CERAMICS ,PLASTICS & OTHER MATERIALS Module 5

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MODULE -5

CERAMICS PLASTICS & OTHER MATERIALS

CERAMICS
Ceramics material are defined as those containing phases that are compound of metallic and
nonmetallic element. Ceramics form an important part of materials group. Ceramics are
compounds between metallic and nonmetallic elements for which the inter-atomic bonds are
either ionic or predominantly ionic. The term ceramics comes from the Greek word keramikos
which means ‘burnt stuff’. Characteristic properties of ceramics are, in fact, optimized through
thermal treatments. They exhibit physical properties those are different from that of metallic
materials. Thus metallic materials, ceramics, and even polymers tend to complement each other
in service.

10.1 Types and applications of ceramics

Ceramics greatly differ in their basic composition. The properties of ceramic materials also
vary greatly due to differences in bonding, and thus found a wide range of engineering
applications. Classification of ceramics based on their specific applications and composition
are two most important ways among many.
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In general, ceramic materials used for engineering applications can be divided into two groups:
traditional ceramics, and the engineering ceramics. Typically, traditional ceramics are
made from three basic components: clay, silica (flint) and feldspar. For example bricks, tiles
and porcelain articles. However, engineering ceramics consist of highly pure compounds of
aluminium oxide (Al2O3), silicon carbide (SiC) and silicon nitride (Si3N4).

Glasses: glasses are a familiar group of ceramics – containers, windows, mirrors, lenses, etc.
They are non-crystalline silicates containing other oxides, usually CaO, Na2O, K2O and Al2O3
which influence the glass properties and its color. Typical property of glasses that is
important in engineering applications is its response to heating. There is no definite
temperature at which the liquid transforms to a solid as with crystalline materials. A specific
temperature, known as glass transition temperature or fictive temperature is defined based on
viscosity above which material is named as super cooled liquid or liquid, and below it is
termed as glass.
Clay products: clay is the one of most widely used ceramic raw material. It is found in great
abundance and popular because of ease with which products are made. Clay products
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are mainly two kinds – structural products (bricks, tiles, sewer pipes) and white- wares
(porcelain, chinaware, pottery, etc.).

Refractories: these are described by their capacity to withstand high temperatures without
melting or decomposing; and their inertness in severe environments. Thermal insulation is
also an important functionality of refractories.

Abrasive ceramics: these are used to grind, wear, or cut away other material. Thus the prime
requisite for this group of materials is hardness or wear resistance in addition to high
toughness. As they may also exposed to high temperatures, they need to exhibit some
refractoriness. Diamond, silicon carbide, tungsten carbide, silica sand, aluminium oxide /
corundum are some typical examples of abrasive ceramic materials.

Cements: cement, plaster of paris and lime come under this group of ceramics. The
characteristic property of these materials is that when they are mixed with water, they form
slurry which sets subsequently and hardens finally. Thus it is possible to form virtually any
shape. They are also used as bonding phase, for example between construction bricks.

Advanced ceramics: these are newly developed and manufactured in limited range for specific
applications. Usually their electrical, magnetic and optical properties and combination of
properties are exploited. Typical applications: heat engines, ceramic armors, electronic
packaging, etc.

Some typical ceramics and respective applications are as follows:

Aluminium oxide / Alumina (Al2O3): it is one of most commonly used ceramic material. It is
used in many applications such as to contain molten metal, where material is operated at very
high temperatures under heavy loads, as insulators in spark plugs, and in some unique
applications such as dental and medical use. Chromium doped alumina is used for making
lasers.

Aluminium nitride (AlN): because of its typical properties such as good electrical insulation
but high thermal conductivity, it is used in many electronic applications such as in electrical
circuits operating at a high frequency. It is also suitable for integrated circuits. Other electronic
ceramics include – barium titanate (BaTiO3) and Cordierite (2MgO-2Al2O3-5SiO2).

Diamond (C): it is the hardest material known to available in nature. It has many applications
such as industrial abrasives, cutting tools, abrasion resistant coatings, etc. it is, of course, also
used in jewelry.

Lead zirconium titanate (PZT): it is the most widely used piezoelectric material, and is used as
gas igniters, ultrasound imaging, in underwater detectors.

Silica (SiO2): is an essential ingredient in many engineering ceramics, thus is the most widely
used ceramic material. Silica-based materials are used in thermal insulation, abrasives,
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laboratory glassware, etc. it also found application in communications media as integral part
of optical fibers. Fine particles of silica are used in tires, paints, etc.
Silicon carbide (SiC): it is known as one of best ceramic material for very high temperature
applications. It is used as coatings on other material for protection from extreme temperatures.
It is also used as abrasive material. It is used as reinforcement in many metallic and ceramic
based composites. It is a semiconductor and often used in high temperature electronics.
Silicon nitride (Si3N4) has properties similar to those of SiC but is somewhat lower, and found
applications in such as automotive and gas turbine engines.

Titanium oxide (TiO2): it is mostly found as pigment in paints. It also forms part of
certain glass ceramics. It is used to making other ceramics like BaTiO3.
Titanium boride (TiB2): it exhibits great toughness properties and hence found
applications in armor production. It is also a good conductor of both electricity and heat.
Uranium oxide (UO2): it is mainly used as nuclear reactor fuel. It has exceptional dimensional
stability because its crystal structure can accommodate the products of fission process.
Yttrium aluminium garnet (YAG, Y3Al5O12): it has main application in lasers (Nd-YAG
lasers).
Zirconia (ZrO2): it is also used in producing many other ceramic materials. It is also used in
making oxygen gas sensors, as additive in many electronic ceramics. Its single crystals are part
of jewelry.

Application of ceramics
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1.The white wares are largely used in

➢ Tiles

➢ Sanitary wares

➢ Low and high voltage insulator

➢ High frequency application

➢ Chemical industry-as crucibles, jars and component of chemical reactor.

➢ Heat resistant application –burner burner tips

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Optical Properties

• Several types of glasses are used for windows and optical lenses.

• Special glasses are used in selective transmission on absorption of certain wavelength

such as infrared and ultraviolet.

