INTRODUCTION TO

AUTOMOTIVE MATERIALS

By:- Achini Herath

Materials
Iron ore

Hematite Pellets of iron ore

Metals
Classification
1. According to General Properties

2. According to Nature of Materials

3. According to Applications
1. According to General Properties

(a). Metals (e.g. iron, aluminium, copper, zinc, lead,

etc) Iron as the base metal, and range from plain
carbon (> 98 % Fe) to
(i). Ferrous: high alloy steel (< 50 % alloying
elements), e.g. cast iron, wrought iron, steel, alloys
like high-speed steel, spring steel, etc

(ii). Non-Ferrous: Rest of the all other metals and

their alloys, e.g. copper, aluminium, zinc lead, alloys
like brass, bronze, duralumin, etc

(b). Non-Metals (e.g. leather, rubber, asbestos,

plastics, etc)
Metals

Non Metals
2. According to Nature of Materials

(a). Metals: e.g. Iron & Steel, Alloys & Super alloys,
Intermetallic Compounds, etc.

(b). Ceramics: e.g. Structural Ceramics (high-temperature load

bearing), Refractories(corrosion-resistant, insulating), White
wares (porcelains), Glass, Electrical Ceramics (capacitors,
insulators, transducers), Chemically Bonded Ceramics (cement
& concrete)
(c).Polymers: e.g. Plastics, Liquid Crystals, Adhesives

(d). Electronic Materials: e.g. Silicon, Germanium,

Photonic materials (solid-state lasers, LEDs)
(e). Composites: e.g. Particulate composites (small particles
embedded in a different material), Laminate composites (golf club
shafts, tennis rackets), Fiber reinforced composites(fiberglass)

(f). Biomaterials: e.g. Man-made proteins (artificial bacterium),

Biosensors, etc.
(g). Advanced / Smart Materials: e.g. materials in
computers (VCRs, CD Players, etc.), fiberoptic systems, space
crafts, aircrafts, rockets, shape-memory alloys, piezoelectric
ceramics, magnetostrictive materials, optical fibers,
microelectromechanical (MEMs) devices, electrorheological /
magnetorheological fluids, Nanomaterials, etc.
3. According to Applications

(a). Electrical Materials: e.g. conductors, insulators,

dielectrics, etc

(b). Electronic Materials: e.g. conductors, semi-

conductors, etc

semi-conductors
(c). Magnetic Materials: e.g. ferromagnetic,
paramagnetic & diamagnetic materials, etc

(d). Optical Materials: e.g. glass, quartz, etc

Quartz

(e). Bio Materials: e.g. man-made proteins, artificial

bacterium
Classification of Engineering Materials
Engineering
materials

Metals and their

alloys Non metals
iron, steel, copper,
glass, rubber, plastic
aluminium

Ferrous Metals -Ferrous Metals

cast iron, wrought Containing iron as their primary
iron and steel. elements
Non ferrous -Non ferrous Metals
Metals Not containing iron as
copper, aluminium,
brass, tin, zinc primary elements
 Application of Materials
• Ferrous Metals: iron and steel.
Automotive applications: chassis, engine parts,
drive train, body parts
• Nonferrous Metals and Alloys: aluminum,
magnesium, copper, nickel, titanium, super
alloys, beryllium, zirconium, low-melting alloys,
precious metals.
Automotive applications: aluminum engine
blocks, copper wiring, mag wheels
• Plastics: thermoplastics, thermosets, elastomers.
Automotive applications: body panels, instrument
panels, electrical and thermal insulation, seals, hoses,
tires

• Ceramics: glass, graphite, diamond.

• Automotive applications: Windscreen
• Composite materials: reinforced plastics, metal-matrix
and ceramic-matrix composites, honeycomb
structures.
Materials are used to build a modern car
 Ferrous Materials - Steels

➢ Steels - alloys of iron-carbon. May contain other alloying

elements.
Several grades are available.
• Low Alloy (<10 wt%)
–Low Carbon (<0.25 wt% C)
–Medium Carbon (0.25 to
0.60wt%)
–High Carbon (0.6 to 1.4 wt%)

• High Alloy
–Stainless Steel (> 11 wt% Cr)
–Tool Steel
 Selection of Materials for
Engineering Purposes
 Availability of the materials

 Suitability of the materials for the working

conditions in service

 The cost of the materials.

Ex:- plastic -electrical insulator and prevents electric

shock, cheap, tough, and easily moulded to shape
 PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS
Mechanical Properties: e.g. strength, ductility, hardness,
toughness, etc.

Physical Properties: e.g. density, appearance, shape,

weight, boiling point, Melting point, electrical
conductivity, thermal conductivity, etc.

Chemical Properties: e.g. reactivity, corrosion resistance

in various environments.

Manufacturing Properties: e.g. formability, machinability,

ease of joining, etc.
 SOME IMPORTANT MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS
• HARDNESS
• TOUGHNESS
• MALLEABILITY
• DUCTILITY
• ELASTICITY
• STRENGTH
 HARDNESS
 It is the ability of material to resist to permanent
shape change due to external stress. A material is
hard if it is not easily worn away or dented.
Cutting tools and some kitchen utensils are made
from hard materials.
 A simple test to compare the hardness of
different materials can be carried out using a
centre punch. Drop the punch from the height of
500 mm onto each sample in turn and compare
the dents. The smaller the dent, the harder the
material.
TOUGHNESS
 A tough material is one that can withstand sudden
shocks without breaking. car bumpers and cycle
helmets are made from tough materials.

