra strength is due
to the hardening process of the material, then this zone is called the Hardening Zone.

Once the member undergoes the ultimate stress, then the process of fracture is started and
normally it does not take long for the member to fail. This last zone lasts for a very short period of
time before the sudden failure happens.

It is also worth noting, when a member is axially stretched, apart from an elongation in the
longitudinal direction, there will also be a shortening in the lateral direction. The relationship of the
two deformation is expressed by Poisson Ratio (=) which is the ratio of the lateral strain to the
longitudinal strain. Based on the nature of their deformations, it is clear that this ratio has a
ε'
negative value. ¿−
ε

∆L
And, ε=
L0

Where : poisson ratio L: elongation of the member

ε ' : lateral strain L0 : initial length of the member
ε : axial strain

When an axial member is loaded for quite a long period of time, it could demonstrate a plastic
deformation in the form of plastic elongation or shortening without changing its axial stresses. Such
a plastic deformation is called Creep.

On the other hand, if the length of that axially tensioned member is kept constant, the axial
stress within the member will decrease. That reduction of stress is called Relaxation.
II.1.2. Transverse Test or Bending Test

Direct testing of concrete or timber for its tensile strength is technically difficult to perform. An
other way of doing this is by conducting a Transverse Test or Bending Test. Instead of its Stress-
Strain relationship, Moment-Deflection relationship is obtained using this kind of test. The test is
normally conducted by either Centre Loading Scheme or Centre Third-Loading Scheme. In either
scheme,the M-δ Diagram should be obtained where M is the moment experienced by the material
and δ is the deflection at the centre of the member specimen. The proportional tensile strength is
related to the proportional moment limit; and its ultime tensile strength to the ultimate moment.

M pl
σ pl =
S

Mu
σu=
S

Where σ pl : proportional stress

σ u : ultimate stress
M pl : proportional moment
M u : ultimate moment
b h2
S : section modulus which is ¿
6

II.2. Compressive Strength:

The compressive strength of Steels is never tested. It is well established that their compression
strength is assumed to be identical to its tension strength. On the other hand, compression tests
are always conducted in the prediction of concrete strength.
 The test procedure should also conform with the Standard Code referred to in the document.
The UTM is normally used to conduct the test. The conduct of the test and the data processing are
pretty much similar to that of Tension Testing. To specify the quality of the material one has to do
some statistical calculations, and for that purpose quite a number of specimens is needed.

Please note that all characteristics of tensioned member mentioned above are also applicable
here in the discussion of compression strength; only compressive term should replace the tensile
term.

II.3. Shear Strength:

Shear stress may be developed in various ways, they include direct shear (ex.shear in bolts or in
rivets), shear due to the presence of tensile/compressive force, shear due to the presence of
bending moment (=flexural shear) and shear due to the presence of torsion (=torsional shear).
Accordingly, depending on the purpose of the test, there are three ways of counducting the shear
Tests namely: 1) Direct Shear Test, 2) Punching Shear Test and 3)Torsional Shear Test.

1) Direct Shear Test

To design the strength of shear in bolts or in rivets as well as of flexural shear, a direct shear
test is performed. Once the ultimate shear stress is obtained, the allowable shear stress is taken
by introducing a safety factor.

Pu
τ ult =
2A

τ ult
τ allow =
SF

Where τ ult : ultimate shear stress

τ allow : allowable shear stress
Pu : ultimate loading force
A : cross-sectional area of the specimen
 2) Punching Shear Test

This test is basically a direct shear test applied to sheet of metals. The test is done by pushing
a circular hardened pin into the steel die in which the metal sheet is laid on between the pin and
the circular blank of the die. The only test measurement made is the maximum punching load; the
ultimate shear strength is calculated as

Pu
τ ult =
A

τ ult
τ allow =
SF

Where τ ult : ultimate punching shear stress

τ allow : allowable punching shear stress
Pu : ultimate loading force
A : area of the punching shear ( A=πDt )

3) Torsional Shear Test

The test specimen is securely gripped in a fixed head and a moveable head. The moveable
head is rotated until failure occurs. The angle of twist (deformation) and the applied torque
(load) are recorded during the test, then a T −θ diagram is drawn. For a round solid specimen
the following relationships applly

2T
τ=
π r3

Where τ : the shearing stress in the outer fibres

T : the applied torque at the proportional limit
r : radius of the test specimen

2TLθ
Es¿
π r4
Where L : the gauge length of the specimen
θ : the angle of the twist measured over the gauge length.
Es : modulus of rigidity

II.4. Ductility
 Ductility is a measure of the degree of plastic deformation a material has sustained at failure.
Materials which experience very little or even no plastic deformation before failure is termed
brittle. On the other hand, those sustain an extensive level of plastic deformation is classified as
ductile. The degree of ductility may be expressed by the percent elongation (%EL)of the material
at the start and at the failure relative to the initial length.

Lf −L0
%EL= ( L0 )
x 100 %

Alternatively, ductility can also be expressed as the reduction of cross-sectional areas (%RA) at
the start ( A0 ) and at the failure ¿

A 0− A f
%RA= ( A0 )
x 100 %

Where L0, A0 : length, cross-sectional area at the start.

Lf, Af : length, cross-sectional area at failure
%EL: percentage elongation at failure relative to the initial length of the specimen
%RA:percentage of cross-sectional area reduction at failure relative to the initial value

Materials with %EL or %RA of less than 5% may be classified as brittle materials.

II.5. Resilience

Resilience is a measure of the capacity of material to absorb energy during its elastic
deformation. The degree of resilience is termed as Modulus of Resilience Ur. Mathematically it can
be expressed as

εy

U r =∫ σdε
0
Or, assuming a linear elastic region, then
 1
Ur= σ y ε y
2

1 1 σ σ2
Or, it can also be expressed as
2 2 E( )
U r = σ y ε y= σ y y = y
2E

The last equation suggests that resilience of materials depends on the level of yield strength and
its moduli of elasticity. It is worth comparing the term with the later term of toughness.

II.6. Toughness

Toughness is a measure of the material capacity to absorb energy during its plastic deformation
before its failure. The degree of toughness is termed as Modulus of Toughness Ur. Mathematically it
can be expressed as
 εf

U t =∫ σdε
0

Materials with greater values of Modulus of Toughness are called tougher compared to those
with less areas. It is worth comparing the term with the previous term of resilience.

II.7. Impact Strength

When a material is loaded abruptly, it will experience a Dynamic Loading whose magnitude
could reach twice (depending on the speed of the introduction) as much as that loading very
slowly introduced; a very slowly introduced loading is termed as Static Loading. And if the loading
is released from a height and hit the material with speed, then the material will experience even a
much higher dynamic loading (could be hundred times higher). This loading is classified into
Impact Loadings. To evaluate the impact strength of a particular material, Charpy or Izod Impact
Test could be used.
 The specimen for both tests are notched according to the specification manual of the machine,
The specimen in the Charpy Test is mounted horizontally; while in the Izod Test vertically.

Initially, the hammer is raised to its initial h height above the specimen and then released from
that height. When the hammer hits the specimen it will break it and further swing to the other
side; of course the maximum height this hammer can reach is h’ which is less than h. The different
swings (h-h’) and the weight of the standard hammer should give the quantity of energy needed
to fracture the specimen. Low level of this fracture energy shows low level of impact strength, vice
 versa. In the ideal situation when h’=h, the material is supposed to have no impact resistance at
all; while h’=0 shows the enormous if not unlimited impact strength.

II.8. Fatique Strength

Most materials could fail at a much lower level of stress than its strength level if they are
subjected to many number of cyclic loadings. Cyclic loading is a constantly changing loading in its
direction and/or magnitude. The higher the variation of the loadings, the shorter will be the life of
the material. However, for some kinds of materials, if the level of cyclic stress amplitude is less
than a certain value, it is unlikely that the material experience fatigue failure. This borderline is
called the Fatigue Limit.

However some materials, i.e.alluminium,brass etc., do not show such a Fatigue Limit meaning
that at every level of stress amplitude, there must be a corresponding life cycles the material can
endure. This material is called materials without fatigue limit.

Fatigue is a brittle failure of a material caused by extensive cyclic stresses. The material fails far
below its yielding stress and the failure takes place suddenly. The process of failure starts with the
formation of fine cracks which normally develop in the fibres with high stress concentration (ex.
 around the holes, around the discontinued areas or at rough surfaces). This fine cracks develop in
size and propagate to the neighbouring areas. Once the size and distribution of the cracks are
“mature”, then the sudden fracture will take place.

Types of Cyclic Loadings

Based on its stress amplitude, level of stress and its patterns, cyclic loadings can be classified into
three types, namely Reversed Loadings, Repeated Loadings and Random Loadings.

II.8.1. Reversed Loadings

Reversed loadings are dynamic loadings with scattering values of stresses around the zero
level of stress and with repeating patterns throughout its historical record. Included in this
type is the sinusoidal loading. The magnitude of its maximum stress is identical to that of the
minimum stress, while its averaged stress is zero.

II.8.2. Repeated Loadings

Repeated loadings are also dynamic loadings with its non-zero averaged stress. If the
non-zero average is taken out from the loadings, then the new loading is identical to that of
the reversed loading. Thus, there are σ max , σ min and averaged stress σ m. The stress
amplitude σ aand its stress rangeσ r are defined as follows
 σ a=σ max−σ m

σ r=σ max−σ min

II.8.3. Random Loadings

A Random loadings is another dynamic loading with random magnitudes and directions
throughout its time history. Although random, this kind of loadings has a number of
characteristics called Mean Stress σ m , Stress Range σ r , Stress Amplitude σ a and Stress
Ratio R.
σ maks +σ min
σ m=
2

σ r=σ max−σ min

σ r σ maks−σ min
σ a= =
2 2

σ min
R=
σ max

Fatigue Life Test

The property of fatigue may be obtained in the laboratory by using suitable sets of apparatus;
one of them is called Wohler Machine. The machine must be set up as close as possible to the
field conditions of the material being tested, for example the Mean Stress σ m , the Stress
Amplitude σ a ,its load frequency as well as its stress patterns. There are two variants of Wohler
Machine namely Cantilever Arm Type and Simple Beam Type .

A weight is calculated to simulate the magnitude of the real stress (considering as well the
centripetal force when the weight rotates) and mounted in the machine. Then the machine is
mechanically rotated with a frequency which is similar to the real condition. Meanwhile the
counter machine will record the number of cycles.

The experiment starts with significantly high Stress Amplitude σ a by mounting a significantly
heavier weight, then at its fatique failure the number of cycles N endured by the material is
recorded. A pair of data (σ a,N)1 is obtained.