Thermal Properties

• Low thermal conductivity - no free electron to move as in metals

• Specific heats of fire clay bricks are 0.25 and 0.297 at 1000˚C and 1400˚C respectively

Nuclear Properties

• Since ceramics are refractory, chemically resistance and offer wide range of neutron
capture and scatter characteristics, they find applications as fuel elements, moderators and
shielding.

Structure of crystalline ceramics

• Most of the ceramics like metal have crystalline structure.

• Ceramics crystals are formed by pure ionic bond or by covalent bond.

• Ionic bond gives material of relatively high stability and having higher the melting point.

• They are also harder and more resistant to chemical reaction

• Covalent crystals also possess high hardness high melting point and low electrical
conductivity at room temp.

• The ceramics structures invariably more complex compare metal because different size
and electronic configuration are assembled together
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10.2Processing of Ceramics

Ceramics melt at high temperatures and they exhibit a brittle behavior under tension. As a
result, the conventional melting, casting and thermo-mechanical processing routes are not
suitable to process the polycrystalline ceramics. Inorganic glasses, though, make use of lower
melting temperatures due to formation of eutectics. Hence, most ceramic products are made
from ceramic powders through powder processing starting with ceramic powders. The powder
processing of ceramics is very close to that of metals, powder metallurgy. However there is an
important consideration in ceramic-forming that is more prominent than in metal forming: it is
dimensional tolerance. Post forming shrinkage is much higher in ceramics processing because
of the large differential between the final density and the as-formed density.

Glasses, however, are produced by heating the raw materials to an elevated temperature above
which melting occurs. Most commercial glasses are of the silica-soda-lime variety, where
silica is supplied in form of common quartz sand, soda (Na2O) in form of soda ash (Na2CO3)
while the lime (CaO) is supplied in form of limestone (CaCO3). Different forming methods-
pressing, blowing, drawing and fiber forming- are widely in practice to fabricate glass
products. Thick glass objects such as plates and dishes are produced by pressing, while the
blowing is used to produce objects like jars, bottles and light bulbs. Drawing is used to form
long objects like tubes, rods, fibers, whiskers etc.

Ceramics are largely produced by compacting their powders in dies to give finished products.

Steps are

• Raw material selection

• Grinding/milling of raw material

• Sizing or screening

• Blending of powders

• Pressing and Sintering

1. Raw Material Selection

Selection of raw material is based on the requirement of properties in the resulting ceramics.
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The main criteria for selection of raw materials are

PURITY

• The extent of purity plays important role to the properties of the material such as
strength, creep resistance and oxidation resistance, especially at high temperature.

• Sometimes combinations of pure materials are used to constitute the raw material, in
which case, the following criteria come into play :

– Size if inclusion material

– Grain size of matrix material

– Volume fraction of second phase

– Resultant thermal expansion of base matrix and inclusion

– Mechanical and electrical properties of resultant matrix

Particle size

• Finer the particle size greater will be the density achieved while compacting the powders
and consequently lower porosity

• On the other hand if the particle size is course, the ceramic will have lower density and
higher porosity.

• Depending upon application particle size are chosen

• Hall-Petch equation which gives relation between size of grain and strength

1
𝜎=
√𝑑
• Where σ is yield strength of material, d = average grain size.

2. Grinding or Milling

After raw material is selected, it is made into powder form by either grinding or milling.

Ball Milling

• In the ball mill the raw material is pulverised in fluid medium in a grinder by extremely
hard balls made up of materials like tungsten carbide, Zirconia, Agate, Alumina etc.

• For precise size particles the ratio between the fluid powder and hard balls should be
appropriate.
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3. Sizing/Screening/Sieving

• When raw material is crushed into powder form, not all particles will be of the same
size.

• In order to separate particles of varying sizes, they are passed through a series of
screens/sieves so that particles of a particular size range can be grouped.

4. Blending of Powders

• The actual compaction of a ceramics will take place only when required composition is
achieved by blending powders of different materials.

5. Pressing and Sintering

After the powders are blended into proper compositions, they are pressed into a definite shape
by any one of the following methods.

• Uniaxial Pressing

• Isostatic Pressing

• Hot Pressing

Uniaxial Pressing:
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In this the granular powder, along with water and an organic binder, is placed in a die and
pressed uniaxially from one end. Both compaction and shaping of powder is achieved
simultaneously as shown in above figure. After cold pressing, parts are retrieved from the die
and subjected to sintering. This involves heating pressed parts to a high temperature to allow
particles to fuse among themselves and also to attain the required strength and microstructure
properties. This method is commonly used for producing high temperature refractory materials.

Isostatic Pressing:

In this method, the powder to be compacted is kept in a rubber mould which is a flexible airtight
bag. As shown in above figure, this airtight bag is placed inside the chamber of compressing
fluid. Force is then applied to the bag from all directions which compress the powder uniformly
with the final product taking the shape of the rubber mould. After cold pressing, the parts are
sintered to obtain strength and appropriate microstructure. Eg. Spark plugs.

Hot Pressing:

As the name suggested, powders are pressed in a die at high temperatures achieving compaction
and sintering at the same time and therefore much higher densities in the resulting parts.
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Plastics
Polymers play a very important role in human life. In fact, our body is made of lot of
polymers, e.g. Proteins, enzymes, etc. Other naturally occurring polymers like wood, rubber,
leather and silk are serving the humankind for many centuries now. Modern scientific tools
revolutionized the processing of polymers thus available synthetic polymers like useful
plastics, rubbers and fiber materials. As with other engineering materials (metals and
ceramics), the properties of polymers are related their constituent structural elements and their
arrangement. The suffix in polymer ‘mer’ is originated from Greek word meros – which
means part. The word polymer is thus coined to mean material consisting of many
parts/mers. Most of the polymers are basically organic compounds, however they can be
inorganic (e.g. silicones based on Si-O network). This chapter introduces classification of
polymers, processing and synthesis of polymers, followed by mechanism of deformation and
mechanical behavior of polymers.

11.1 Polymer types and Polymer synthesis & processing

Polymers are classified in several ways – by how the molecules are synthesized, by their
molecular structure, or by their chemical family. For example, linear polymers consist of long
molecular chains, while the branched polymers consist of primary long chains and secondary
chains that stem from these main chains. However, linear does not mean straight lines. The
better way to classify polymers is according to their mechanical and thermal behavior.
Industrially polymers are classified into two main classes – plastics and elastomers.

