ENGINEERING MATERIALS

We wish to further explain engineering materials with respect to

mechanical properties and how these are tailored to meet specific
engineering requirements.
The groups of engineering materials are expanded as follows:
• FERROUS ALLOYS
• NONFERROUS ALLOYS
• CERAMIC MATERIALS
• POLYMERS
• COMPOSITE MATERIALS
• CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 FERROUS ALLOYS
Ferrous alloys are based on iron-carbon system and
will include:
– Plain carbon steels
– Alloy and tool steels
– Stainless steels
– Cast irons (grey cast iron; nodular or ductile iron)
Steels are typically produced by:
• Refining liquid iron (pig iron)
• Recycling scrap steel
 Iron and Steel Production
Iron Production
Iron ore (Fe2O3) is heated in a blast furnace in the presence of coke
(carbon) and air (oxygen).
Carbon reduces iron oxide to liquid pig iron:
Fe2O3 + C = 2FeO + CO
FeO + CO = Fe + CO2
Limestone (CaCO3) that is added assists in removing impurities by
melting to form a liquid slag.
Liquid iron product contains large amounts of dissolved carbon and is
cast into pig iron
Pig iron is remelted to produce a wide range of castable engineering
items (grey cast irons, white cast iron and nodular iron)
Steel Production
Liquid iron contains large amounts of carbon which must be removed before
steel can be made. This is achieved by blowing oxygen into a basic oxygen
furnace:
C + O2 = CO2
Equally, steel is produced from recycled steel scrap which is melted in an arc
furnace.
By adjusting the composition of carbon, manganese and silicon in liquid steel,
we produce a wide range of alloy steel grades
Liquid steel maybe poured directly into moulds to produce finished steel
castings; it is also allowed to solidify into shapes (blooms and billets) that
are later processed by metal-forming techniques such as rolling and forging
Properties of steels depend on the amount, size, shape and distribution of
cementite: Fe + C = Fe3C and response to alloying and heat treatment.
 Designation of Steels
The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) and Society of Automotive
Engineers (SAE) provide steel designations that provide four- or five-digit
number.
The first two numbers refer to major alloying elements present and the last two
or three refer to the percentage of carbon.
An AISI 1040 steel is a plain carbon steel with 0.40%C
An SAE 10120 steel is a plain carbon steel containing 1.20%C
An AISI 4340 steel is an alloy steel containing 0.40%C
British Standards Institute (BSI) provides a six-digit code for each grade of
steel: first three digits denote the family of steel to which the alloy belongs:
(000-199 plain carbon steel; 300-499 stainless and heat resisting steels);
fourth character indicates whether steel is ordered for its chemical
composition limits (A), mechanical property limits (M), hardenability limits
(H) or as stainless steel (s); two final digits represent carbon content of steel
(eg 40 would refer to 0.40%C)