STUDY OF CONSTITUENTS OF AN ALLOY

A PROJECT REPORT

Submitted by
MOHAMMED ANIS UR RAHMAN

in partial fulfillment of the requirement of

CBSE AISSCE 2022

IN
CHEMISTRY
CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL GREATER NOIDA

CLASS XIIA
ROLL NO 18
SESSION 2021-2023

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 CAMBRIDGE SCHOOL GREATER NOIDA

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE

Certified that this project report “STUDY OF CONSTITUENTS OF AN

ALLOY” is the bonafide work of “MOHAMMED ANIS UR RAHMAN” who
carried out the project work under my supervision.

SIGNATURE

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 ABSTRACT

 This project was carried out to gain knowledge regarding

alloys, their constituents and uses. The project is mainly stressed on
analyzing the alloys for their constituents and appreciate the chemistry
behind it.

 As we will move further we will find that In this project the alloys,
bronze and brass have been qualitatively analyzed in order to find out
their constituents.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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 CONTENTS PAGE NO

1. Abstract..… 3
2.Table of Contents….. 4
3. Introduction….. 5
4. Some common alloys and their uses….. 8
5. Analysis of an alloy….. 11
6. Experiment 1….. 12
7. Experiment 2….. 15
8. References 18

INTRODUCTION

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Pure metals possess few important physical and metallic properties such as
melting point, boiling point, density, specific gravity, high malleability,
ductility, and heat and electrical conductivity. For many human needs
the extents of these properties possessed by these pure metals
don’t become much beneficial. Therefore to change (or improve) the
properties, often these metals are combined with other metals or non-
metals. This process of mixing a metal with other metals or a non-metal is
called alloying and the resultant solid solution obtained in the process is
termed as an Alloy. The constituent elements are combined in such a way
that they cannot be separated merely by physical means. More than 90% of
the metals used are in the form of alloys.

Fig 1 (Molten bronze being casted

into bronze coins)

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 ( Table 1 )List of alloys their constituents and uses

Alloys are generally made to:

 Enhance the hardness of a metal: An alloy is generally harder than its
constituents. The pure metals are generally soft.
 Lower the melting point: Pure metals have a high melting point. The
melting point lowers when pure metals are alloyed with other metals
or nonmetals. This makes the metals easily fusible.
 Enhance tensile strength: Alloy formation increases the tensile strength
of the parent metal.
 Enhance corrosion and/or heat resistance: Alloys are more resistant to
corrosion than pure metals. Metals in pure form are chemically reactive and

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can be easily corroded by the surrounding atmospheric gases and moisture.
Alloying a metal increases the inertness of the metal, which, in turn,
increases corrosion resistance.
 Modify color: The color of pure metal can be modified by alloying it
with other metals or nonmetals containing suitable color pigments.
 Obtain superconductivity: Some metals can be alloyed in such a way
that their alloy behaves as a superconductor which is of high importance in
technological advancement.
 Provide better castability: One of the most essential requirements of
getting good castings is the expansion of the metal on solidification. Pure
molten metals undergo contraction on solidification. Metals need to be
alloyed to obtain good castings because alloys expand. Few examples of
alloys are stainless steel, brass,bronze, nichrome, constantan, crown gold,
solder, amalgam etc…which are used in soldering, super conduction
making utensils, mechanical materials like screws and blots etc…
In this project, the chemical
compositions of two alloys
namely, brass and bronze
have been quantitatively
analyzed. A few other materials
made of alloys. Fig 2: An antique brass
utensil

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 SOME COMMON ALLOYS AND THEIR USES

1.1 - Brass

Brass is the combination of copper and zinc that is one of the most
common metallic non-ferrous alloys that you’ll see in your everyday
life. It’s known to be tarnish resistant and low friction, and it’s a
relatively soft metal. Its malleability makes it easy to machine, and that,
in turn, makes it a good metal for equipment parts. Some variations of
brass may include iron, lead, aluminum, manganese, or silicon.

You’ll typically see brass as valves, gears, braces, bearings, and base
plates. It is also famously used for locks and musical instruments. In
fact, there’s a whole family of instruments that are all made of brass,
including trumpets, saxophones, trombones, and French horns.