Plastics are moldable organic resins. These are either natural or synthetic, and are processed
by forming or molding into shapes. Plastics are important engineering materials for many
reasons. They have a wide range of properties, some of which are unattainable from any other
materials, and in most cases they are relatively low in cost. Following is the brief list of
properties of plastics: light weight, wide range of colors, low thermal and electrical
conductivity, less brittle, good toughness, good resistance to acids, bases and moisture, high
dielectric strength (use in electrical insulation), etc. Plastics are

again classified in two groups depending on their mechanical and thermal behavior as

thermoplasts (thermoplastic polymers) and thermosets (thermosetting polymers).

Thermoplasts: These plastics soften when heated and harden when cooled – processes that
are totally reversible and may be repeated. These materials are normally fabricated by the
simultaneous application of heat and pressure. They are linear polymers without any cross-
linking in structure where long molecular chains are bonded to each other by secondary bonds
and/or inter-wined. They have the property of increasing plasticity with increasing temperature
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which breaks the secondary bonds between individual chains. Common thermoplasts are:
acrylics, PVC, nylons, polypropylene, polystyrene, polymethyl methacrylate (plastic
lenses or perspex), etc.

Thermosets: These plastics require heat and pressure to mold them into shape. They are
formed into a permanent shape and cured or ‘set’ by chemical reactions such as extensive
cross-linking. They cannot be re-melted or reformed into another shape but decompose upon
being heated to too high a temperature. Thus thermosets cannot be recycled, whereas
thermoplasts can be recycled. The term thermoset implies that heat is required to permanently
set the plastic. Most thermosets composed of long chains that are strongly cross-linked (and/or
covalently bonded) to one another to form 3-D network structures to form a rigid solid.
Thermosets are generally stronger, but more brittle than thermoplasts. Advantages of
thermosets for engineering design applications include one or more of the following: high
thermal stability, high dimensional stability, high rigidity, light weight, high electrical and
thermal insulating properties and resistance to creep and deformation under load. There are
two methods whereby cross-linking reaction can be initiated – cross-linking can be
accomplished by heating the resin in a suitable mold (e.g. bakelite), or resins such as epoxies
(araldite) are cured at low temperature by the addition of a suitable cross-linking agent, an
amine. Epoxies, vulcanized rubbers, phenolics, unsaturated polyester resins, and amino
resins (ureas and melamines) are examples of thermosets.

Thermosetting Thermo plastic

They have three dimensional network of primary They are liner polymer without cross
covalent bond with cross link between chain linking and branching

More stronger and harder than Thermo plastic Comparatively softer and less strong

Once hardened and set they donot soften with the They can be repeatedly soften by heat
application of heat and hardened by cooling

This can used in higher temp without damage Cannot used in higher temp because of
softening

They are usually supplied in a monomeric or partially Supplied as granular material

polymerized form in which they are in liquid or
thermoplastic solid

Difficult fill an intricate mould They can fill the complicated mould

Cannot recycled Can be recycled

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Uses: Telephone receiver radio and TV Cabinets Uses :Toys, combs photographic films
camera bodies automobile part circuit breaker insulating tapes
Elastomers: Also known as rubbers, these are polymers which can undergo large elongations
under load, at room temperature, and return to their original shape when the load is released.
There are number of man-made elastomers in addition to natural rubber. These consist of coil-
like polymer chains those can reversibly stretch by applying a force.

Processing of polymers mainly involves preparing a particular polymer by synthesis of

available raw materials, followed by forming into various shapes. Raw materials for
polymerization are usually derived from coal and petroleum products. The large molecules of
many commercially useful polymers must be synthesized from substances having smaller
molecules. The synthesis of the large molecule polymers is known as polymerization in which
monomer units are joined over and over to become a large molecule. More upon, properties of
a polymer can be enhanced or modified with the addition of special materials. This is followed
by forming operation. Addition polymerization and condensation polymerization are the
two main ways of polymerization.

Addition polymerization, also known as chain reaction polymerization, is a process in which

multi-functional monomer units are attached one at a time in chainlike fashion to form linear/3-
D macro-molecules. The composition of the macro-molecule is an exact multiple of for that of
the original reactant monomer. This kind of polymerization involves three distinct stages –
initiation, propagation and termination. To initiate the process, an initiator is added to the
monomer. This forms free radicals with a reactive site that attracts one of the carbon atoms of
the monomer. When this occurs, the reactive site is transferred to the other carbon atom in the
monomer and a chain begins to form in propagation stage. A common initiator is benzoyl
peroxide. When polymerization is nearly complete, remaining monomers must diffuse a long
distance to reach reactive site, thus the growth rate decreases.

The process for polyethylene is as follows

Here R. represents the active initiator. Propagation involves the linear growth of the
molecule as monomer units become attached to one another in succession to produce the chain
molecule, which is represented, again for polyethylene, as follows
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As we need polymers with controlled molecular weight, polymerization needs to be terminated

at some stage. Propagation may end or terminate in different ways. First, the active ends of two
propagating chains may react or link together to form a non-reactive molecule, as follows:

thus terminating the growth of each chain or an active chain end may react with an initiator or
other chemical species having a single active bond, as follows:

with the resultant cessation of chain growth. Polyethylene, polypropylene, PVC, and
polystyrene are synthesized using addition polymerization.

Condensation polymerization, also known as step growth polymerization, involves more than
one monomer species; and there is usually a small molecular weight by-product such as water,
which is eliminated. The repeat unit here forms from original monomers, and no product has
the chemical formula of mere one mer repeat unit. The polymerization of dimethyl
terephthalate and ethylene glycol to produce polyester is an important example. The by-
product, methyl alcohol, is condensed off and the two monomers combine to produce a larger
molecule (mer repeat unit). Another example, consider the formation of a polyester from the
reaction between ethylene glycol and adipic acid; the intermolecular reaction is as follows:
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This stepwise process is successively repeated, producing, in this case, a linear molecule. The
intermolecular reaction occurs every time a mer repeat unit is formed. Reaction times for
condensation are generally longer than for addition polymerization. Polyesters, phenol-
formaldehyde, nylons, polycarbonates etc are produced by condensation polymerization.
Condensation polymerization reactions also occur in sol-gel processing of ceramic materials.
Some polymers such as nylon may be polymerized by either technique.

