MT 1023 PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS V.

Sivahar

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SELECTION OF MATERIALS An introduction

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INTRODUCTION
Selection of a suitable material for a particular engineering
application is an important responsibility of an engineer
A wide range of materials are available for selection

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SELECTION PROCESS
Selection involves seeking the best match
between the property-profiles of the materials in
the kingdom and that required by the design.
There are four main steps:
Translation
Screening
Ranking
Supporting information

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TRANSLATION
The first step in relating design requirements to material properties is
a clear statement of function, constraints, objective, and free variables

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HEAT SINK

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Function Dissipate heat
Dimensions specified
Constraints
Good electrical insulator ρ > 1019µΩ.cm
Objective Maximize thermal
conductivity λ
Free variables Material

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SCREENING
Screening is eliminating the materials that cannot do the job
Screening is done based on the constraints
In the above example screening should be done based on the
resistivity
We need to select materials with ρ > 1019
Material selection charts are used for this purpose

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RANKING
Ranking is finding the materials that do the job best
In the above example ranking is based on thermal conductivity λ
The property or property group that maximizes performance for a
given design is called its material index “M”
In the above example M= λ
The same chart is used for this purpose

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 The result:
aluminum nitride or alumina
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SUPPORTING INFORMATION
The final step is to seek supporting information for these two
materials
A web-search on ‘‘aluminum nitride’’ leads immediately to detailed
data-sheets with the information we seek - ease of fabrication,
availability, cost etc.

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OVERHEAD TRANSMISSION CABLE

Function Transmit electricity

Length L specified
Constraints
Must not fail under stress Strength > 80MPa
Minimize electrical
Objective
Resistance
Free variables Material
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In this case for screening and ranking we need a material selection
chart on strength-resistivity
Such a chart is not usually available
We may use two different charts
Use strength-density chart for screening → eliminate materials with
strength less than 80MPa
Use thermal conductivity-electrical resistivity chart for ranking

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Copper is selected

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