ENGINEERING

Activity 2.3.1

Material Properties
Distance Learning Support

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GOALS

List material properties that are important to design, including mechanical,

chemical, electrical, and magnetic properties.
Perform an experimental protocol to investigate a phenomenon and/or gain
knowledge.
Conduct non-destructive tests (hardness, flexure, conductivity) on different
material types to investigate material properties.
 RESOURCES

Product Disassembly Uses of Common Materials

DL: Density

DL: Elasticity

DL: Thermal Conductivity

DL: Electrical Conductivity

DL: Hardness

Mass, Weight, Density

The Role of Materials

METACOGNITIVE STRATEGY
As you read through the content, remember to use your highlighting and note-taking
strategies to annotate the material. Document questions that arise during the activity
and seek answers to your questions.

During the reverse engineering of your consumer product, you were asked to identify the
materials used in its design. You might have picked up a part of the product and through
observation, deduced that it was made of metal or plastic. What characteristics led you to
that conclusion? Why did the product designers decide to make the part using that specific
material? Does the selected material support the visual, functional, and structural
requirements of the product?

Consider that every thing must be made from something. Materials can loosely be defined
as “the stuff we use to make things.” A more precise definition of a material includes the
qualities that give something its individuality and by which it can be categorized. How a
material performs in a specific application depends on its properties—its response to heat,
light, and other stimuli—and the structure of the material, beginning with the atoms that the
material is made of.

CAREER CONNECTIONS

Materials Science Engineer

Materials science and engineering is an
interdisciplinary field that connects the
science of a material—its underlying
structure, its properties, its processing
methods, and its performance—to the real
world of products and people.

Materials scientists focus on how the

Figure 1. Molecular Structure of Graphene
structure of a material relates to the
properties of that material. They study the behavior of materials and classify materials
into various types, such as metals , ceramics , polymers , composites , and
biomaterials . Materials engineers, on the other hand, focus on the development of
new materials and the processing of component materials into engineering products.
They are interested in using or producing a material with the desired set of properties
for a specific application.

A college degree in materials science and engineering draws heavily on the

fundamental knowledge of materials science while using engineering principles to
create innovative materials and solutions to technological, environmental, and societal
problems. Most graduates of materials science and engineering undergraduate
programs attend graduate school to focus on a particular material type. Materials
science and engineering graduates can find wide-ranging employment opportunities
due to their involvement in each phase of a product’s development—from initial
concept research through material selection and manufacturing.
 1 Brainstorm a list of material properties or characteristics that a materials engineer
would be interested in knowing.

Note: For each property you add to the list, consider why the engineer would
need to know that characteristic.

In materials science and engineering, structure refers to how the atoms or molecules are
arranged in a material. A solid material exhibits either a crystalline or amorphous
arrangement of atoms or molecules.
Diamond and graphite (used in pencils) are both made of the same element—carbon.
However, the structure of the carbon atoms in diamond are arranged differently than in
graphite. This arrangement results in a diamond being transparent, strong, and one of the
hardest known materials, while graphite is gray and relatively soft. A diamond-coated drill bit
can drill through solid graphite.

So the structure of a material directly relates

to its properties, which in turn determine its
performance. Structure is affected by how a
material was made and processed (through
machining, molding, bending, rolling,
welding, or heat treating). However, a
material’s structure can also affect how it can
be processed.

The graphical model in Figure 2 illustrates

these dependencies. Engineers need to be
aware of these interrelationships when
Figure 2. Materials Science and Engineering
Tetrahedron choosing materials and specifying
manufacturing processes. For example,
metals conduct electricity. Another property of metals—ductility—allows it to be processed
into a wire. Applying a heat treatment process—annealing—changes the crystal structure of
the metal wire. This process improves the performance of the wire by increasing the
electrical conductivity of the metal.

Investigate Material Properties

The list of material properties that you generated most likely included physical properties
of a material, such as its color or texture. One of the most common physical properties
considered when selecting or differentiating between materials is density . Density is a
measure of the mass or weight of an object per its volume. An object with a higher density
implies that the material is heavier by weight than a similarly-sized object with a lower
density. A material’s atomic structure determines its density, with higher-density materials
having more closely packed atoms as illustrated in Figure 3. Lower-density materials have
more space between atoms as illustrated in Figure 4.

Figure 3. High-density Cube Figure 4. Low-density Cube

Is Mass a Physical Property of a Material? All matter has mass and volume.
However, if we think about a material property as something about the material
that is the same no matter its size or shape, then density is a material property
while mass is not. Because density is a ratio, its value for a material will not
change regardless of how much of the material you have.

Conversely, since mass changes depending upon how much of the material you
have, it is not a distinguishing material characteristic. In other words, just
knowing you have 25.6 grams of steel or 1.5 pounds (weight) of polypropylene
does not specifically tell you about the properties of either material.

In contrast, when considering a specific object or a solid model, the mass,

weight, volume, shape, and surface area are physical properties of the object
that are often part of the design constraints or solution criteria. These physical
properties vary with different objects produced from the same material
(although the material properties do not change).
 Discussion Prompt: Assuming that the density of water is approximately 1 g/mL,
what can you infer about materials with a higher density? A lower density? Why
would an engineer be concerned with comparing a material’s density to that of
water?