The experiment should continue with different levels of stress amplitude σ a and number of
cycles N. Accordingly, a number of (σ a,N)1…n are obtained, ready for the drawing of a σ a-N
Fatigue Curve. From the curve, we can observe whether the material has a Fatigue Limit or not. If
it does, then the level of its fatigue limit will clearly be shown.

II.9. Hardness
 Hardness is a measure of material’s resistance to localized plastic deformation (e.g. against
denting or scratch). Traditionally, the qualitative level of hardness is applied only among minerals.
A German mineralogist, Friedrich Mohs 1773-1839, classified minerals into 10 catagories of
hardness. The lowest with Mohs Number-1 is Talcum and the highest with Mohs Number-10 is
diamond. He then somewhat arbritrarily classified other materials in between those scales. The
mineral with higher Mohs number should scratch or dent the lower. This scale does not say how
much harder one mineral is to the other; thus it is totally qualitative and arbitrary in nature. To
classify a newly found material, the material should be compared to the established scaled
material by scratching them one another. If the new material suffers a scratch or indent, then it
should be placed in the lower scale of Mohs system, etc.

Quantitative hardness classification techniques have been developed over the years. There are
quite a number of techniques developed, some of them include: Brinell Test, Vickers
Microhardness Test, Knoop Microhardness Test and Rockwell /Superficial Rockwell Test as
summarized in the following Table.

The techniques generally involve the use of a small indenter being forced into the material
surface being tested with a Standard Force P (magnitude and the pressing scheme are
standardized in each technique). Then, the size of the indentation d is measured by the help of
microscopic tools. Finally the Hardness Number can be calculated according to the formulae
developed for each technique (see Table…).

In the Rockwell hardness technique, after the machine is set up (the indenter and the major load
specified), a minor load of 10 kg is applied against the specimen to prevent the influence of
surface irregularity. The dial indicator is then set to zero and the major load (60 kg, 100 kg. or 150
kg.) is applied and maintained for 15 seconds and then released. The Hardness Number is then
read off the scale (of the corresponding scheme) in the machine. This scale may range from 0 to
130, however the reading at both extreme values (less than 20 or more than 100) is not
considered accurate. If this reading happen, it is better to repeat the test using another scheme
(another combination of indenter and major load). Various schemes of the tests are designated by
Scale Symbol A to K as can be examined in Table….

The test procedure in the Superficial Rockwell Hardness technique is pretty much the same as
that of the Standard Rockwell Technique. The difference lie on the much lighter indenter of 3 kg
and their major load (15 kg.,30kg. or 45 kg.). This technique is suitably applied to thin specimens
and their various test schemes which are designated by scale symbol N,T or W.

To give an idea of the equivalence of each Hardness Number discussed so far, the following
chart shows their comparisons
Correlation Between Hardness Number and Tensile Strength
As hardness number and tensile strength are both indicators of a metal’ s resistance to plastic
deformation, there must a proportional correlation between them. As a rule of thumb, their
relationship can be formularized as

σ =3.45 x HN

III. IRONS AND STEELS

III.1. The Production of Irons and Steels
Irons and steels basically have the same origin, they are different only in their carbon contents;
irons have higher content of carbon compared to steel. Iron has carbon content more than 2.14%
while steel has less than that value. To produce a particular quality of iron or steel, two steps of
manufacturing have to be taken, i.e: a) the manufacturing of pig iron and b) the refinery of irons.

III.1.1. The Manufacturing of Pig Iron

In the first step, iron ore is charged from the furnace top into the blast furnace facility together
with limestone and cokes and then oxygen-rich air is blown into the furnace to agitate the
heating. Temperature varies from about 250 0C at the top to 18500C at the tap hole. The end
product of this blast furnace is the pig iron (the main product) and the slag (the waste product).
The typical composition of the pig iron would have
Carbon 3.0-4.5% Silicon 1.0-4.0% Manganese 0.2-1.5%
Phosphorus 0.1-2.0% Sulphur 0.04-0.10% iron (the rest)

III.1.2. The Refinery of The Pig Iron

The output of a blast furnace is pig iron and the slag. The slag may be utilized as excellent
concrete composing materials which will be discussed much later in the discussions. The pig iron
just produced is not yet suitable for most industrial applications and hence needs further refining
process either to steels or cast irons. To manufacture steel, for example, a number of processing
plants can carry out the refinery, i.e. a) The Open Hearth Furnace, b) The Bessemer Converter, c)
The Basic Oxygen Processes and d) The Electric Furnaces.

a. The Open Hearth Furnace

 This iron refining plant was
developed in England by German
born William and Friedrich Siemens
and then improved by Piere and
Emile Martin in 1864. The furnace,
which looks like wide saucers with
low roof is charged with molten pig
iron and scrap. The molten iron and scraps are heated by overhead gas burner using
preheated air. Impurities such as carbon, silicon, manganese will be oxidized while
phosphorus and sulphur would not be affected by this furnace.

b. The Bessemer Converter

This type of plant which was introduced by Henry Bessemer in England 1856 has a much
faster process than the open hearth furnace. With its 25 ton capacity, this conventer can
finish each cycle in just 25 minutes with
12%-15% metal loss. Unfortunately, the
steel produced is not of high quality due to
the lack of impurity control of
substances,especially nitrogen.

The molten pig iron and lime are

charged into the converter at the top
mouth and compressed hot air is blown
inside from the bottom. Carbon, silicon and
manganese are oxidized first while
phosphorus and sulphur later. After 25
minutes, the converter is emptied by tilting
the converter.

c. The L-D Converter

This technique of steel making which was the new version of Bessemer Converter was
developed in the city of Linz-Donawitz
Austria in 1948. This is why this plant is
sometimes called L-D Converter.

The process starts with the charging of

molten pig iron, steel scrap and lime into the
converter then an oxygen blast is introduced
into the molten stuff to remove the
 impurities by oxidation. The end product is a very high-grade steel with inexpensive cost of
process.

d. The Electric Furnace

This particular furnace use a much cleaner source of energy for heating the molten metal,
i.e. heating by arcing between the carbon electrodes and the molten . However, this type of
furnace is not commonly used worldwide.

III.2. Iron-Steel Phase Diagram

As already mentioned in the previous chapter, iron and steel are basically composed of the
same materials, only the carbon contents distinguish one from the other. The crystalline structure
of metals are also said to have its allotropies, i.e the same metal may have different crystalline
structures when it undergoes thermal changes. Even, at a certain level of temperature metals may
have two crystalline structures at the same time. To discuss this matter, an iron-iron carbide phase
diagram is presented.
 In this diagram, there are 5 single phases that iron or iron carbide may have; they are
α −ferrite, γ −austenite, δ −ferrite, liquid and Fe3 C cementite . The other areas of the diagram
have more than one phase; two phases to be exact.
The diagram has three horizontal lines of interest. The highest horizontal line at 1493 0C passes
the peritectic point, the horizontal line in the middle at 1147 0C passes the eutectic point and the
lowest horizontal line at 727 0C passes the eutectoid points. Those three points successively
constitute the equilibrium reactions of peritectic composition, ledeburite and pearlite.

The coordinate of the diagram has %C percentage of carbon content as the horizontal axis and
0
C temperature as the vertical axis. If a certain iron or steel (with a certain %C) experience
heating, this means an upward vertical line is being be drawn; cooling treatment means a
downward vertical line.
The carbon content of the diagram is intensionally made between 0%C meaning pure iron to
6.7%C meaning pure Fe3 C cementite . In fact, carbon content of more than 6,7% is also possible
but some of the carbon atoms will stay as another phase, i.e. graphite. Metals having more than
6.7%C are extremely brittle that attract no attention. If the carbon content is in between 0%-
2.14%C the material is called iron (0%-0.76% being hypoeutectoid iron and 0.76%-2.14%C
hypereutectoid iron) and in between 2.14%-6.67%C is called steel (2.14%-4.30%C being
hypoeutectic steel and 0.76%-2.14%C hypereutectic steel).
III.3. Allotropic Process of Pure Iron

Pure iron has three allotropic structures in relation with its temperature. On slow cooling,
molten pure iron solidify into δ −ferrite with BCC crystal structure at 1535 0C. When it reaches
14000C a γ −austenite with FCC cystal structure will form. At 910 0C, a non-magnetic α −ferrite
with BCC crystal structure will form before a slight change into a magnetic α −ferrite with BCC
crystal structure is formed at 7680C and below. The change between non-magnetic and magnetic
properties is due to the electron rearrangements in the outer shells at the Curie point 768 0C.

III.4. Allotropic Process of Hypoeutectoid Steel.

Supposed we have molten hypoeutectoid steel 0.25%C to cool down slowly. When the process
crosses the solidus line, some of the liquid phase will transforms into δ −ferrite with BCC crystal
structure. This crystals will grow making many random ever growing grains among the liquid. Thus
at that stage there are two phases exist, i.e. liquid and δ −ferrite.
 When the cooling process reached 1493 0C, a peritectic reaction occurs, i.e. the transformation
of the δ −ferrite iron with some liquid into γ −austenite iron. Crossing the temperature, the
remaining liquid will be in the solution with γ −austenite.
When the cooling process crosses the solidus line at about 14700C, the remaining liquid will fully
transformed into γ −austenite making a single phase γ −austenite iron. This phase will not
transform into another phase untill the cooling process crosses the solvus line at about 8250C. This
crosspoint is called the Upper Critical Temperature (UCT).
Crossing the UCT, some of the γ −austenite iron will transform into α −ferrite in the grain
boundaries. This new phase is then called proeutectoid ferrite to distinguish them from the later
formed ferrite. In the next region, there are two phases exist, i.e. γ −austenite and the
proeutectoid α −ferrite. This growing process of phase transformations will continue untill the
temperature reaches Lower Critical Temperature (LCT 7270C.
Once the LCT is approached a eutectoid reaction occurs, i.e. the transformation of the
remaining γ −austeniteinto pearlite, a solution of α −ferrite iron 0.022%C and Fe3 C cementite
0.67%C. Together with the proeutectoid ferrite, the next region will be the solution of α −ferrite
and Fe3 C cementite 6.7%C.

III.5. Allotropic Process of Eutectoid Steel

When crossing the liquidus line, some amount of molten iron having eutectoid composition
0.76%C will allotropically transform into γ −austenite iron. And thus there are two phases of iron,
i.e. liquid and γ −austenite iron.
 At about 13900C, the remaining liquid will transform into γ −austenite iron making a single
phase of γ −austenite iron with all the 0.76%C absorbed within their crystals.
When the temperature reaches the LCT 727 0C, the austenite is saturated with carbon. On
crossing the LCT, the austenite experiences a eutectoid reactions, i.e. transformation into pearlite.
Pearlite is a solution of α −ferrite 0.022%C and cementite 6.67%C. On further cooling to the room
temperature, these two phases will be kept as a permanent solution; only the proportion of each
phase is slightly changing.