1.2- Carbon Steel

The main components of carbon steel, as you can expect, are iron and
carbon. But you would also find trace amounts of other metallic
elements in them. Copper, manganese, and silicon are known to be
included in small percentages in carbon steel. Although it has relatively
low corrosion resistance, it is still the most used metal in the world. Over
85% of the world’s steel production is carbon steel.

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You can find this alloy almost everywhere, and a big factor is its low
cost. Additionally, it also has high pressure and high strength
requirements. Its ubiquity is also reflected in its versatility, as the alloy
can be mixed with other metals to add some extra properties. For
example, adding chromium to carbon steel would increase both its
strength and wear resistance. You can combine carbon steel with many
metals such as cobalt, nickel, tungsten, and vanadium among others.

1.3-Bronze

Unlike the other alloys discussed, bronze is made mostly out of copper
instead of iron. This combination of copper and tin is one of the earliest
metals known to man. Other than its historical significance, bronze still
finds many uses in today’s society. The alloy is highly ductile, has low
friction, and does not produce a spark when struck. Its color comes from
the patina formed when exposed to oxygen.

Bronze can be combined with other metals to expand its versatility. It

can be used for musical instruments, electrical connections, and ship
propellers. Most people don’t know this, but the “copper” coins we have
are actually bronze. And of course, bronze is a famous material for
sculptures.

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1.4-Aluminum Alloy

Aluminum by itself is already a very useful metal, but it isn’t durable

enough for more demanding applications. That’s why aluminum alloys
are created — to take advantage of the properties of both metals.
Aluminum alloys are some of the most widely used non-ferrous metals
in the metal and construction industry. You will find aluminum mixed
with manganese or copper to give the metal more strength and hardness.

These alloys are most commonly used for power management. Its
benefits are fully reaped in electronic technology like electric module
packaging. Other uses include being part of the automotive body
structure and wind and solar power generation.

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 ANALYSIS OF AN ALLOY

The complete analysis of an alloy involves two steps:

1. Qualitative Analysis : This involves identification of the

components of the alloys.

2. Quantitative Analysis : This involves determination of the

components of the alloy. It involves the separation of the components
from the alloy quantitatively followed by determination of percentage of
each component volumetrically or gravimetrically. In this project we
will carry out qualitative analysis only.

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 EXPERIMENT 1:

AIM: TO ANALYZE A SAMPLE OF BRASS

QUALITATIVELY

Requirements

China dish, test-tube funnel, filter paper and common laboratory

reagents.

Theory

Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. with the following.

Composition

Cu = 60-90% and Zn. = 10-40%. Thus Cu and Zn. form the main
constituents of brass. Both these metals dissolved in 50% of nitric acid
due to formation of nitrates which are soluble. 3 Cu + 8HNO3 (Dil) 3 Cu
(NO3)2 + 2NO + 4H2O or Cu + 8H+ + 2NO3– 3 Cu+2 + 2NO + 4H2O
4Zn + 10HNO3 (Dil) 4 Zn (NO2)2 + N2O + 5H2O 4Zn + 2NO3– +
10H+ 4 Zn+2 + N2O + 5H2O The solution is boiled to expel the oxides
of nitrogen and the resulting solution is tested for Cu2+ and Zn+2 ions.

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Procedure

1. Place a small piece of brass in a china dish and heat this with
minimum quantity of 50% HNO3 so as to dissolve the piece completely.

2. Continue heating the solution till a dry solid residue is obtained.

3. Dissolve the solid residue in dil. HCl and filter. Add distilled water to
the filtrate.

4. Pass H2S gas through the filtrate. A black precipitate of copper

sulphide is obtained. Separate the black ppt. and keep the filtrate for the
test of Zn+2 ions Dissolve black ppt. by heating them with 50% HNO3.
To this solution add ammonium hydroxide solution. Appearance of deep
blue coloration in the solution shows the presence of copper ions in the
solution.

