Metals and Alloys

Metals
→ elemental substances exhibiting the
following characteristics:
i. High electrical and thermal conductivity
ii. Have a characteristic surface luster or shine
iii.Malleable and ductile

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Alloys
→ substances composed of two or more
metals, or sometimes a metal and a non metal,
which have been intimately mixed by fusion,
electrolytic deposition or the like
→ substances which are composed of two or
more chemical elements such that the metallic
bond predominates and in terms of
composition, metallic elements are the primary
constituents
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Constituents of an alloy:

1. Base metal
→ element present in major proportions
2. Alloying elements
→ other elements present in minor
proportions

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Classifications of alloys:

1. Cast alloys
→ brittle alloys that cannot undergo
appreciable deformation during forming
or shaping
→ these alloys are generally cast
2. Wrought alloys
→ alloys that are amenable to mechanical
deformation (ductile)

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Major classification systems for metals:

1. AISI-SAE System
→ system adopted by the American Iron and
Steel Institute and the Society of
Automotive Engineers AISI-SAE; widely
used in the US and in the Philippines
2. ASTM System
→ used by the American Standard for Testing
and Materials; for steels, ASTM
designations uses the AISI-SAE designation
as grade number
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Major classification systems for metals:

3. UNS System
→ a five-digit Unified Numbering System
designed to put all metal alloys under one
designation system; has the four digits of
the AISI-SAE system

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Classification of metals and alloys

I. Ferrous Alloys
→ alloys whose primary constituent is iron
→ widely used because of three primary
factors:
i. iron-containing compounds exist abundantly on
the earth’s crust
ii. may be produced using economical extraction,
refining, alloying and fabrication techniques
iii. extremely versatile

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A. STEELS

→ alloys of iron and carbon having up to 2 wt

% carbon
1. Low Alloy/Plain Carbon Steels
- steels that contain only residual
concentrations of impurities other than
carbon and a little manganese
a. Low Carbon Steels
– produced in the greatest quantities
– contain less than 0.25 wt % carbon
– ex. automobile parts, structural shapes (I-
beams, sheets, pipelines, buildings, etc.) 8
*High Strength Low Alloy (HSLA) steels
→ contain other alloying elements such as copper,
vanadium, nickel and molybdenum in combined
concentrations of up to 10 wt %
→ carbon content between 0.05–0.25% C
→ possess higher strengths than plain low carbon
steels
→ are not made to meet a specific chemical
composition, but rather to specific mechanical
properties
→ used where structural strength is critical such as
support columns in high-rise buildings, bridges and
pressure vessels

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A. STEELS
b. Medium Carbon Steels
– contain 0.25 to 0.60 wt % carbon
– heat treatable with tempered martensite as the
most common form
– used in tracks, gears and high strength
structural components
c. High Carbon Steels
– contain 0.60 to 1.40 wt % carbon
– wear resistant and capable of holding a sharp
edge
– used in cutting tools, dies, razors, blades,
springs and high strength wires
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A. STEELS

2. High alloy/alloyed steels

- steels having alloying elements which are
intentionally added in specific
concentrations to improve specific
properties
a. Tool Steels
– mainly used for tools, hence the name ‘tool
steels’
– used for general machine parts where strength,
wear resistance and dimensional stability are
required
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A. STEELS
b. Stainless Steels
– contain at least 11% chromium
– highly resistant to corrosion in a variety of
environments
– have a wide range of properties combined with
corrosion resistance
– utilized in gas turbines, high temperature
boilers, heat treating furnaces, aircrafts, etc.
– corrosion resistance is attributed to the
formation of a thin, adherent, stable chromium
oxide or nickel oxide film that effectively
protects the steel against many corrosive
media (passivation effect)
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A. STEELS
i. Martensitic Stainless Steels
– responds to heat treatment such that
martensite is formed as the primary constituent
– primarily chromium steels with 11.5-18 %Cr
ii. Ferritic Stainless Steels
– has ferrite, α as the primary constituent at room
temperature
– straight-chromium stainless steels with
approximately 14 to 27 %Cr; low in carbon
content
– does not respond to heat treatment; hardenable
by cold working
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A. STEELS
iii. Austenitic Stainless Steels
– has austenite,γ as the primary constituent at
room temperature
– these are the chromium-nickel (3xx) and
chromium–nickel-manganese (2xx) types;
nickel promotes austenite texture
– total nickel and chromium content are at least
23%
– does not respond to heat treatment; hardenable
by cold working

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B. CAST IRONS
→ class of ferrous alloys with carbon contents above
2 wt %
→ have low melting points which make them easy to
cast
→ generally brittle
→ characterized by the existence of carbon as
graphite and not as cementite
→ graphite formation is promoted by the presence of
silicon in amounts greater than 1 wt % and slow
cooling rates
→ classified according to metallographic structure
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Types of Cast Iron:
1. Gray Cast Iron
→ most widely used form of cast iron
→ carbon and silicon contents vary between 2.5
to 4.0 wt% (hypoeutectic) and 1.0 to 3.0 wt %
respectively
→ graphite exists in the form of flakes, making the
fractured surface have a gray color
→ weak and brittle in tension (because the
graphite flakes act as stress concentrators)
→ effective in damping vibrational energy (ex. are
engine blocks and equipment base, etc)
→ wear resistant and least expensive among the
metals
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Gray Cast Iron