III.6. Allotropic Process of Hypereutectoid Steel

Take an example of 1.3%C molten steel being cooled down. When crossing the liquidus line at
about 14250C, some amount of molten iron start to transform into γ −austenite thus making a
double phase iron namely liquid and austenite iron.
The solidification of the liquid should finish when it approaches 1280 0C to make a single phase
of γ −austenite iron. This single phase iron will remain there until the cooling process approaches
the graph at about 8200C.
 At about 8200C, some
austenite at the grain boundaries
will transform into sementite, this
phase is called proeutectoid
sementite. The formation of this
phase continues until the
cooling process approaches
the LCT 7270C.
Once the cooling process
0
crosses the LCT 727 C, the
remaining austenite will
undergo a eutectoid reaction by
transforming into pearlite, a
solution of α -ferrite 0.022%C and
eutectoid cementite Fe3C
0.67%C. On further cooling to the
room temperature, this
composition will not significantly
altered.

III.6. Allotropic Process of White

Cast Irons

As the pig irons produced by blast furnace normally have carbon content less than 4.5%C, the
following discussion will focus on hypoeutectic iron. In its liquid state, 2.5%C molten cast iron (for
example) has its iron and carbon atoms scattered around in random.
When it is cooled down slowly and the cooling line crosses the liquidus line, some liquid will
transform into austenite phase making a solution with double phases, i.e. austenite and the
remaining liquid.
At the eutectic temperature 1147 0C, a eutectic reaction takes place; i.e. the transformation of
the remaining liquid into a solution of austenite 2.14%C and ledeburite 4.30%C; whereas
ledeburite itself is also another solution of austenite 2.14%C and sementite 6.7%C in a particular
combination. Thus another double phase solution is formed, namely austenite and sementite.
When the cooling line crosses the eutectoid temperature 727 0C, the austenite will be
transformed into pearlite, a solution of ferrite and sementite. From this temperature down to the
room temperature the two phase solution (ferrite and sementite) is there. The end product is
white cast iron so called because the fractured surface has white sementite colour as a result of
fast cooling process and low presence of silicon. White cast iron is extremely hard, brittle and
unmachineable. This kind of cast iron is suitable for surface hardening of another metal.

III.7. Allotropic Process of Grey Cast Irons

With the same 2.50%C molten iron, similar allotropic process is done to produce grey cast iron.
The only difference is on the lower rate of cooling process and the presence of more than 1%
silicon. These two factors apparently affect the instablility of cementite to decompose into iron
 and graphite. Graphite comes in the form of flakes with sharp ends causing the lower tensile
strength but strong in compression, brittle but having higher damping values.

III.8. Heat Treatment of Steel

Heat treatment is the control of heating and cooling of materials in order to alter their
mechanical properties. All heat treatment basically consists of three stages:
(1) The heating of the metal to the designed temperature;
(2) The soaking of the material at the design temperature until the crystal structure becomes
uniform throughout the section;
(3) The cooling of the metal to the design temperature and rate of cooling so that certain
properties of the metal can be achieved.

The Iron-carbon diagram does not show the factor of time as a variable, and hence it cannot
describe the effect of different cooling rates on various grades of steel. Another type of diagram
which is called Time-Temperature-Transformation (TTT) diagram should be used. Every diagram
applies to only one particular type of steel; thus for different grade of steel, the corresponding
diagram should be obtained. One example of the curves applied to the eutectoid plain carbon
steel can be examined below.

The horizontal axis of the diagram shows the time (in log scale) while its vertical axis shows the
temperature (in 0C). There are two S-Curves, the one in the lefthand is the starting curve and the
one on the right hand is the finishing curve. The curve in between constitutes 50% accomplishing
process. When a process crosses the starting curve, a structure transformation has just started;
crossing 50% curve means that the transformation is halfway to finish; and crossing the finishing
curve means transformation is complete.
 The main phases have their exclusive areas, they are A=Austenite, B=Bainite, M=Martensite and
P=Pearlite. Areas in between the two S-curves have double phases corresponding to the nearest
main phases.

The figure above gives an idea of how to work with the TTT-diagram. Given a eutectoid steel
specimen heated and properly soaked at 760 0C to achieve a complete homogeneous austenite.
Curve (a) describes the rapid cooling of the specimen to 350 0C and held there for 104 seconds to
transform into 100% bainite .The subsequent quenching to room temperature will not cause any
other transformation although the quenching line crosses the martensite region.
If the rapid cooling is executed further down to 250 0C and held there for only 100 seconds,
curve (b), the specimen is still 100% austenite. As the specimen is further quenched to room
temperature, the quenching line crosses the martensite regions to enable the complete
transformation into 100% martensite.
When the specimen is rapidly cooled down to 650 0C and held there for sometime, curve (c),
after 7 seconds pearlite starts to form, and after 20 seconds only 50% of specimen has
transformed into pearlite. The further rapid cooling to 400 0C will not change the remaining 50%
austenite into either pearlite or bainite. And after 10 3 seconds, the remaining austenite transforms
into bainite to give a composition of 50% pearlite + 50% bainite.
Various heat treatments can be classified into hardening of steel, softening of steel, and
surface hardening.
III.8.1. The Hardening of Steel.

