chapter 3 :

Engineering Materials & Their

Behaviours

BDA 20402 / BDA 2042

ENGINEERING MATERIALS SELECTION
2013 / 2014 Semester 1
3.1 INTRODUCTION

3.2 CLASSIFICATION OF ENGINEERING MATERIALS

3.3 DEFINITIONS OF MATERIAL PROPERTIES

 3.1 Introduction
Successful product:

• Performs well

• Good value for money

• Gives pleasure to user

• Uses the best materials for the

job, and fully exploits their
potential and characteristics;
brings out their “flavour”
 3.1 Introduction
• Successful product – another perspective
• Taken from: Hugh Dubberly, Alan Cooper and the Goal Directed
Design Process, Gain AIGA Journal of Design for the Network
Economy, Volume 1, Number 2, 2001
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(K
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Ca am
ina

em
pa pua
i ng
bo rab

bil
(Ke Desi

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PRODUCT

Viability
(Daya saing / Daya maju)
3.2 The Classes of Engineering
Material

Metals

Polymers Ceramics

Composites

Fig. 3.1: The menu of

engineering materials
Elastomer
[Ashby, 1992]
Glasses
 Traditional
Classification
of Materials
METAL

COMPOSITE

CERAMIC POLYMER
 METAL
• Relatively high moduli

• Can be strengthen via alloying &

treatment (heat & mechanical) but
still ductile enough to be deformed

• Prey to fatigue

• Relatively least resistant to corrosion

CERAMICS & GLASSES
• High moduli but brittle

• Low tolerence for stress

concentrations (eg. holes or
cracks) or high contact stresses
(eg. clamping point)

• Stiff, hard and abrasion-resistant

• Retain strength to high

temperatures

• Corrosion resistant.
 Polymers & Elastomers
• Low moduli (50 times less than
metals) but can be strong as metals

• Large elastic deflections

• Creep at room temperature (a

process in which a material
elongates with time under an
applied load)

• Easy to shape (simple – complex

shapes)

• Corrosion resistant

• Low coefficients of friction

COMPOSITES
• Combine attractive properties of other
classes of materials while avoiding
some drawbacks
• Light, stiff, strong and tough
• Presently polymer matrix (epoxy or
polyester) with fiber reinforcements
(glass, carbon or Kevlar)
• Application temperature limit of 250°C
due to softening of the matrix
(polymers)
• Relatively expensive and difficult to
form and join
• Use when added performance justifies
the added cost.
3.3 The definitions of Material Properties

• Attribute

• Standard
properties: density,
modulus, strength,
toughness, thermal
conductivity etc.

• Refer Table 3.1

Table 3.1: Design-limiting material properties and their usual SI units [Ashby, 1992]
Class Property Symbol Units

General Cost Cm $/kg

Density Ρ kg/m3

Mechanical Elastic moduli (Young’s, shear, bulk) E, G, K GPa

Strength (yield, ultimate, fracture) σf MPa
Toughness Gc kJ/m2
Fracture toughness KIc MPa.m½
Damping capacity -
σe
Fatigue endurance limit MPa
λ
Thermal Thermal conductivity W/mK
A
Thermal diffusivity m2/s
Cp
Specific heat J/kg.K
Tm
Melting point K
Glass temperature Tg K
Thermal expansion coefficient Α °K-1
Thermal shock resistance ΔT °K
Creep resistence - -

Wear Archard wear constant MPa-1

kA
Corrosion/oxidation Corrosion rate mm/year
Parabolic rate constant K m2/s
Kp
Density, ρ

• Unit: kg/m3

• Weight per unit

volume

• Originated from
Archimedes:
weighing in air and
in a fluid of known
density.
 Elastic Modulus, E, G, K (GPa or GN/m2)
• The slope of the linear-elastic part of the
stress-strain curve Young Modulus, E,
the ratio of stress to strain (σ/ε), in the
linear elastic region.
– Describes tension or compression

• Shear Modulus, G , the ratio of the

applied shear stress and shear strain,
– Describes shear loading

• Bulk Modulus, K, measures the elastic

response to hydrostatic pressure. Ratio
of mean normal stress to the change in
volume
K =- v dp/dv

• Poisson’s ratio, γ, the negative ratio of

transverse strain to axial strain
– Dimensionless; negative of the ratio
of the lateral strain to the axial strain,
- ε2/ε1 in axial loading
The stress-strain curve for a metal,
showing the modulus, E, the 0.2%
yield strength, σy, and the ultimate
strength, σu
 Relationship of moduli in isotropic material
when E, G (shear modulus) and K are called elastic constants

3G E E
E = ;G = ;K =
1 + G 3K 2(1 + υ) 3(1 - 2 υ)

The bulk modulus (K) of a substance measures the substance's resistance to

uniform compression. It is defined as the pressure increase needed to effect a
given relative decrease in volume.