Brittleness
 A material that breaks easily with a sudden shock is
said to be brittle.
MALLEABILITY
 A malleable material is one that can be permanently
deformed without cracking or tearing when it is
compressed.
 Malleable materials can be hammed into new
shapes, an essential property when making some
jewelers and decorative products.
DUCTILITY
 A ductile material is one that can be permanently
deformed without cracking or tearing when it is
tension. Some rods and wires are made from
ductile materials.

 With rise of temperature, the ductility of material

increases.
ELASTICITY

 An elastic material is one that returns to its

original shape after being deformed.
Springs, rubber bands and trampolines and
car bumpers are made from elastic
materials.

 A material that does not return to its

original shape after being deformed is said
to be plastic.
 STRENGTH
 A strong material is one that can resist a force without breaking or
permanently distorting. A material will have different strengths
against different types of force.
▪ A material has tensile strength if it resists stretching forces

▪ A material has compressive strength if it resists squashing

forces
▪ A material has bending strength if it resists bending forces

▪ A material has torsional strength if it resists twisting forces

▪ A material has shear strength if it resists shear forces (forces

that attempt to cause one part of the material to ‘slide past’
another part)
DIFFERENT TYPES OF FORCE
Mechanical properties of
materials
 1. Tensile strength TS
 It is the ability of a material to withstand
tensile ( stretching ) loads without
breaking.
 Strength: is the ability of a material to
resist applied forces without fracturing.
 2. Toughness
 It is the ability of the materials to withstand
bending or it is the application of shear
stresses without fracture, so the rubbers and
most plastic materials do not shatter,
therefore they are tough

high-carbon steel- bend

glass - break
 3. Malleability
 It is the capacity of substance to withstand
deformation under compression without rupture
or the malleable material allows a useful
amount of plastic deformation to occur under
compressive loading before fracture occurs.
4. Hardness
 It is the ability of a material to withstand
scratching (abrasion) or indentation by
another hard body , it is an indication of the
wear resistance of the material.
 hardened steel ball being pressed first
into a hard material and then into a soft
material by the same load. As seen that
the ball only makes a small indentation
in the hard material but it makes a very
much deeper impression in the softer
material.
5. Ductility
 It refer to the capacity of substance to
undergo deformation under tension without
rupture as in wire drawing (as shown in
figure, tube drawing operation
6. Stiffness
 It is the measure of a material's ability not to
deflect under an applied load.
 For example, although steel is very much
stronger than cast iron, then the cast iron is
preferred for machine beds and frames
because it is more rigid and less likely to
deflect with consequent loss of alignment
and accuracy.
Stiffness (rigidity):
(a) The tested materials deflect under a light load
(b) The tested materials deflect under a heavy
load.
7. Brittleness
 It is the property of a material that shows
little or no plastic deformation before
fracture when a force is applied.

Brittleness testing device

8. Elasticity
 It is the ability of a material to deform under
load and return to its original size and shape
when the load is removed. If it is made from
an elastic material it will be the same length
before and after the load is applied, despite
the fact that it will be longer whilst the load is
being applied.
9. Plasticity
 This property is the exact opposite to
elasticity.
 It is the state of a material which has been
loaded beyond its elastic limit so as to cause
the material to deform permanently.
 Under such conditions the material takes a
permanent set and will not return to its
original size and shape when the load is
removed.
Materials Testing
1. To determine the quality of a material. This
may be one aspect of process control in
production plant.
2. To determine such properties as strength,
hardness, and ductility.
3. To check for flaws within a material or in a
finished component.
4. To assess the likely performance of the
material in a particular service condition.
Tensile test

Tensile testing machine

Tensile test results
From A to B the extension is proportional to the applied
load. Also, if the load is removed the specimen returns to
its original length. Under these relatively lightly loaded
conditions the material is showing elastic properties.
 From B to C it can be seen from the graph that
the metal suddenly extends with no increase in
load.
 If the load is removed at this point the metal will
not spring back to its original length and it is
said to have taken a permanent set.
 Therefore, B is called "limit of proportionality ",
and if the force is increased beyond this point a
stage is reached where a sudden extension
takes place with no increase in force.
 This is known as the" yield point" C.
 From C to D extension is no longer
proportional to the load, and if the load
is removed little or no spring back will occur.

 Under these relatively greater loads the

material is showing plastic properties.

 The point D is referred to as the 'ultimate

tensile strength'
 From D to E the specimen appears to be
stretching under reduced load conditions. In
fact the specimen is thinning out (necking)
so that the 'load per unit area' or stress is
actually increasing.

 The specimen finally work hardens to such

an extent that it breaks at E.
 𝐹
𝐴
∆𝐿
𝐿
 F

Or young Modules

𝐅 ∗𝐋
Elongation ∆𝑳 =
𝐄 ∗𝐀
 E= 𝐹
𝐴
X
𝐿
∆𝐿

This constant term (E) is variously known as

'Young's modulus', the 'modulus of elasticity' or
the 'tensile modulus'.
Question

Kips= pound per square inch

Example

Calculate the modulus of elasticity for a material

which produces the following data when
undergoing test:
Applied load = 35.7 kN, Cross-sectional area =
25mm2,Gauge length (Original length)= 28 mm,
Extension = 0.2 mm.
2. The compression test
3. Ductility testing
 Close bend test The specimen is bent over on
itself and flattened. No allowance is made for
spring back, and the material is satisfactory if the
test can be completed without the metal tearing
or fracturing. This also applies to the following
tests.
 Angle bend test The material is bent over a
former and the nose radius of the former and the
angle of bend (θ˚) are fixed by specification.
Again no allowance is made for spring back.
 180 ˚ bend test This is a development of the
angle bend test using a flat former as shown.
Only the nose radius of the former is specified.