Polymers, unlike organic/inorganic compounds, do not have a fixed molecular weight. It is

specified in terms of degree of polymerization – number of repeat units in the chain or ration
of average molecular weight of polymer to molecular weight of repeat unit. Average
molecular weight is however defined in two ways. Weight average molecular

weight is obtained by dividing the chains into size ranges and determining the fraction of
chains having molecular weights within that range. Number average molecular weight is based
on the number fraction, rather than the weight fraction, of the chains within each size range. It
is always smaller than the weight average molecular weight.

Most of polymer properties are intrinsic i.e. characteristic of a specific polymer. Foreign
substances called additives are intentionally introduced to enhance or modify these properties.
These include – fillers, plasticizers, stabilizers, colorants, and flame retardants. Fillers are
used to improve tensile and compressive strength, abrasion resistance, dimensional stability
etc. wood flour, sand, clay, talc etc are example for fillers. Plasticizers aid in improving
flexibility, ductility and toughness of polymers by lowering glass transition temperature of a
polymer. These are generally liquids of low molecular weight. Stabilizers are additives which
counteract deteriorative processes such as oxidation, radiation, and environmental
deterioration. Colorants impart a specific color to a polymer, added in form of either dyes
(dissolves) or pigments (remains as a separate phase). Flame retardants are used to enhance
flammability resistance of combustible polymers. They serve the purpose by interfering with
the combustion through the gas phase or chemical reaction.
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Polymeric materials are formed by quite many different techniques depending on (a) whether
the material is thermoplast or thermoset, (b) melting/degradation temperature, (c) atmospheric
stability, and (d) shape and intricacy of the product. Polymers are often formed at elevated
temperatures under pressure. Thermoplasts are formed above their glass transition
temperatures while applied pressure ensures that the product retain its shape. Thermosets are
formed in two stages – making liquid polymer, then molding it.

Characteristics/Properties of plastics

1. Specific Gravity
2. Specific Heat
3. Thermal Conductivity
4. Thermal Expansion
5. Electrical properties
6. Corrosion resistance
7. Combustibility
8. Rigidity
1.Specific Gravity

• Plastics are generally light having specific gravity between 0.9 to 3 compare to metal 3
to 12.

• Their strength/weight ratio compared favourably with many alloy

2.Specific heat

• Specific heat is the heat necessary to raise temp of 1kg substance by 1K

• The specific heat of plastic varies between 200 to 800J/kg/k as against 400J/kg/k for
steel

3. Thermal conductivity

• Plastic have comparatively low thermal conductivity hence they are good thermal
insulator

4.Thermal expansion

• Thermal expansion of plastic is very high approx five times thermal expansion of
Aluminium which is the main disadvantage
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5.Electrical properties

• Plastics are good electrical insulator their usefulness is limited by their low heat
resistance and softness

6.Corrosion resistance

• Plastics are generally resistant to most inorganic chemical weathering and soil

• Most plastic become brittle and yellow when exposed to sun light for long duration

• Plastics are resistant to attack by oils and greases hence superior to rubber

7.Combustibility

• Plastic are combustible because of presence of carbon

• The maximum service temp 100°C

8.Rigidity

• Plastics have low rigidity compared to other material

Compounding material

1.Binders

• The purpose is to hold other constitute of plastic together

• A binder may compose of 30-100% percent of plastic.

• The binder may be synthetic or natural resin.

2.Fillers

• These are added to reduce the cost and enhance the strength and hardness of plastic.

• These may be fibrous type like asbestos, glass fibre, mica or non fibrous type carbon
black, zinc oxide calcium carbonate

• Quartz and mica are used to improve hardness.

• Inorganic fillers like asbestos improve heat and corrosion resistance.

• The proposition of the filler added can be high as 50%

3.Plasticisers

• Low molecular weight material blended with polymers are called plasticisers.
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• These are added to improve flexibility and processing of plastic articles and reduce the
temp and pressure required for moulding.

Ex. polyster epoxies.

4.Blending

• Blending or alloying is combining of two or more distinct polymer molecules to form a

new product.

5. Stabilizers

• These are added to minimize effect of heat sunlight

• White lead barium cadmium are example.

6. Coloring agent

• These are added to give desired colour to plastic

• Some colouring agent are zinc oxide, white lead titanium dioxide

Processing of Plastics

Different molding techniques are employed in fabrication of polymers.

Compression molding involves placing appropriate amount of polymer with additives between
heated male and female mold parts. After pouring polymer, mold is closed, and heat and
pressure are applied, causing viscous plastic to attain the mold shape. Figure-11.1 shows a
typical mould employed for compression molding. This gives almost final shape to the product
with no burring and buffering required. Usually thermoplastics are made this way.
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Figure 11.1: Schematic diagram of a mould employed for compression molding

Transfer molding differs from compression molding in how the materials is introduced into
the mold cavities. In transfer molding the plastic resin is not fed directly into the mold
cavity but into a chamber outside the mold cavities. When the mold is closed, a plunger forces
the plastic resin into the mold cavities, where and molded material cures. Figure 11.3 shows
the transfer molding.

Figure 11.2: Schematic diagram of a mould employed for transfer molding

Injection molding: this is extremely popular and efficient method to produce plastic parts en
masse. In this palletized materials are fed with use of hopper into a cylinder where charge is
pushed towards heating chamber where plastic material melts, and then molten plastic is
impelled through nozzle into the enclosed mold cavity where product attains its shape. Most
outstanding characteristic of this process is the cycle time which is very short. The
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schematic diagram of injection-molding machine is shown in figure-11.3. The technique can be

automated and the rate of production can be highly increased. Also intricate shapes can be
achieved by this method.

Figure 11.2: Schematic diagram of injection-molding machine

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Extrusion is another kind of injection molding, in which a thermoplastic material is

forced through a die orifice, similar to the extrusion of metals. This technique is especially
adapted to produce continuous lengths with constant cross-section. The schematic diagram of a
simple extrusion machine is shown in figure- 11.3

Figure 11.3: Schematic diagram of a simple extrusion machine

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Blow molding of plastics is similar to blowing of glass bottles. Polymeric materials may be
cast similar to metals and ceramics. In this method plastics are blown like balloons to occupy
definite shapes so as to give desired shapes.