We have studied before that when austenite steel is slowly cooled downed, at crossing the LCT
7270C a eutectoid reaction will take place and the end product will consist of ferrite and pearlite
(particular solution of ferrite and cementite) or cementite and pearlite. This transformation is
carbon diffusion controlled and will complete if sufficient time is given to the cooling process.
However, if the cooling rate is very high (for example quenched using water), that
transformation will not take place; instead a completely new phase is formed, i.e. martensite, a
phase with Body-Centred Tetragonal (BCT) crystal structure which all the dissolved carbon are
held in the interstitial solid solution. Martensite is extremenly hard and brittle material.

The end product of a rapid cooling depends on the carbon content of the steel and the rate of
cooling employed. The following example of an eutectoid steel should give an idea of the effect
of various quenching (=cooling) media on the cooling rates of the process and in turn on the end
product of the cooling process. Water, oil, air and furnace are mentioned as some of the
quenching media with decreasing cooling rates. If the cooling rate is extremely high, using water
for example, the end product is martensite. But if the rate is reduced, by using other quenching
media mentioned above, the end product could be in the form of very fine pearlite, fine pearlite
or coarse pearlite.
III.8.2. The Softening of Steel.
Various grades of steel may be softened by various heat treatment processes. In general, there
are two groups of softening processes; they include annealing and normalizing.
a. Annealing
Despite the many different techniques, the purposes of annealing for steels include:
1) relieving all internal stresses within the material;
2) producing uniform grain structure throughout;
3) Softening the metal .

The techniques of annealing are classified as either full annealing or process annealing.
In the full annealing, the steel should be heated up to 30 0C-500C above the upper critical
temperature and soaked at that temperature until the structure becomes fully austenitic
and slowly cooled (in the furnace, in sand or in a special cooling pit) to the room
temperature. In fact this softening process is slow and costly.
In the process annealing, the steel is heated at about 550 0C-6500C (well below the
lower critical temperature. Soaked at that temperature, strained ferrite will be
recrystalized, but not with the pearlite. Thus the end product would consists of stress-
free ferrite matrix with small number of strained pearlite.
 b. Normalizing
Normalizing is carried out by heating the steel at a slightly higher than that for
annealing , soaking the steel there for sometime just enough to transform the α -ferrite
into γ -austenite and air cooling to room temperature. This process will result in a finer
grain structure which increase the yield strength, ultimate strength, hardness and impact
values; however, ductility is slightly decreased. Normalizing is normally applied to relieve
residual stresses in castings and forgings.

III.8.3. The Surface Hardening of Steel

Softness is a favourable property for machinablity, ductility and shock absorbing capacity of
steel. However it is sometimes desirable to have a hard surface of steel to increase its wear
resistance while maintaining its ductility of the core. The heat treatment for this purpose is called
surface hardening which include (1)carburizing, (2) nitriding and (3)selective hardening.

(1) Carburizing
The basic procedure of steel carburizing is
to impregnate the steel surface (having low
carbon content) with additional carbon to
increase the composition to the eutectoid
level. The steels treated by this procedure
commonly has a carbon content of less than
0.15%.
The carburization process is made possible by the
decomposition of carbon monoxide (CO) into carbon
dioxide (CO2) and carbon (C); the latter being absorved by
the surface. The CO used for the process is produced by
the combustion or breakdown of various carburizing
agents which may be in the form of solid, liquid or gaseous reagents.
2 CO ↔CO 2 +C
 As an example, ferrite can only accommodate up to 0.022%C at 723 0C. If the surface
need more hardness then the steel should be brought to the austenite region where this
phase can absorb some more carbon up to 2.14% at 1147 0C. However, in practice, a 3-6 hour
carburizing at 9000C-9500C is reported to produce quite a good layer of carburized steel .

(2) Nitriding
The nitrides of iron, alluminium and chromium are very hard. But iron nitride is
exceptionally brittle, so plain carbon steel rarely undergo this kind of surface hardening.
Instead a special steel called nitralloy steel (low carbon steel having 1% Al, 1.5%Cr and 0.2%
Mo) used for this purpose. By heating this special steel at 500 0C for 40-90 hours in a gas-tight
compartement and circulating ammonia (NH 3) as the nitriding agent, the steel surface will
become very hard while its core remains soft.

(3) Selective Hardening

Using induction or oxyacetylene flame, the steel is brought into the austenite steel while
the core should be kept in the temperature below the critical line. Then, the surface must be
quenched rapidly by water jet. This kind of rapid cooling will produce martensite on the
surface but keep the core remain soft. This selective hardening is usually applied to small
components such as axles, camshafts, gear wheels, etc.

III.9. Metal Fabrication Techniques

Metal fabrication is normally preceded by other processes which produce alloys with desired
properties. The fabrication techniques include Forming, Casting or Powder Metallurgy. Included in
this technique is welding which basically consists of joining two pieces of metals.
Fabrication process may be done at higher temperature, hence it is termed Hot Working
Process; or at room temperature called Cold Working Process. The former has an advantage of
utilizing less deformation energy,but results in the poor surface finish due to oxidation.
Classification of metal fabrication techniques can be examined in the following chart.
III.9.1. Forming Operations
Forming operations are those for metal piece to change its shape by the use of plastic
deformation behavior of materials. Forming operations can be carried out either by hot or cold
working environments. Some of the techniques include Forging, Rolling, Extrusion and Drawing.

