MSE222 Materials Science Lab

Thermal Expansion Coefficient

Abdelrahman Nasser Taha id:120220181

Omar Khaled Elgohary id: 120220184

Mohamed Ahmed Elhageen id :120220207

Omar Osama Elnhhas id:120220185

Isalam Fathy id:120220191

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.

1. Introduction.......................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
2. Methodology....................................................................................................4
2.1 Equipment.............................................................................................4
2.2 Procedure..............................................................................................5
3. Results and Discussion......................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
4. Conclusion.........................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
5. References..........................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
 1.Introduction

A basic scientific phenomenon known as thermal expansion happens

when a material experiences a change in size as a result of temperature
variations. Heat causes particles in substances to become more energetic
and move faster, increasing the material's overall volume or length. On
the other hand, the particles lose energy when they cool, which causes
the material to contract or shrink. The expansion or contraction of
materials in one or more dimensions (length, area, or volume) as a direct
result of temperature changes is referred to in this context as thermal
expansion. The coefficient of thermal expansion, a feature unique to
each material that expresses the fractional change in dimension per
degree of temperature change, is commonly used to quantify this
expansion. In general, the length change, ΔL, is proportional to both L0
and ΔT when a rod with length L0 and initial temperature T0
experiences a temperature change of a sufficiently modest magnitude,
ΔT. Mathematically expressed: ΔL=αLΔT
The material-specific property known as the coefficient of thermal
expansion (CTE), generally represented as α (alpha), measures the
amount a material's dimensions change with temperature changes. It
shows the fractional change per degree of temperature change in length
(linear expansion), area (area expansion), or volume (volumetric
expansion). Units of CTE are commonly stated in degrees Celsius (°C)
or degrees Fahrenheit (°F). Most materials have positive CTEs, meaning
that they expand at high temperatures and compress at low ones. With
universal values of 1/°C=(°C)−1, α is referred to as the coefficient of
linear expansion for the material in question. The coefficient of linear
expansion will then be obtained by solving equation 1 as follows: α= ΔL
/LΔT
In engineering and design, knowing a material's coefficient of thermal
expansion (CTE) is essential because it makes it possible to forecast how
a material will react to temperature changes and to build structures and
components that can withstand thermal expansion without experiencing
issues like stress, warping, or cracking. Furthermore, it is crucial for a
number of technical and manufacturing applications, including:
Building and Construction: When constructing structures, engineers and
architects need to take thermal expansion into account. For instance,
expansion is considered while designing highways, buildings, and
bridges. joints and other methods to adapt to size variations brought on
by temperature without causing structural harm.
aircraft: A thorough grasp of CTE is essential in aircraft engineering, as
materials must withstand drastic temperature fluctuations. Aircraft
wings and fuselages, for example, are made to endure temperature
changes during flight. Electronics: Understanding a material's capacity
for thermal expansion is essential when designing microelectronic
devices in order to guard against thermal stress-related damage. It's
crucial when creating semiconductor devices and printed circuit boards.
2.Methodology:

2.1 Equipment

We will compute the coefficient of linear expansion of various materials

in this experiment. We use various tubes made of various materials, and
we measure the linear expansion of each tube by passing hot water
through them at varying temperatures. The experiment calculates the
linear expansion of PVC, PE, steel, and two copper tubes with different
diameters (8, 15). The setup is depicted in the figure below.
2.2Procedure

1. Adjusting zero point:

Adjust the dial gauge at 1 mm and take the reading at the room
temperature.
2. Measuring thermal expansion:
2.1Open inlet ball-cock to start the water flow.
2.2Adjust the temperature of water that enters the tubes at 25℃,
30℃ , 40℃ , 55 ℃ and wait till the temperature of the outlet
equals or nearly equals the inlet temperature then take the
change in linear expansion at each temperature.
2.3Plot a graph between the change in linear expansion and the
temperature then calculate the slope (coefficient of linear
expansion).
 3.Results

Temperature 25 30 40 55
ΔL (PVC) 0 0.4 1.07 1.94
ΔL (PE) 0 0.98 3.2 5.9
ΔL Steel 0 0.03 0.11 0.25
ΔL Copper DN8 0 0.05 0.15 0.3
ΔL Copper DN15 0 0.06 0.16 0.33

Thermal expansion coefficient:

ΔL
Formula: α = Lo ΔT

Tube Thermal expansion Coefficient Thermal expansion Percent

Material (Calculated) [°C-1] Coefficient (Literature) [°C-1] Error
PE 2.02 x10-4 1.5 x10-4 34.67%
PVC 7.1 x10^-5 5.5 x10-5 29.09%
Steel 7.17 x 10^-6 10.8 x10-6 33.61%
Copper 10.3 x 10^-6 16.6 x10-6 37.95%

Graph:
Question 1:
PE has the largest coefficient of thermal expansion.
Question 2:
Expansion and contraction: Concrete materials expand and contract with
changes in temperature. By leaving gaps between segments, engineers
allow for the natural expansion and contraction of the concrete without
causing structural damage. Without these gaps, the thermal stresses
could lead to cracking or failure of the structure.
3. Conclusion
The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) is a measure of how a
material's dimensions (length, area, volume, etc.) change in response to a
change in temperature. It is typically expressed as a fractional change in
size per degree Celsius (or per degree Fahrenheit).
4. References:
1.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5506936/
2.https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/j150515a016
3.https://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~msci301/ThermalExpansion.pdf