Tutorial questions for PART I: Engineering Materials

Tutorial set #1
Crystal structures, coordination numbers, and packing factors
Q1. Draw the following Cubic Unit Cells and state their respective coordination numbers: (a)
Simple cubic (SC), (b) Body Centered cubic (BCC), and (c) Face Centered cubic (FCC).

Q2. Determine the number of atoms per until cell in the following hypothetical unit cell.

Q3. Determine the atomic packing factor for a BCC unit cell.

Q4. Iron has a BCC crystal structure; an atomic radius of 0.124 nm and atomic weight of 55.85
g/mol. Given the Avogadro’s number, NA , is 6.023 X1023 atoms/mol, determine the
theoretical density of iron.
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Crystallographic directions and planes
Q5. Determine the indices for the directions shown:
Z

1/2
1/3

2/3

B
Y
A
1/2, 1/2 1/2
1

X
Q6. Within a schematic unit cell, draw the following crystallographic directions:
(a) [1 1 0] (b) [1̅ 1 0] (c) [1 3̅ 3]

Tutorial set #2
Q7. Derive the linear density expressions for the FCC [111] and [100] directions in terms of
the atomic radius R. Determine and compare the linear density values for these two directions
for Silver, given that the atomic radius of Silver is 0.144 nm.

Q8. Derive the planar density expression for FCC (100) and (111) planes in terms of the atomic
radius R. Determine and compare the planar density values for these two planes for Nickel
(Ni), given that the atomic radius of Ni is 0.125 nm.
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Point Defects
Q9. Calculate the equilibrium number of vacancies per cubic meter of copper at 1000 °C. The
energy for vacancy formation is 0.9 eV/atom; the atomic weight and density for copper (at
1000 °C) are 63.5 g/mol and 8.4 g/cm3, respectively.

Q10. The melting temperature of Aluminum is 660 °C. The activation energy for vacancy
formation in Al is 0.74 eV. What is the maximum possible vacancy concentration (in %) in Al?

Q11. In a certain engineering process, the heat-treatment of a metallic component is made

at a temperature of 100 °C. To accelerate the process, you decide to increase the vacancy
concentration by 50%. If the activation energy, Q v, is 1.1 eV, calculate the new processing
temperature required to achieve this objective. The Boltzmann constant, k, is 8.62 x 10-5
eV/atom-K

Q12. Assume to have two samples—A and B—of the same material at room temperature
(both of them are single crystals composed of the same number of atoms). Sample A has a
concentration of vacancies equal to that at thermodynamic equilibrium. Sample B has a
higher number of vacancies compared to A. Propose the method(s) you can use to prepare
these two samples.
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Tutorial set #3

Phase Diagrams
Q13. The binary phase diagram of Pb-Mg is shown below. A 50 wt% Pb-50 wt% Mg alloy is
slowly cooled from 700 to 400 °C.
(a) At what temperature does the first solid phase form?
(b) What is the composition of this solid phase?
(c) At what temperature does the liquid solidify?
(d) What is the composition of this last remaining liquid phase?

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Q14. The binary phase diagram of Cu-Ag system is shown below. For a copper-silver alloy of
composition 30 wt% Ag-70 wt% Cu and at 775 °C, do the following:
(a) Determine the mass fractions of α (Cu rich) and β (Ag rich) phases.
(b) Determine the mass fractions of primary α and eutectic micro-constituents.
(c) Determine the mass fraction of eutectic α.

Q15. For a 68 wt%Zn-32 wt% Cu alloy, sketch the microstructures that would be observed
during very slow cooling at the following temperatures: 1000, 760, 600, and 400 °C. Label all
phases and indicate their approximate compositions.

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Tutorial set #4

Mechanical Properties of Materials, Dislocations, and

Strengthening Mechanisms
Q16. A cylindrical rod of titanium (Young's modulus, E = 110 GPa, yield strength, y = 500
MPa) is subjected to a load of 6660 N. If the length of the rod is 380 mm, what must be its
diameter to allow an elongation of 0.50 mm?

Q17. (a) A 20 cm long bar (10 mm by 10 mm cross-section) of pure aluminium (Young's

modulus = 70 GPa) is subjected to tensile loading. If the bar yields at a load of 14,000 N, what
is the maximum elongation at the onset of permanent deformation?
(b) For the same bar, if the engineering strains are 0.05 and 0.10 at engineering stresses of
200 and 220 MPa respectively, what would be the work hardening exponent of pure
aluminium?

Q18. A slip system constitutes of a slip plane (often the closest packed) and a direction (close
packing direction). Identify close packed directions for the face centered cubic (FCC) and
crystal structure. What are the Burgers vectors in the FCC structure? Based on the answers to
the above, identify the slip system for the FCC crystal structure.

Q19. There are 12 possible slip systems (unique combination of slip plane and slip direction)
in the FCC crystal structure. Write down all these.

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 Tutorial set #5
Q20. Two edge dislocations lying on the same slip plane meet. What interaction do you expect
between these dislocations if:
a) The two dislocations have the same sign
b) The two dislocations have opposite sign

Q21. A single crystal of aluminium is oriented for a tensile test such that its slip plane normal
makes angle of 28.1° with the tensile axis. Three possible slip directions make angles of 62.4°,
72.0°, and 81.1° with the same tensile axis.
(a) Which of these three slip directions is most favored?
(b) If plastic deformation begins at a tensile stress of 1.8 MPa, determine the critical resolved
shear stress for aluminum.

Q22. Consider a hypothetical metal being annealed at 200 C. The average grain size in the
fully crystallised state is 0.5 m. If the material is isothermally annealed further, calculate the
yield strength after 1 h of annealing and compare it with the yield strength from the fully
recrystallized state. The Hall-Petch constants are given as 0=185 MPa and ky=40 MPa/m0.5.
The grain growth law for this metal is given as d 2 − d 02 = kt with k=2.2 m2/s.

Q23. A cylindrical rod of brass originally 10 mm in diameter is to be cold worked by drawing.

The circular cross section will be maintained during deformation. A cold-worked tensile
strength greater than 380 MPa and a ductility of at least 15 %EL are desired. Furthermore,
the final diameter must be 7.5 mm. Explain how this may be accomplished with reference to
the graphical data provided below.

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