(1) Forging
Forging is a mechanically working or deforming process of shaping metal following a hot
working process. The hot metal is put in between double half dies and forged by sufficient
force. Forged articles normally have outstanding grain structures and best combination of
mechanical properties. Wrenches, crankshafts and pistons are typical examples of this
product.
 (2) Rolling
Rolling is used in cold working environment to reduce the thickness of metal by passing
the metal between two rollers. Cold rolling may be employed in the production sheets, strips
and foils with high quality of surface finish.
(3) Extrusion
Extrusion is done by pushing a metal bar through a die orifice to change its shape into a
desired shape and reduced cross-sectional area. Extrusion products include rods and tubes.
(4) Drawing
Drawing is done by passing a metal bar between two tapered dies and drawing it to
produce a smaller cross-section. Drawing products include rods, wires and tubes.

III.9.2. Casting Techniques

Casting techniques are those to produce a certain shape of metal by melting the metal and
pouring it into a mould. Upon solidification, the shaped metal will experience some shrinkage.
This casting techniques are employed in the following situations
a. The finished shape is so complicated;
b. For particular alloy with very low ductility that forming by either hot or cold working would
be difficult;
c. To achieve the economical cost of shaping.

A number of casting techniques commonly employed include Sand Casting, Die Casting, and
Investment Casting.
(1) Sand Casting
For the mould, ordinary sand is used as the mould material by compacting the sand
around the pattern which has the expected shape. Then the molten steel or iron is poured
into the mould and let it hardened. Items produced by this technique include automotive
cylinder blocks, fire hydrants and large pipe fittings.

(2) Die Casting

The mould consists of a two piece permanent steel which may be used for thousand times
of castings. The molten metal is injected into the mould with high speed and pressure and let
it hardened. This mould is normally used to produce small items with massive number and
alloys of zinc, aluminium or magnesium which have low melting temperature.

(3) Investment Casting

The pattern is initially made of wax or plastic with very low melting temperature and ease
of shaping. Once the pattern is ready, a fluid slurry is poured around the pattern and let it
hardened. Once the mould has hardened, it should be heated at temperature just enough to
melt the pattern so that the mould create cavity for the molten metal during the casting.

III.9.3. Powder Metallurgy

This metal fabrication technique is carried out by compacting powdered metals and followed
by heat treatment to produce non-porous piece having the same properties as its parent
material. This method is suitable for metals with high melting points and for items needing
dimensional accuracy level.
III.9.4. Welding
Included in this fabrication technique, welding is basically a process of joining two pieces of
metals (either of the same or different materials). Welding operations can be classified into (1)
Pressure Welding and (2) Fusion Welding. In the former, both ends of the metals are heated just
below the melting point, and without additional joining filler one end is pressed into the other to
get a bonding. In the later, both ends are locally melted and extra melted metal fill the joint.
The nature of bonding is more metallurgical than mechanical. The area of bonding is called
the heat affected zone (HAZ). The quality of the bonding depends on the properties of this HAZ
which is influenced by the heat treatment during the welding and its cooling rate. To produce the
heat, arc or gas welding can be used; and now laser beam is also used.

III.10. Corrosions of Metals

Corrosion is defined as a chemical destruction of metals due to the presence of destructing
agents either as the attacking substance or as electrolyte. The process of corrosion can be easily
observed but sometimes difficult to detect. Corrosion normally starts at the surface and gradually
develop inward. However, some types of corrosions do start from inside a tiny cavity which is
normally overlooked in the maintenance.
There is also a misperception that corrosion is only possible if the metal is placed in the
corrosive environment. As a matter of fact, even in the presence of pure water, metals may
corrode by galvanic action.
To give a broader picture of how metals corrode, the following discussions will describe the
matters.

III.10.1. Surface Oxidation

When metal is left in the open atmosphere, gases solved in the air may oxidize the metal. The
mechanism starts with the oxidation of the metal in the outer surface into positive metallic
atoms by releasing its electrons. The released electrons would be retained by the oxygen in the
atmosphere to form negative oxygen ions.
Those positive metallic ions will react the
negative oxygen ions to form the metal oxides
which is nothing but the rust. If this rust is
brushed away from the parent metal for some
reasons, then the new mechanism will start
again, etc.
The rate of this surface
oxidations depends on the so called PB ratios
(=Pilling-Bedworth Ratio). The ideal PB ratio is
unity meaning that the metal oxide just
formed during the corrosion will exactly cover
the area of the parent metal and thus
preventing the further corrosion. PB ratio less
than unity shows that the metal oxide just
formed is porous and this will not effectively
protect the metal from further corrosions.
However, PB ratio more than unity indicates the formation of metal oxides which is wider than
the area of the parent metal itself; thus there must be some irregularity of the surface plane due
to the surface stress. And at a certain PB value, some of those metal oxides would crack and
flake off the surface leaving behind porous oxide protections against further corrosions. In short,
 metal whose oxide has PB ratio in between
1-2 is considered having self protective
coating, those with PB ratio of less than unity
or more than 2 are considered not having
self protective coating. The rate of oxidation
for various metals is described by the
following graph.

For metals having porous oxide (PB ratio is

less than unity or more than 2) the graph is
linear, those with non-porus oxide (PB ratio
in between 1-2) it has a parabolic shape,
while for very thin oxide layers (less than 100
nm thick) the graph is logarithmic.