5. To test Zn+2 ions, boil the filtrate to remove H2S gas, then add solid
NH4Cl to this and heat to dissolve NH4Cl. Add excess of NH4OH so
that a solution is ammoniacal. Now pass H2S gas through this
ammoniacal solution. Dirty white or grey precipitation indicate zinc.
Separate the precipitates and dissolve it in minimum amount of dil. HCl.
Boil to expel H2S gas and add potassium Ferro cyanide solution, white
or bluish white ppt. confirm Zn+2 ions in the solution. Result : The

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given sample of brass contains copper and zinc. metals as the main
constituents.

Result :

The given sample of brass contains copper and zinc. metals as the main
constituents.

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 EXPERIMENT 2:

AIM: TO ANALYZE A SAMPLE OF BRONZE

QUALITATIVELY

Requirements

China dish, test-tube funnel, filter paper and common laboratory

reagents.

Theory

Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin with the following.

Composition

Cu = 88-96% and Sn. = 4-12%. Thus copper and zinc. form the main
constituents of bronze. Both these metals dissolved in nitric acid. 3 Cu +
8H+ + 2NO3– 3 Cu2+ + 2NO + 4H2O 4Sn + NO3– + 10 H+ 4 Sn+2 +
NH4+ + 3H2O (Cold and Dil. Acid) Sn + 4NO3– + 4H+ H2Sn O3 +
2NO2 + H2O (Conc. acid) (Metastannic Acid) Excess of nitric acid is
removed by heating the solution. The resulting solution now would

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contain Cu+2 ions and metastannic acid. This solution is acidified with
dil. HCl and H2S gas is passed when the sulphides of copper and tin are
formed. Cu+2 + S2- CuS (Black ppt.) H2SnO3 + 2H2S SnS2 (Black
ppt.) + 3H2O The sulphides are separated by boiling the ppt. with
yellow ammonium sulphide when SnS2goes into solution as thiostannate
where as CuS is not affected. SnS2 + (NH4)2S (NH4)2 SnS2 (Soluble)
Ammonium thiostannate. CuS + (NH4)2S CuS (Unaffected) Black ppt.
The soluble black ppt. is tested for Cu+2 ions and the solution is tested
for Sn2+ ions as in elementary qualitative analysis.

Procedure :

1. Take about 1g. of small pieces of bronze in a china dish and add to it
5-10 ml. of dil. HNO3.

2. Heat the contents slowly to dissolve copper and tin completely and
then boil the contents to a paste to remove excess of HNO3. All this is
carried out in cup board.

3. Dissolve this dry mass in distilled water containing HCl (1:1) to get a
clear solution.

4. Transfer the solution in a test tube and pass H2S in excess i.e. till the
precipitation is complete. Filter and reject the filtrate.

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5. Take the black ppt. in a test tube and add to it 2-3 ml. of yellow
ammonium sulphide and heat. Filter the contents. Black residue is tested
for Cu+2 ions and filtrate is tested for Sn+2ions.

6. Analysis of black residue : Transfer a little of the black ppt. into a test
tube. Add to it 2-3 ml. of 50%. HNO3 and boil the contents of the tube.
A light blue or green sol. indicates the presence of Cu+2. Divide this sol.
into two parts. (a) To one part add excess of NH4OH a deep blue
coloration confirms the presence of Cu+2 ions. (b) Acidify the second
part with acetic acid and add K4 [Fe (CN)6] i.e. potassium ferrocyanide
solution. A reddish brown ppt. confirms the presence of Cu+2 ions.

7. Analysis of filtrate : Boil the filtrate with 1 ml. of dil. HCl. A yellow
ppt. is obtained. Dissolve in 1 ml. conc. HCl. To this solution add 0.5 g.
of zinc. dust and boil it for 2-3 minutes. Filter and to filtrate add 1-2 ml.
of mercuric chloride solution. A white ppt. turning grey on standing
confirms the presence of Sn+4 ions

Result :

The given sample of bronze contains - Cu and Sn as the main

constituents

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 References

1. XII class Chemistry NCERT Books

2. iCBSE.com

3. XII class Chemistry Practical Book

4. Photos from Google images.

5. More Information from Wikipedia..

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