As an example, suppose an iron cannon ball with bulk modulus 160 GPa is to
be reduced in volume by 0.5%. This requires a pressure increase of
0.005×160 GPa = 0.8 GPa. If the cannon ball is subjected to a pressure
increase of only 100 MPa, it will decrease in volume by a factor of 100
MPa/160 GPa = 0.000625, or 0.0625%.
Elastomers are exceptiona l.
Commonly υ ≈ 13 For these :
υ≈ 1
when G ≈ 38 E 2
when G≈ 1 E
3
and K≈E and K >> E
 Strength, f (Units: MPa or MN/m2)
• Metals
– 0.2% offset yield strength σy; stress at
which the stress-strain curve for axial
loading deviates by a strain of 0.2% from
linear-elastic line

• Polymers
– Stress σy at which the stress-strain curve
becomes markedly non-linear: typically,
a strain of 1%

• Ceramics & Glasses

– Depends on loading mode: fracture
strength, σtf (tension) and crushing
strength, σcf (compression) where σcf =
10 to 15 x σtf
Stress-strain curves for a polymer, below, at and above its glass transition temperature, Tg

Cold drawing is a manufacturing process involving extrusion of a material into a

long filament, often for the purpose of increasing the strength of the material.
Cold drawing is also used in cable core production. Starting from a 1 cm (0.4 inch)
thick Cu wire, the wire is slowly drawn more and more, and eventually small, thin
wires of 1 micrometer in diameter can be obtained.
Stress-strain curves for a ceramic in tension and in compression. The
compression strength is 10-15 times larger than tensile strength.
 Modulus of Rupture, MOR (MPa or MN/m2)

• Strength measurement via bending for

materials with grip difficulties (such as
ceramic).

• Flexural strength is also known as

modulus of rupture, bend strength, or
fracture strength.

• Flexural strength is measured in terms of

stress, and thus is expressed in pascals
(Pa) in the SI system.

• The value represents the highest stress

experienced within the material at its
moment of rupture.
Fig. 3.5: The modulus-of-rupture (MOR)
is the surface stress at failure in bending.
• In a bending test, the highest stress is
It is equal to, or slightly larger than the
reached on the surface of the sample.
failure stress in tension
 Toughness & Fracture Toughness
• Toughness – energy needed to
break a material 2
– Symbol : Gc G =
K c
c
– Unit : kJ/m2 E (1 + υ)

• Fracture toughness
– Symbol : Kc
– Unit : MPa.m½ atau MN/m½
– fracture toughness is a
property which describes the
ability of a material containing a
crack to resist fracture, and is
one of the most important
properties of any material for
virtually all design applications.
Y is constant near unity.
σc
Kc = Y
πc
 Loss-coeficient

• A dimensionless
quantity

• Measures degree to
which a material
dissipates vibrational
energy
 Further Reading

• Michael F. Ashby;
Chap 3; pg 20 – 31

• Any references on
Materials Science
related to
fundamental of
materials and their
properties.
 Sample Question 1
F (a) Test specimen did not undergo any
dimensional change. Why?

Initial diameter, D1 = 1 cm (b) Supposed the material yielded and

Final diameter, D2 = 1 cm fractured at 20 kN load, with 0.001 cm
D1 Initial length, L1 = 10 cm
elongation. Sketch a possible stress-
Final length, L2 = 10 cm
strain diagram for this experiment.
Load, F = 12 kN

(c) Suggest ONE(1) dominant mechanical

property which is shown by this
material. Give your reason.
F
 Sample Question 2

A box contains a mixture of solid

particles – aluminium, polistirene and
steel. All particles are at the same saiz,
shape and colour.
How would you separate all particles
without damaging or changing the
properties of material?
 Sample Question 3

• Think about why books are

printed on papers. Suggest a
number of alternative materials
that could be used. Under what
conditions (cost, availability,
statutory, etc.) would the
alternative materials be most
interesting candidates?
 Sampel Question 4
A B C
1450°C

Based on Cu-Ni phase diagram, 1100°C

Datuk Lee Chong Wei suggested

THREE(3) Cu-Ni alloy (Type A, B Ni
Cu
and C) to be used as his
badminton racquet frame. Give
your comments on the alloy
selection from the perspective of
material properties.
 QUIZ 3
(pop quiz version)
X
An engineer decided to
cast a steel product
using composition ‘X’.
Give your comment on
the engineer’s
decision.