III.10.2. Galvanic Corrosions

If two different metals are present in the electrolyte and in contact one another, then one
metal will loss electrons and becoming Anode, and
the other metal will receive the electrons and become
Cathode. The anodic metal will corrode and the
cathodic metal will be protected from corrosion. This
phenomenon is termed as Galvanic Action.
In the following example, the galvanic couple,
both metals Fe and Zn release their electrons in the
electrolyte.
At the anode: Fe ↔ 2+ ¿+2 e ¿ −¿¿

Fe
At the cathode: Zn ↔ 2+¿+2 e ¿−¿¿

Zn
However, when both metals are connected through
the external circuit, the electrons from the Zn metal
will flow towards the Fe metal to push the
equilibrium of oxidation reaction to the left meaning
that Fe metal is protected. On the other hand, the
leaving of electrons at Zn metal willl push the equilibrium of Zn oxidation further to right
accelerating the corrosion of the metal.
Less noble metals will tend to become the anode and the more noble will tend to become
the cathode as shown in the following Table of the standard electromotive force (emf) series.
 There are many variants of Galvanic Corrosions, some of them include the following actions
(1) Corrosions due to Hydrogen Evolution

Let us now consider the following situation where we have a steel container with mildly
acid liquid to be stored. By accident a small piece of copper fell down into the container and
lying in contact with the bottom floor of the container. At the beginning, each metal will
undergo the following equilibrium oxidation reaction
−¿¿
Fe ↔ Fe2+ ¿+2 e ¿
−¿¿

Cu ↔ Cu+¿+e ¿
 Because Fe is less noble compared to Cu in the emf series, then the steel container will
become the anode serving as the sacrificial metal and the copper becomes the protected
cathode. And the corrosion of the steel container occurs but it will not last for long because
the mass of the copper is much smaller than the container.

(2) Pitting Corrosion

Given a steel plate with a small crack or scratch somewhere in the middle and a drop of
raining water cover the crack. At the crack, the steel will be oxidized and becoming the
anode

−¿¿

Fe ↔ Fe2+ ¿+2 e ¿
The released electrons will be intercepted by the oxygen in the atmosphere or in the water
to form hydroxyl ions and become the cathode
1
H 2 O+ O 2 +2 e−¿↔ 2(OH )
−¿¿
¿
2
The Fe2+ ¿¿ ions will emigrate from the crack toward the edge of the water drop and
combine the (OH ) ions into Fe(OH )2 , soft brown rust; and later is further oxidized into
−¿¿

Fe(OH )3 , hard rust.

Since the anode is small compared to the cathode, the corrosion is concentrated and
rapid perforation occurs within the crack; this is why the corrosion is termed as Pitting
Corrosion.

(3) Splash Zone Corrosion

When steel pole is used in the splash zone, the pole above the splashed zone will become
the cathode because of the high oxygen concentration in the area while the pole under the
water becomes the anode due to the lack of oxygen concentration.
 −¿¿

Fe ↔ Fe2+ ¿+2 e ¿
The released electrons from below will be intercepted by the oxygen in the splash zone to
form hydroxyl ions and become the cathode
1
H 2 O+ O 2 +2 e−¿↔ 2(OH )
−¿¿
¿
2

The Fe2+ ¿¿ ions will migrate from below to the splash zone to combine the (OH ) ions
−¿¿

into Fe(OH )2 , in the form of soft brown rust; and later is further oxidized into Fe(OH )3 ,
into hard rust. This mechanism explain why corrosion takes place in the splash area.

(4) Corrosion at the Scratched Areas

Similar to the pitting corrosion, when steel with protecting coat is scratched and
moisture is there, corrosion can either happen or not.
If the coating is made of less noble metal, say zinc, then the coating will serve as the
anode or as the sacrificial metal to protect the steel. However, if the coating is made of a
more noble metal, Sn for example, the scratch will further be corroded.

(5) Corrossion due to Concentrated Stress

After cold-work, metal is normally left with residual stresses especially at the folded
areas; this area will became the anodic and prone to corrosion attack. One example of this
type of corrosion is given below
III.11. Metal Protecton Against Corrosion
There are a number of methods to fight against corrosion, they are
(1) The choice of the proper combination of metals and alloys
(2) The use of surface coatings
(3) Galvanic protection

III.11.1. The Choice of the Proper Combination of Metals or Alloys

With the knowledge of metal properties and its alloys, the choice of metals or its alloys is
taken based on the environment where the material will be exposed. For example, the use of
high-purity alluminium and copper will stop its further corrosions once the surface films of oxide
is formed.
Sometimes, it is necessary to add some impurities of other substance to increase the steel
resistance against corrosion; for example stainless steel S44600 is produced by adding 0.2%C,
25% Cr and 1.5%Mn to the ferritic steel.

III.11.2. The Use of Surface Coatings

The idea of the use of surface coating is to isolate the parent steel from the ambient
environment. There are various types of coatings which fall into Metallic and Non-metallic
Coatings.
Metallic coating can be applied by hot-dipping or by electroplating. The earlier is done by
dipping the parent steel into the bath containing the molten plating metal. The later is done by
passing a current through a bath containing salt of the plating metal and the object to be
plated is made the cathode while for the anode an inert substance is used as the pole.
 Non metallic coating is more popularly called painting. This is the easiest and cheapest way of
coating steel materials. However, the thin coating is prone to mechanical scratch and peel off
due to UV rays.

III.11.3. Galvanic Protection

The philosophy of this protection is to make use of the galvanic cell phenomenon to protect
the parent steel. To do that, the parent steel must be connected to the sacrificing metal. The
sacrificing metal must be taken from those having lower emf number. Some examples of such a
protection can be examined in the following figures