Calendering: This is equivalent of rolling of sheet metals. In this method, sheets of plastic
material are produced by rolling plastics between multiple rollers.
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Failures of Plastics

Failure due to Material or Phenomenological Causes

• Inherent material defects or the atmospheres where they are used are the major reasons
for failure;

• Reasons for failure

1. Thermo-oxidation

2. Photo-oxidation

3. Degradation due to ionizing radiation – ultra-violet rays

4. Chemical attack

5. Environmental Stress Cracking (ESC) - common cause because of brittle failure -

Human causes of plastic product failure

• Due to human errors

1. Poor selection of material

2. Poor specification selection

3. Poor design

4. Poor processing

5. Abuse or faulty usage of products

Advantages of Plastics

1. Light weight

2. Posses flexibility

3. A wide range of colour can be imparted

4. They can be made transparent, translucent or opaque

5. Electrically insulating

6. Resistance to atmospheric corrosion

7. Ease of fabrication
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8. Good mechanical properties and dimensionally stable

9. Low coefficient of friction

10. Resistance to most chemicals and solvents

11. Resistant to deterioration by moisture

12. Very cost effective

13. Easy maintenance

14. Good sound absorption properties

15. Can be easily fixed into position

Disadvantages of Plastics

1. They are non-biodegradable and therefore a hazard to environment

2. They cannot be used for high temperature applications since they have low heat
resistance

3. Low hardness

4. Disintegrate gradually with the passage of time

5. Low creep resistance

6. High coefficient of thermal expansion

11.5 Characteristics and typical applications of few plastic materials.

a) Thermo plastics

1. Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS):

Characteristics: Outstanding strength and toughness, resistance to heat distortion; good

electrical properties; flammable and soluble in some organic solvents.

Application: Refrigerator lining, lawn and garden equipment, toys, highway safety
devices.

2. Acrylics (poly-methyl-methacrylate)

Characteristics: Outstanding light transmission and resistance to weathering; only fair

mechanical properties.
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Application: Lenses, transparent aircraft enclosures, drafting equipment, outdoor signs

3. Fluorocarbons (PTFE or TFE)

Characteristics: Chemically inert in almost all environments, excellent electrical properties;

low coefficient of friction; may be used to 260o C; relatively weak and poor cold-flow
properties.
Application: Anticorrosive seals, chemical pipes and valves, bearings, anti adhesive
coatings, high temperature electronic parts.
4. Polyamides (nylons)

Characteristics: Good mechanical strength, abrasion resistance, and toughness; low

coefficient of friction; absorbs water and some other liquids.

Application: Bearings, gears, cams, bushings, handles, and jacketing for wires and cables

5. Polycarbonates

Characteristics: Dimensionally stable: low water absorption; transparent; very good

impact resistance and ductility.

Application: Safety helmets, lenses light globes, base for photographic film

6. Polyethylene

Characteristics: Chemically resistant and electrically insulating; tough and relatively low
coefficient of friction; low strength and poor resistance to weathering.

Application: Flexible bottles, toys, tumblers, battery parts, ice trays, film wrapping
materials.

7. Polypropylene

Characteristics: Resistant to heat distortion; excellent electrical properties and fatigue

strength; chemically inert; relatively inexpensive; poor resistance to UV light.

Application: Sterilizable bottles, packaging film, TV cabinets, luggage

8. Polystyrene

Characteristics: Excellent electrical properties and optical clarity; good thermal and
dimensional stability; relatively inexpensive

Application: Wall tile, battery cases, toys, indoor lighting panels, appliance housings.

9. Polyester (PET or PETE)

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Characteristics: One of the toughest of plastic films; excellent fatigue and tear strength, and
resistance to humidity acids, greases, oils and solvents

Application: Magnetic recording tapes, clothing, automotive tire cords, beverage

containers.

b) Thermo setting polymers

1. Epoxies

Characteristics: Excellent combination of mechanical properties and corrosion

resistance; dimensionally stable; good adhesion; relatively inexpensive; good electrical
properties.

Application: Electrical moldings, sinks, adhesives, protective coatings, used with

fiberglass laminates.

2. Phenolics
Characteristics: Excellent thermal stability to over 150o C; may be compounded with a
large number of resins, fillers, etc.; inexpensive.
Application: Motor housing, telephones, auto distributors, electrical fixtures.
OTHER MATERIALS
Thermal materials
• Material which exhibits good thermal properties and therefore used where
high or low thermal condition prevail.
• Properties
1. Thermal conductivity
2. Heat capacity
3. Thermal expansion
4. Melting point
5. Thermal shock resistance
1. Thermal conductivity
• Property of material that characterize the transfer of heat
• Unit is J/mK
• Outstanding thermal conductivities are – Silver, copper, Gold, Aluminum,
Nickel and steel in that order
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• High thermal conductivities are needed in heat exchanger

2. Heat capacity (J/mol-K)
• Which indicates material to absorb the heat
• It represents the amount of energy required to produce until temperature
rise in given material.
• Aluminum is having high heat capacity so it is used to in packing material
to keep food hot.
3. Thermal Expansion
• Coefficient of thermal expansion of a material is defined as the amount of
expansion in a unit length of solid material due to unit temperature rise.
• Carbo, Silica, Invar(64%Fe+36%Ni), Manganese, Tungsten, Nickel having
low thermal expansion of coefficient.
• Material having low thermal expansion of coefficient are employed in
applications requires dimension stability with temperature fluctuations.
4. Melting point
• Temperature at which materials convert from solid to liquid state.
• Stronger bond higher melting point
• Diamond is having strong covalent bond hence having high melting point
(4500 ˚C)
• Carbon - 3600 ˚C
• Tungsten – 3410 ˚C
• Low carbon steel – 1510 ˚C
• Copper – 1083 ˚C
• Aluminum – 660 ˚C
5. Thermal shock resistance
• Is the ability of material to withstand sudden and severe temperature change caused by
either change in environment or due to internal heat generation.
• Generally ductile materials like aluminum, copper, mild steel will have higher thermal
shock resistance than brittle materials.
Optical material
• Optical material are substances used to manipulate the flow of light.
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• This can include reflecting absorbing focusing or splitting an optical beam