Gray Cast Iron: dark graphite flakes

are embedded in a ferrite matrix 17
Types of Cast Iron:

2. Ductile or nodular cast iron

→ also known as spheroidal graphite iron or
spherulitic iron
→ addition of magnesium (sometimes cerium)
promotes the formation of graphite in the
form of nodules or spheres
→ stronger and more ductile
→ common applications are valves, pump
bodies, gears, etc.

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White cast iron

light cementite regions surrounded by a

ferrite-cementite layered structure
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Types of Cast Iron:
3. White cast iron
→ contains low amounts of silicon and produced
from high cooling rates; carbon exists as
cementite instead of graphite (fractured surface is
white)
→ all white cast irons are hypoeutectic alloys
→ typical microstructure consists of dendrites of
transformed austenite (pearlite) in a white
interdendritic network of cementite
→ harder and more brittle, thus, difficult to machine
→ used in limited applications that necessitate a very
hard and wear-resistant surface such as rollers in
rolling mills
→ serves as the starting material for malleable iron 20
Nodular cast iron

dark graphite nodules surrounded

by a ferrite matrix 21
Types of Cast Iron:
4. Malleable cast iron
→ produced by heating white iron at
temperatures between 800 to 900°C for a
prolonged period of time causing
decomposition of cementite, forming
graphite (temper carbon) which exists in the
form of clusters or rosettes
→ relatively high strength and appreciable
ductility
→ used for connecting rods, transmission
gears, differential cases for cars, pipe
fittings, valve parts for railroad, marine and
other heavy duty services 22
Malleable cast iron

dark graphite rosettes (temper

carbon) in a ferrite matrix 23
Classification of metals and alloys

II. Non-ferrous Alloys

→ alloys whose primary constituent is a metal
other than iron
→ utilized primarily because of their unique
properties in specific applications

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A. Copper and Its Alloys

→ used widely in its pure and alloyed form

→ soft and ductile, corrosion resistant, medium
tensile strengths, good electrical and thermal
conductivities, machinability, ease of
fabrication
→ non-magnetic
→ not responsive to heat treatment; possible
strengthening mechanism includes alloying
and cold working

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A. Copper and its alloys
1. Brass
− an alloy of Cu and Zn, with some amounts of
lead, tin or aluminum
− harder and stronger than pure copper
− used as custom jewelry, cartridge casings,
automotive radiators, musical instruments,
electronic packaging and coins
2. Bronze
– an alloy of Cu and Sn
– stronger than brass and has a high degree of
corrosion resistance
– used where corrosion resistance and good
tensile property is required such as bearings
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Brass Bronze

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A. Copper and its alloys
3. Cupronickels
− copper nickel alloys than contain up to 30% Ni
− exist as single phase alloys
− have high resistances to corrosion fatigue and
high resistance to corrosive and erosive action
of rapidly moving sea water

4. Nickel Silvers
– essentially ternary alloys of copper, nickel and
zinc
– has a pleasing silver-blue color and exhibits
good corrosion resistance to food, chemicals,
water and the atmosphere
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Cupronickel Nickel Silver

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B. Aluminum and Its Alloys
→ relatively low density (2.7 g/cm3 as compared to 7.9
g/cm3 for steel)
→ has high electrical and thermal conductivities
→ non-toxic and used extensively for food containers
and packaging
→ good corrosion resistance (forms a passivating
layer)
→ has high ductility; can be produced in sheets and
other wrought form
→ used where light weight is a necessity such as in
transportation
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C. Nickel and Its Alloys

→ highly resistant to corrosion and oxidation in

many environments
→ often plated to other metals as a protective
measure
→ white in color and good workability and good
mechanical properties

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D. Magnesium and Its Alloys

→ with density = 1.74 g/cm3; competes with

aluminum in light-weight applications
→ has many disadvantages: expensive, difficult
to cast; not easily deformable at room
temperature

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E. Titanium and Its Alloys

→ relatively new and possess an extraordinary

combination of properties
→ pure titanium has a relatively low density
(4.5 g/cm3) and high melting point (1668°F)
→ extremely strong
→ highly ductile and easily forged and
machined

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F. Refractory metals

→ used for high-temperature applications

→ include niobium (Nb), molybdenum (Mo),
tungsten (W) and tantalum (Ta)
→ possess high melting points (2468°C for Nb
to 3410°C for W)
→ interatomic bonding is extremely strong
resulting to high strengths and hardness
→ used as structural parts in space vehicles,
light filaments, x-ray tubes and welding
electrodes
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