A property of a material can be defined as the response of that material to an external

stimulus, such as light or heat. Based on that definition, the following classifications of
properties can be identified:
 Mechanical Properties Mechanical properties are the response of a material to an externally applied
force. The many mechanical properties include strength, tensile strength,
hardness, stiffness, and ductility.
Does the material deform when it is pulled or compressed?
Does the material break when impacted?
Can the material flex and return to its original shape?

Electrical Properties Electrical properties are the response of a material in the presence of an electric
field. Electrical conductivity and resistivity are electrical properties of a material.
Is the material an electrical conductor or insulator?

Thermal Properties Thermal properties are the response of a material to externally applied heat.
Thermal properties include heat capacity, thermal conductivity, thermal
expansion, and melting/boiling point.
Does the material expand as it heats up?
Is the material a thermal conductor or insulator?
Can the material tolerate a rapid change in temperature?
Will the material soften during processing?

Optical Properties Optical properties define the response of a material to an externally applied light
source. Optical properties include color, absorbability, transmittance, reflectivity,
and fluorescence.
Does the material absorb or reflect light?
Is the material clear (transparent), translucent, or opaque?

Magnetic Properties Magnetic properties define the response of a material to an externally applied
magnetic field.
Is the material attracted or repelled by a magnet?

Chemical Properties Chemical properties quantify how reactive the material is to externally applied
chemical agents. This includes how the material’s other properties might
degrade over time, such as whether a material will corrode in air or water.
Chemical properties include reactivity, combustibility, surface energy, pH, and
corrosion resistance.
Does the material corrode in air and/or water? How quickly?
Does the material react to an acid such as vinegar?

Product designers must consider both the physical properties of the object they are
designing and the material properties of the materials they propose when designing a
product. A product’s size, shape, volume, and weight impact its visual, functional, and
structural characteristics as well as the cost of raw materials and manufacturing. However,
the physical properties of the product alone do not determine the success of the product.
The material(s) from which the product is made also impact the visual, functional, and
structural characteristics of the product and cost. Because performance is linked to a
material’s properties, it is important for engineers to have a basic understanding of how a
material’s properties can impact its performance.

In designing a product, designers have a purpose, such as to make the product as

inexpensive as possible or as safe as possible. These objectives are subject to constraints—
the cost must be below a certain limit, the product must withstand a certain load without
failure, or the weight of the product must be below a given value. When selecting material(s)
for a product, a designer must consider all aspects of the design. Trade-offs are often
necessary to achieve design criteria and constraints.

Your Challenge

You will explore six material samples and use their properties to identify each sample’s
material of construction. In particular, you will examine the following properties:
Density

Elasticity (Stiffness)
Thermal Conductivity
Electrical Conductivity

Hardness

Important: Each material is identified with a letter from A–F. The size, shape, or
color of the sample may vary for each investigation. However, if a material
sample is labeled Sample A in the density investigation, for example, then
Sample A in all other investigations is made from the same material.
 METACOGNITIVE STRATEGY
How are things going? In the upcoming step, you will dive into the technical content of
specific material properties. Take a few moments to plan your approach to tackling
these investigations. You may wish to review the following Skills for Success.

FAQ: How do I find the time to

l hi ?
FAQ: How do I stay focused
h I’ h i ff d ?
FAQ: Is it okay to get help from
f i d?

2 Complete each of the following investigations to gather property information about

each material sample.

Density

Elasticity

Thermal Conductivity

Electrical Conductivity

Hardness

3 Organize your material property data for each sample in a table similar to the one
shown:

Important: Recall that you have only estimated measures of thermal

conductivity (using rate of temperature change) and hardness (based
upon the sample with the highest hardness value).
 For properties marked by **, compare samples using relative values—such as high,
medium, or low. For thermal conductivity, you can also use your slope rankings.

Material Density Young’s Elastic **Thermal Electrical **Hardness

Modulus Conductivity Conductivity
E k σ

Sample g/cm3 GPa W/(m•K) 1/(Ω•m) Value

4 Use websites, such as MatWeb or Engineering Toolbox, and your recorded material
property data, to verify the identity of each material sample by material name.

Sample Verified Material Name

F
5 Compare your material sample identifications to those of a classmate. If you
disagree about a sample’s identity, try to come to consensus using data to support
your argument. Make any changes to the suspected material name of each sample
before your teacher reveals the name of each material sample.

METACOGNITIVE STRATEGY
In your learning journal, write a sentence or two about a part of the activity that was
the least clear to you. Then think about what will help you strengthen your
understanding.

CONCLUSION

1 Why is density used to identify a material?

2 Polymers (plastics) are often difficult to tell apart using basic testing
methods. Research an additional testing method that can be used to
identify this class of materials. Describe the general protocol and outcome
of the technique.

3 You are presented with three identical-appearing materials in the form of a

13 mm by 50 mm cylinder. However, each material is a different type—metal,
ceramic, and polymer. Describe how you might identify each material using
only your senses, a beaker of water and ice, a beaker of boiling water, a
multimeter, and a small pocket knife.

Proceed to Activity 2.3.2