• The efficiency of a specific material at each task is strongly wavelength dependent thus
full understanding of the interaction between light and matter
Properties
Refraction
• When a beam of light losses energy and changes its direction when it passes through
solid medium
• Refractive index of material is the ratio of the velocity of light in vacuum to velocity of
light while passing through material.
• Diamond has high refractive index.
• Metals largely absorbs incident light (or reflect) but do not refract the light
Reflectivity
• It is the property of reflecting light or radiation
• Higher index of refraction of solid, the greater is reflectivity.
• It depends on wavelength and changes materials to materials
• Reflectivity of copper is 98% for wavelength of 7500A˚, whereas it drops to 58% for
wavelength of 4500 A˚.
Absorptivity
• Absorptivity + Transmissivity + reflectivity = 1
• Concrete does not transmit light, hardly reflect, and therefore absorbs about 90%
• firebricks 70%
• Oxidised steel 70%
Colour
Luminescence: absorbs energy and then reemits visible light
Photoconductivity – conductivity increases with falls of light

Smart materials:

Materials which possess the ability to change their physical properties in a specific manner in
response to specific stimulus input are called smart materials.
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• In 1880, Jacques and Pierre Curie discovered an unusual characteristic of certain

crystalline minerals: when subjected to a mechanical force, the crystals became
electrically polarized.
• Tension and compression generated voltages of opposite polarity, and in
proportion to the applied force. Subsequently, the converse of this relationship was
confirmed.
• If one of these voltage-generating crystals was exposed to an electric field it lengthened
or shortened according to the polarity of the field, and in proportion to the strength of the
field.
• These behaviors were labeled the piezoelectric effect and the inverse piezoelectric effect,
respectively, from the Greek word piezein, meaning to press or squeeze.
• Certain materials posses a property by which they experience a dimensional change when
an electrical voltage is applied to them. Such materials are known as piezoelectric
because of converse effect; that is they generate electricity when pressure is applied.
• The best example for this type of materials is lead-zirconate-titanate (PZT).
• PZT is commonly used to refer to piezoelectric materials in general.
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CERAMICS ,PLASTICS & OTHER MATERIALS Module 5
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Piezo electric effect

• The piezoelectric effect is based on the elastic deformation and orientation of electric
dipoles in a crystal structure when subjected to an electric field.
• One fundamental of this effect is the non-symmetrical structure of the crystal, in which
the centers of electrical charge do not coincide and therefore form dipoles.
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• In the absence of external strain, the charge distribution within the crystal is symmetric
and the net electric dipole moment is zero.
• However, the application of an external mechanical force deforms and displaces the
dipoles and the charge distribution is no longer symmetric.
Concept of working of smart materials Smart system / structure

A system or a material which has built in or intrinsic sensor(s), actuator(s) and control
mechanism whereby it is capable of sensing a stimulus, responding to it in a predetermined
manner and extent in a short / appropriate time and reverting to its original state as soon as the
stimulus is removed.
Smart system / structure
A system or a material which has built in or intrinsic sensor(s), actuator(s) and control mechanism
whereby it is capable of sensing a stimulus, responding to it in a predetermined manner and extent in
a short / appropriate time and reverting to its original state as soon as the stimulus is removed.
Active and passive smart materials
Smart materials can be termed as active or passive. Active materials posses the capacity to
modify their material and geometric properties under application of electrical, thermal or
magnetic field and thereby acquiring an inherent capacity to transduce energy. Piezoelectric
materials, shape memory alloys, electro-rheological fluids and magnetostrictive materials are
important active smart materials and they may be used as sensors and actuators [Figure 4.2].
Passive smart materials do not have the inherent capability to transduce energy. Fiber optic
materials are good examples of passive smart material. They are mainly used for sensing
purposes.
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Some applications of smart materials: (clockwise) (a) Terfenol-D products (b) SMA Catheter (c) PVDF film and (d)
PZT actuator [ETREMA Products Inc. and Sumitomo Metals (SMI) Electronic Devices Inc.]

The concept of smart materials/structures (SMS) can be considered as a landmark in the

evolution of tailored materials. There is a continuous trend from simple to complex, starting from
the use of homogeneous materials supplied by nature and accepted with their natural properties
followed by multi-materials (in particular, composite materials ) allowing us to create structures
with properties adapted to specific users. Composite materials are replacing homogeneous and
isotropic materials in more and more structures This is particularly true in the aerospace
applications. For instance, composite parts are now currently used or envisaged for modern
aircrafts. Boeing’s 7E7 Dream liner project has 50 per cent of its structures made of composites.
It is worth noting that this aircraft is one of the first passenger aircraft to introduce embedded
SHM systems, especially systems for impact detection.
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General evolutions of materials/structures

The next step consists of making the properties of the materials and structures adapt to changing
environmental conditions. This requires making them sensitive, controllable and active. The
various levels of such intelligence correspond to the existence of one, two or all the three
qualities.

Optical fibers

Optical fibers have revolutionized the communication industry. It primarily consists of core,
cladding and coating. The core transmits the signals, while the cladding constrains the light beam
to the core; oute recoating protects the core and cladding from the external environment.
Typically both the core and cladding are made of special types of glass with carefully controlled
indices of refraction. Once the light enters the core from the source, it is reflected internally and
propagate along the length of the fiber. Internal reflection is accomplished by varying the index
of refraction of the core and cladding glass materials. Usually two designs are employed in this
regard
Types of optical fibers
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In stepndexoptical fiber, there is a sharp change in refractive index between the core and
cladding. In this design output pulse will be broader than the input one. It is because light rays
traveling in different trajectories have a variety of path-lengths.

It is possible to avoid pulse broadening by using graded-index fiber. This results in a helical path
for the light rays, as opposed to zig-zag path in a step-index fiber.

Here impurities such as boron oxide (B2O3) or germanium dioxide (GeO2) are added to the silica
glass such that the index of refraction varied gradually in parabolic manner across the cross
section. This enables light to travel faster while close to the periphery than at the center. This
avoids pulse broadening.

Both step-and graded-index fibers are termed as multi-mode fibers. Third type optical fiber is
called single-mode fiber in which light travels largely parallel to the fiber axis with little
distortion of the digital light pulse. These are used for long transmission lines.

SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS

• A group of metallic materials that can return to some previously defined shape or size
when subjected to the appropriate thermal procedure
• That is, shape memory alloys can be plastically deformed at some relatively low
temperature and, upon exposure to some higher temperature, will return to their original
shape.
• Shape memory effect is the result of a thermo-elastic martensitic transformation.
• Above the transformation temperature, A shape memory alloy (Ni-Ti alloy) is austenitc.
One-way shape memory effect
• When a shape memory alloy is in its cold state (below
As), the metal can be bent or stretched and will hold
those shapes until heated above the transition
temperature.
• Upon heating, the shape changes to its original. When the
metal cools again it will remain in the hot shape, until
deformed again
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Two-way shape memory effect

• The two-way shape memory effect is the effect that
the material remembers two different shapes: one at
low temperatures, and one at the high temperature
shape.
• A material that shows a shape memory effect during
both heating and cooling is called two-way shape
memory.

Economic, Environmental and Social issues of material usage

Engineering materials are important in everyday life because of their versatile structural and physical
properties. Selection of the engineering materials is dependent on these properties. However, choice
of material has implications throughout the life-cycle of a product, influencing many aspects of
economic and environmental performance. In other words, different material issues are needed to be
dealt with during material selection if the product is to be commercially successful and competitive
in the market. These special considerations are related to their cost, production cost, environmental
and social issues like pollution, disposal, recycling, etc. This chapter deals with these special issues
of material selection.

Economic considerations

Engineering profession deals with utilization of scientific and technological advances to design and
manufacture components and systems that perform reliably and satisfactorily. However, there are
economics as the driving force behind it. Economics of engineering a component / system depends
on three factors: component design, material usage, and manufacturing costs. These three factors are
inter-related in the sense that one or two might influence the choice of others.

Initially any component / system need to go through conception and then design stage. This includes
generation of concept about the component / system. Later on design stage takes care of its size,
shape, and configuration which will influence the performance of it during the service. Usually
engineers deal with not a single component, but with complex assembly of components / a system.
Thus, each component needs to be designed for greater efficiency of the system. This may some
 CERAMICS ,PLASTICS & OTHER MATERIALS Module 5

times act as constraint to optimal design of a component. Hence, design of a component is usually an
iterative process. Less the number of iterations, lower will be the cost of the component / system.

Design stage is followed by material selection. Material is selected depending on its properties,
which are suitable to serve the purpose during the service. Other than the properties, cheaper
materials are preferred, if choice is available. Thus, usually a family of materials is selected that
satisfy the design constraints, then comparisons are made on the basis of cost per unit. This cost also
includes unavoidable material wastage during manufacturing stage.

After design and material selection, it is up to manufacturing method to reduce the product cost.
Usually manufacturing includes both primary stage and secondary stage. The cost considerations
include the capital on tooling, maintenance cost, labor, repair costs, and material wastage. More the
number of manufacturing stages, higher will be the product cost. Inspection, assembly, and final
packaging will add-on to the product cost.

Environmental and Social considerations

Manufacturing of a product does have impact on environment and also on society in many ways.
This is because resources required to produce a product comes from different parts of the world, and
the industrial wealth and prosperity are shared by more the one region. Along with these, detrimental
effects of industrialization also spread its wings to various parts of the world.

A material used to produce a product goes through number of stages / phases. These include
extraction of raw materials from natural resources through production, use during the service, and
finally its disposal. It is some times known as cradle-to-grave life cycle of a material. As depicted in
the above figure, raw materials are first extracted from natural earthy resources through drilling,
mining, etc. later-on these are subjected to purification, refining to convert them into metals,
ceramics, rubber, fuel, etc. These primary products are further processed to obtain engineered
materials like metallic alloy, glass, plastics, semi-conductors, etc. Now the engineered materials are
shaped, heat treated to make components which are assembled into products, devices that are ready
for use by society. During the service, products become old, out fashioned, break down, or may not
serve the purpose efficiently. So they are discarded. Upon this, they go as waste into land fills, or
some times recycled and some components may be reused. This competes the life cycle.

Earthy resources are, unfortunately, limited. However, some are renewable while majority are not!
As society and thus population grows, resources per head become lesser and lesser. Hence, there is a
great and in fact immediate attention must be paid to the better and effective use of earthy resources.
 CERAMICS ,PLASTICS & OTHER MATERIALS Module 5

It will be even better if we stop using the resources, which is of course impractical. In addition to
this, energy is used at every stage of material cycle, which it self is a resource. That means that
energy supply is limited, and energy need to be used conservatively, and effectively. Moreover,
during extraction and production of materials / products, interaction with environment is usually
detrimental to the society in many ways. It includes – water pollution, air pollution, and landscape
spoilage. Thus great care needs to be taken during extraction, manufacturing, and use of a material /
product. At end of its service, product may be recycled instead of disposal. There are many benefits
from recycling those include: to conserve raw material resources and to conserve energy required to
extract and refine. Recycling also avoids environmental pollution. Hence, final products are needed
to be designed and manufactured such that they are environmentally friendly, and easy to recycle
with minimum usage of raw materials and energy. In case of disposal into environment, products
need to be bio-degradable. This shows that material life cycle involves interactions and exchanges
among materials, energy and the environment including the society.

There is a need for better solutions to the environmental problems. Thus there is additional cost to the
product if it is required to be produced under conditions such that detrimental environmental effects
are kept to minimum i.e. green product cost more than usual products. Industrial approach to assess
the environmental performance of products is termed as life cycle analysis / assessment (LCA). LCA
is explained in detail in forth coming sections.

Recycling issues

As stated in earlier section, recycling of a product is important for many reasons. Recycling and
disposal plays an important role in material selection and design of modern products. Recycling can
be defined as unflawed entry of material into its cycle after completion of life as a product for infinite
number of times. Environmentally friendly means product after disposal into the environment, must
interact with it and get deteriorated so that material returns to the same state from where it is
extracted and put into life cycle. For ease of disposal and recycling, product design should ease the
dismantling of system. Different engineering materials are recycled and/or bio-degradable up to
different extents.

Metals and alloys tend to get corroded up to some extent i.e. bio-degradable. However, some of them
are toxic. On the other hand, most metals and alloys are recyclable. Ceramics / glasses are, however,
are hardly recycled. It is because their raw materials are inexpensive, and recycling process is time
consuming and expensive. Plastics and rubber are highly popular among public because of their
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inertness to the environment and moisture. This same inertness makes them hard to bio-degrade.
Thus, plastics are mostly recycled, and just disposed through land-fills. Thermo-plastic polymers are
easily recycled up on heating to higher temperatures. On the other hand recycling of thermo-set
plastics is much more difficult. Hence these are usually disposed. Thus, there is a trend to use
alternative materials which are recyclable. Ex.: thermo-plastic elastomers in place of traditions
rubber.

18.4 Life cycle analysis (LCA) and its use in design

Materials extracted from the earth are needed to be taken care of for one prime reason - to conserve
material and energy. However, materials, energy and environment effects are interrelated i.e. each
one has impact on another either directly / indirectly. Industrial approach to assess the environmental
performance of products is termed as life cycle analysis / assessment (LCA). In other words, LCA is
the assessment of environmental impact of a product across its life cycle. The complex interaction
between a product and the environment is dealt with in the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) method. It
is also known Ecobalance. LCA systematically describes and assesses all flows to and from nature,
from a cradle to grave perspective.

Environmental life cycle of a product consists of all stages from raw material extraction to its waste
management. In environmental life cycle assessment, natural resource use and pollutant emission are
described in quantitative terms. One important reason for undertaking an LCA study is that there are
growing concerns about a variety of environmental issues as expressed by public opinion, political
bodies, and industry. Environmental concern may be related to the long-term resource base of human
societies or may be more health related or it may be a concern for the natural environment as such.
The strength of LCA is that it studies a whole product system. Since a whole life cycle is studied,
LCA is not site specific. Thus, environmental impact cannot be modeled at a very detailed level.
Economical and social aspects are not included in LCA other than when used as a basis for
comparison. Risk is another aspect not dealt with in LCA.

LCA is a technique for assessing the environmental aspects and potential impacts associated with a
product by

- complaining an inventory of relevant inputs and outputs of a product system;

- evaluating the potential environmental impacts associated with those inputs and outputs;

- interpreting the results of the inventory analysis and impact assessment phases in relation to the
objectives of the study.
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LCA is not only product-orientated; it is also quantitative and thus seemingly objective. Thus, it was
no longer necessary to reply on simple rules of thumb. With LCA came the notion that it was
possible to possible to quantitatively compare alternatives in order to identify the environmentally
preferred option. Moreover, it could deal with environmental issues in a structured way and it could
handle several environmental issues at a time. Quantitative description of the environmental impacts
of emissions and resource using the three categories – resources use, human health, and ecological
consequences – is not an uncomplicated affair. Environmental problems are complex and still not
fully understood. As a consequence, different attempts at developing models to describe
environmental impacts have led to different results.

LCA can be used in many different ways in product development. Life cycle assessment is a
technique for assessing the environmental aspects associated with a product over its life cycle. The
most important applications are: (1) Analysis of the contribution of the life cycle stages to the overall
environmental load, usually with the aim to prioritise improvements on products or processes, (2)
Comparison between products for internal or internal communications.

Product design and development has been seen as the principal area of application of LCA since the
early days of LCA. The focal point of LCA, the product, coincides with that of the product design
and development process. This explains in part why LCA has been brought forward as a tool for
environmental adoption of product designs. The other part is that product development is seen as a
decisive activity for achieving sustainability in industrial society – most of the environmental
attributes are determined and built into the product during the design stage when materials are
selected and constructions designed.

With respect to product design, there is a need to understand how a product impacts on the
environment. To develop truly sustainable products, it must be possible to assess which design
solution is environmentally preferable. LCA tools can help in this difficult area of eco-design. Ten
simple guide lines for eco-design are:

1. Do not design products, but life cycles;

2. Natural materials are not always better;

3. Energy consumption often underestimated;

4. Increase product life time;

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5. Do not design products, but services;

6. Use a minimum of material;

7. Use recycled materials;

8. Make sure product is recyclable;

9. Ask stupid questions i.e. be suspicious about the established result;

10. Become member O2: an international network for sustainable design.

As the whole product lifecycle should be regarded at once, representatives from design, production,
marketing, purchasing, and project management should work together on the eco-design of a new
product as they have together the best chance to predict the holistic effects of changes of the product
and their environmental impact. Environmental aspects which ought to be analyzed for every stage of
the lifecycle can be seen as:

1. Consumptions of resources (energy, materials, water or ground)

2. Emissions to air, water or the ground
3. Waste and waste products
4. Miscellaneous (noise and vibration)

Having made up a list on which phase of the lifecycle has which particular environmental aspect,
these aspects are evaluated according to their environmental impact on the basis of a number
parameters such as extend of environmental impact potential for improvement or potential of change.
The evaluations can also take marketing and marketing issues into account. According to this ranking
the recommended changes are carried out and are reviewed after a certain time. It must be done
regularly to keep up with annual review of environmental legislation by national and international
watchdogs.

Use of Non-Destructive Testing (NDT):

NDT involves testing of components for defects without damaging or destroying them

Ultrasonic Testing (UT)

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Ultrasonic testing uses high frequency sound waves to detect surface and sub-surface flaws.
Cracks, laminations, cavities flakes, pores and binding faults that acts as discontinuities can be easily
detected by UT.

Magnetic Particle Inspection (MPI)

MPI helps in detecting cracks and discontinuities on or near the surface in ferromagnetic materials
using dry magnetic particle testing equipment. Seams, laps, quenching & grinding cracks are some
eg. determined by MPI

Dry Penetration Inspection (DPI)

In this technique fluorescent liquid penetrate is applied to the surface to the examined and allowed to
enter into probable discontinuities. Then, the excess penetrate is removed, the surface dried and the
developer applied. This developer serves both as a bottler to absorb the penetrate coming out by
capillary action and also as contrasting background to enhance the visibility of the defect. Defects
like surface cracks, porosity, pitting, pin holes weld defects etc. can be detected by DPI

In-Situ Metallography

The surface which needs to be studied is prepared for microscopic examination by polishing and
etching as done in metallography. A thin transparent green foil is stuck on the surface which takes
away a replica of the surface microstructure. This microstructure is then studied under metallurgical
microscope and tested for damages like creep, cavitation, inclusions, etc.