Historic uses of metals

The discovery of certain metals and the ability to form them into various tools and weapons have dramatically affected
the way civilisation has developed over the past 5000 years, so much so that terms like the Bronze Age and the Iron
Age are commonly used in archaeology and ancient history. The most widely used metals are iron, copper, aluminium,
zinc, lead, tin, chromium, nickel, titanium, magnesium, silver, gold and platinum.
Gold was the first metal used by ancient people because not only did it look gold but it was found free.
Native copper was the first evidence of metal working. The process of annealing was discovered about 5000 BC.
Heat from wood fires was sufficient for this. Smelting of copper occurred before 4000 BC. Pottery kilns could
produce more intense heat than wood fires and malachite and other copper ores could be decomposed to copper.
This lead to a greater use of copper, as ornaments, tools and also weapons.
It was not until 3000 BC that the extraction of silver was mastered but the artefacts were rarer than gold artefacts.
It was restricted in use until the late Roman Republic when huge quantities made it available for use as coins,
eating utensils, drinking goblets and even tables and bath tubs.
The first true bronze appeared around 3000 BC as tin and copper ores often occurred together. Bronze is easier to
cast than copper and produced better weapons, having better cutting edge: spears, arrowheads, adzes. It was also
used for bed and table frames, bells and horse trappings.
The first iron came from meteoritic iron which was soft and rusted quickly. The first cast iron appeared around 500
AD and wrought iron was produced from the middle of the 14
th
century.
Lead was produced by the Romans during their silver refining. It was more popular during the Middle Ages, and
was mixed with tin to form pewter in the 3
rd
century. It was used as an alternative to silver.
Brass, an alloy of zinc and copper was made around 1000 BC. It was similar to bronze.
Aluminium although the most abundant metal in the lithosphere, was among the latest of the metals to be
extracted in commercial quantities during the 1800s.
Contemporary uses of metals
Copper and iron are still widely used today. However, other metals such as aluminium and titanium are now also of
considerable importance.
Copper
Copper is a salmon-pink metal that is present naturally as sulfide minerals, such as chalcopyrite CuFeS
2
and
chalcocite Cu
2
S. Copper metal can be extracted from these minerals using the process of smelting. Being fairly
unreactive, meant that it was easily extracted, and therefore was one of the first metals to be used by humans.
It has the following properties:
Copper is an excellent thermal and electrical conductor
It is malleable (able to be hammered into sheets) and ductile (able to drawn into wires)
It is fairly unreactive and slow to corrosion. It also readily forma alloys.
Copper because of its good conductivity of electricity is used as electrical cables and wiring. It is also used in radiators,
refrigeration systems and water pipes. It forms alloys including brass and bronze, which are used for fittings, fixtures
and casting respectively.
Use Properties of Copper Used
Electrical Wiring High electrical conductivity and ductility
Saucepan Bases High heat conductivity and malleability
Water Pipes and Fittings High malleability and resistance to corrosion
Ornaments Lustre and malleability
Iron
Iron is a silvery metal that is fairly reactive and is rarely found uncombined in the lithosphere. It is present in ores
including magnetite Fe
3
O
4
, hematite Fe
2
O
3
, siderite FeCO
3
and limonite 2Fe
2
O
3
.3H
2
O.
It has the following properties:
Iron is soft and malleable.
It is a good thermal and electrical conductor.
It is fairly reactive and readily forms alloys.
Iron is not used by itself, as it corrodes easily. Instead, it is used as an alloy steel, which is used in bridges, buildings,
cars, machinery and appliances, including kitchen appliances.
Magnesium
Magnesium is a silvery metal that is lightweight and is present naturally in minerals such as magnesite MgCO
3
and
dolomite MgCO
3
.CaCO
3
. Magnesium being highly reactive is not found free in nature, and was only prepared in 1808
by Humphrey Davy who decomposed MgCO
3
using electrolysis.
The properties of magnesium include:
Magnesium has a low density and has high strength.
Magnesium has a high reactivity and is often used as a sacrificial anode where because it corrodes more readily
than another, it can be used to protect a less active metal.
It reacts with oxygen to produce a bright white light
Use Properties of Magnesium Used
Fireworks High reactivity with oxygen, producing a bright white light on combustion.
Aircrafts and cars, as an alloy Low density and high strength.
Steelmaking High reactivity of sulfur, combining with the sulfur in steel to produce MgSO
4

Production of titanium High reactivity, used to reduce titanium salts into titanium metal at high
temperatures.
Corrosion protection High reactivity, acts as a sacrificial anode to protect iron and steel structures
Lead
Lead is a soft blue-grey metal that is not found free in nature usually, but rather exists in minerals such as galena PbS
and cerussite PbCO
3
. Lead was produced in the uncombined form around 5500 years ago, by reduction of galena.
Nowadays, due to the health of lead poisoning, lead has been replaced by other metals in many applications.
It has the following properties:
Lead has a low melting point and a high density.
Lead is soft and malleable.
Lead also has a relatively good conductively.
Lead has the ability to absorb ionizing radiation.
Use Properties of Lead Used
Sheet lead for roofing Malleability, resistance to corrosion due to formation of a stable oxide on the surface
Solder Low melting point of lead alloys, good electrical conductivity of lead and tin.
Electrodes in car batteries Good electrical conductivity, malleability and low chemical reactivity in sulfuric acid
Shielding against radiation Ability to absorb ionising radiation
Fishing sinkers High density, malleability, softness, resistance to corrosion


Aluminium
Aluminium is the most abundant metal in the Earths crust and possesses some remarkable properties:
Aluminium has a low density and is relatively soft when pure.
It is an excellent thermal and electrical conductor.
It is malleable and ductile.
It is highly reflective and is used in telescope reflectors and food packaging.
Aluminium can be strengthened by the addition of small amounts of other metals such as titanium to produce
many alloys that have a low density and are strong so they can be used in spacecraft, aircraft and boat
construction.
Aluminium was not used until the beginning of the twentieth century because it was extremely difficult and expensive
to extract from its ore, bauxite (Al
2
O
3
.3H
2
O). Since the development of a new, commercially viable method of
extracting aluminium was developed in 1886, the use of aluminium increased rapidly.
Due to its low density and its resistance to corrosion, aluminium has displaced steel in many commercial and industrial
situations. For example, roofing, window frames, appliance trim and decorative furniture, saucepans, frying pans, drink
cans and cooking foil.
Titanium
Titanium was discovered in 1791 but it was not until 1910 that the pure metal was isolated, due to its high reactivity.
It is the ninth most abundant element in the Earths crust, present in minerals such as rutile TiO
2
and ilmenite FeTiO
3
.
It has the following properties:
Titanium has great strength.
It has a high melting point, which means it melts at high temperatures.
It has a low density.
It is a lustrous solid that is resistant to corrosion, and is therefore used in the marine environments.
It also has a low reactivity, and readily forms alloys.
Alloys of titanium are very strong, are used in situations where lightweight but strong materials as well as resistance to
high temperatures are required, so it is used in jet engine components, aircraft, spacecraft and missiles. Due to its low
reactivity it is used for pipes and lining for vats where acids are used. Titanium alloys are also biocompatible and are
used for surgical implants such as artificial knee and hip joints.
Gold
Gold is a shiny yellow-coloured metal that is found uncombined in the lithosphere. It was one of the first metals, and
is still used today. However, because of it is expensive; other metals have replaced gold in some areas where gold was
used, particularly metals such as copper. Gold because of its shiny gold appearance is used in jewellery. It is an
excellent heat and thermal conductor (better conductor than copper) is used in electrical connections.

Other metals
Chromium has a shiny silver appearance and is resistant to corrosion. It also readily forms alloys. It is used as an
additive to steel alloys for example in stainless steel.
Cobalt is a magnetic metal that readily forms alloys. It is used in alloys to manufacture permanent magnets.
Nickel is also a magnetic metal that readily forms alloys. It is used as an additive to steel alloys, as well as in other
alloys which include:
Invar (an alloy of iron and nickel), which is used for scientific instruments.
Nichrome (an alloy of nickel and chromium), which is used in electrical heating elements.
Alloys with copper, which are used for coins.
Zinc is fairly reactive but forms a protective oxide layer which protects the metal from further corrosion. It readily
forms alloys.

Alloys and their uses
Metals can be used in their pure form, for example aluminium or copper. However, metals are increasingly being used
as alloys. This allows the production of a substance with the exact properties required for a particular use.
An alloy is a mixture containing a metal and one or more other elements. Alloys, being mixtures, can vary in
composition they do not have a constant composition or properties. Adding small amounts of a metal to another
can change its properties. For example, adding chromium to iron produces stainless steel which resists corrosion.
Adding a metal with different sized particles makes a stronger alloy as layers cannot slide over each other as easily.
Alloys usually have better physical properties, including better strength or better resistant to corrosion.
Steel
Steel is an example of an alloy consisting of mainly iron, carbon and other elements such as manganese, chromium,
vanadium and tungsten in smaller amounts. These elements differ in atomic size, and as a result break the orderly
array of the iron atoms, which prevents them from easily sliding over each other, which makes the substance stronger.
Physical properties including hardness, ductility and tensile strength of the alloy can be modified by adding different
quantities of other elements, which result in different types of steels, which are used for different purposes:
Carbon steel, which is only contains carbon and iron, is the most common form of steel, accounting for 90%.
Stainless steel contains a minimum of 10% chromium in addition to iron and carbon. Nickel is often added as well.
These additional elements make the alloy more resistant to corrosion. Depending on the quantities of these
elements, some stainless steels may be magnetic.
In the 17
th
century, the first efficient methods of producing steel were developed, and since then its use has increased.
As the cost of production decreased, steel became used more often, with uses ranging from building structures to cars.
However, since the refining of aluminium has become easier, it has replaced steel in many uses.
Brass
Brass is an example of an alloy consisting of varying proportions of copper and zinc. It has the following properties:
The relatively low melting point of brass (900-940C) makes it a relatively easy material to shape into casts.
Brass has also a higher malleability than both copper and zinc.
If small amounts of aluminium or tin are added, a stronger alloy that is also more resistant to corrosion is the
result. Combining brass with small amounts of iron, aluminium, silicon and manganese can make the brass more
resistant to wear.
Brass has many usages including:
Decoration, because of its shiny gold-coloured appearance.
Applications where low friction is required, such as locks, gears, bearings, valves or ammunition.
Applications in the plumbing and electrical industry.
Musical instruments, particularly brass instruments and bells, due to its acoustic properties.
Solder
Solder is an example of an alloy consisting of varying proportions of tin and lead. Solder has a melting point that is
relatively low (ranging from 90-450C, but more commonly 180-190C), allowing it to be melted. There are two main
types of solder:
Electricians solder has more tin, and sets faster, and is used in electrical connections.
Plumbers solder has less tin, which allows time while it is setting to be worked to allow adjustments of the pipes,
and is used for plumbing.
Nowadays the lead component of solder has been replaced with copper due to health concerns of lead poisoning