Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Prehistory
In the metal ages there were three distinct periods, each of which is named for the main
metal materials which represented each period:
The Copper Age (5000 years ago): due to its low resistance, it was only used in
decorative utensils.
The Bronze Age (3000 years ago): a mix of copper and tin which had better properties
than either of the two metals separately.
The Iron Age (2000 years ago): much more resistant than bronze. The Hittites were the
first to use iron.
The first metal object made by Humans was invented about 7000 years ago. The first
metal they used was copper. However, it wasn’t very strong so they found out that when
they added tin to the copper, the mixture was stronger.
Later on, iron came and new objects become possible, such as weapons , the wheel or
the plough.
The wheel was very important in transport as it was used in carts pulled by bullocks.
The plough allowed humans to work faster and in greater areas
Human beings realised that raw materials were very important for making new tools.
The search for these new metals and raw materials was the beginning of trade.
• Tenacity: The ability to support impacts without breaking. Metals are tenacious.
• Ductility: The ability to form wires.
• Malleability: The ability to form sheets.
• Hardness: Scratch resistance. Metals are relatively hard materials.
• Density: the quotient of the mass and volume of a form.
• Electrical and thermal conductivity: Metals conduct heat and electricity well.
• Metallic shine: Metals characteristically shine after being recently cut.
• Except mercury all metals are solid at room temperature.
These properties are partly due to the way the atoms are joined together in metals.
Let's see the inside of a metal.
Metallic bond
In a metal, the outer electrons are shared among all the atoms in the solid. Each atom
gives up its outer electrons and becomes slightly positively charged. The negatively
charged electrons hold the metal atoms together. Since the electrons are free to move,
they lead to good thermal and electrical conductivity
Classification of metals.
Mining
Siderurgy
Siderurgy is the term used for the industry dedicated to obtaining iron. The iron industry
has its own name because of the enormity of the use of iron in society today. From iron
we obtain steel, which is one of the most important materials we have.
The siderurgic process takes place in installations called 'blast furnaces'. The raw
materials used are iron (Fe), the flux (CaCO3) and carbon (C).
Siderurgic processes.
The raw materials are put into the top of the blast furnace
Hot air is introduced into the lower part.
When the materials descend a chemical reaction takes place. The iron separates from the
elements which were contained in the original mineral.
The waste materials stay at the top and the molten metal comes out of the bottom (iron
+ carbon + impurities).
The molten metal is directed towards the steel industry to adjust the carbon content and
the content of the other alloy materials to improve the metals properties.
Ferrous products
The ferrous products obtained after the operations performed in the blast furnace and
the steelworks are classified according to their carbon content . That is:
Soft iron
C < 0.1 %
It's a brittle material with many bad mechanical properties. It has good magnetic
qualities.
Used to create electromagnets, transformers and electrical appliances.
Steels
Cast iron
2% < C < 5%
Less ductile than steel but harder because carbon makes the metal harder but, at the
same time, more fragile. It can be melted and moulded easily.
They are used in making unusually shaped pieces and bedplates for machinery (they
absorb vibrations well.)
Manhole covers are an example of cast iron.
Electrolysis
This is a process principally used to obtain and/or purify non-ferrous metals. The
purification or refining consists in eliminating all the impurities still left in the metal
after the reduction of the mineral. It is used to obtain copper, aluminium, magnesium,
zinc and titanium, among others. The term comes from the words electro - electricity
and lysis - break i.e. breaking because electricity is passed through. In the case of
aluminium, electrolytic refinement is called the Hall process.
Bauxite is used as a starting raw material to obtain aluminium. Using the Hall process
we can get aluminium which is 99.9 % pure.
1. The bauxite ( aluminium oxide mixed with impurities ), is extracted from the Earth.
It is then treated with alkali, to remove the impurities.
The aluminium is then moved to huge tanks. In the tank there is a graphite bar, this acts
as the cathode. Also there are graphite bars in the middle of the tank that act as anodes.
The aluminium is dissolved in molten cryolite. The cryolite lowers the melting point,
which reduces the energy used in this process.
Electricity is passed form cathode to anode bars.
The aluminium is taken out at the bottom
Dictionary:
Transformer: is a device that transfers electrical energy from one circuit ( Primary )
to another ( Secondary )through the transformer's coils.
Foul Sewer: A type of underground carriage system, for
transporting sewage from houses to treatment.
Apart from ferrous metals, there are other metals which are used alot in technological
appliances. It is worth highlighting the use of (among others) copper, bronze,
aluminium etc
Aluminium
Bright white colour, light, oxidation resistant, very plentiful, poor mechanical
properties.
Containers, metalwork, high tension cables and things where weight is a critical
parameter (very important) e.g. wheel hubs. (see picture)
equipment.
Copper
Reddish colour, excellent thermal and electric conductor, corrosion resistant, weldable,
ductile and malleable.
It is used to make electrical conductors and central heating
Tin
It has a very low fusion point and is a bluey-white colour, shiny and very soft. It is very
useful for welding pipes and copper cables.
It also covers steel to form tin.
Zinc
White colour, very corrosion and oxidation resistant, with copper it forms brass. It is
used to cover other metals and alloys to protect them (galvanised)
Alloys are made of two or more elements, examples are bronze and brass.
Permanent: destroying the union means destroying the materials that form
Tools
Hammers are used to hit nails in, shape things or deform them. It is made of a handle
(normally made of wood) and a head (of iron)
You must be careful when you use one because it is easy to have an accident with them
which could hurt either you or your companion.
The bench clamp is used to hold pieces (of metal or of other materials) so
There are many types of screwdriver, some are longer than others, some are designed
for use with certain screws and others for use with other screws but all are used as
screwdrivers
Saws: There are saws for wood and saws for metal, it depends on the teeth (some are
larger than others).
Wood saw tend to have an open arc and metal saws tend to have a closed arc (see
picture)
Dictionary:
This is what Roberto, a bike maker, says about bikes and materials.
When I choose a material for a bike , I have to think about the properties of the
material, for example:
The second is the Toughness, or the resistance to fracture ( break ) of a material when
stressed.
• Steel is the least expensive choice. It's strong and it has good elasticity but its
heavy.
• Aluminium is light and strong but its flexible. The more it bends, the quicker it
breaks. So aluminium bike frames use large diameter tubes. That limits the
amount of bending.
• Titanium has a great strength-to-weight ratio. It's got good elasticity so when it
bends it tends to return to its original shape. It's corrosion-resistant so you don't
need to paint it. But it's expensive - fifteen times the price of steel!
The professionals use carbon fibre. It's very light and it's very strong. You can shape it
any way you like. But carbon-fibre frames are hand-made so they're very expensive.
Now, Copy into your notebook the advantages and disadvantages of the following
materials:
Words and number: Brass , stainless steel, 1535 ºC, 1083 ºC, Steel , window frames,
carbon , Malleable, Bronze, Corrosion resistance , metals, alloy, Aluminium ,
ductile, wires, tin
Pure iron has a melting point of ________. Iron is the most used of all the ______. An
______ is a combination of two or more elements. For example, _____ is a metal alloy
whose major component is iron, with _______content between 0.02% and 2.14% by
mass. The introduction of other metallic allows the production of special purpose steels,
such as _________, made with chromium. Sinks are made of ________.
A non-ferrous metal is the copper which has a melting point of ____. Is is _________
and ______ and very suitable for hot and cold working. It is used for ____ and central
heating pipes. By far the preferred copper alloy in antiquity was ______, which is a
combination of copper and ____.
Dictionary: