Chapter 5

Non Ferrous Metals

and
Alloys
 INTRODUCTION
• Ferrous alloys are consumed more because they have a wide
range of mechanical properties, can be fabricated easily and
economical to produce.
• However, ferrous materials possess some limitations like
heavier due to high density, low electrical conductivity and an
inherent susceptibility to corrosion.
• Thus, for many applications it is advantageous to utilize other
alloys e.g. non-ferrous alloys.
• These metals are those which contain metals other than iron
as main constituent.
• Gain popularity and largely replaced steels and cast-iron in
many engineering application fields are light alloys.
• A distinction is made between cast and wrought non-ferrous
alloys.

2
 INTRODUCTION
• Alloys that are so brittle that forming or shaping by
appreciable deformation is not possible, are cast:
these are classified as cast alloys.
• On the other hand, those are willing to mechanical
deformation are termed as wrought alloys.
• The more common non-ferrous materials are the
following metallic elements and their alloys:
• 1. Copper 2.Alluminium 3.Magnesium
4.Lead 5.Nickel 6.Tin 7.Zinc 8.Cobalt
etc.

3
Non-ferrous Ferrous shaft
bearing 4
Nonferrous metals & Alloys
• Nonferrous metals are those which
contain a metal other than iron as
main constituent.
Important characteristics of
nonferrous metals are:
1.Easy to fabricate.
2.High resistance to corrosion.
3.High thermal and electrical
conductivity. 5
 Nonferrous metals & Alloys
4.Less weight.
5.Good appearance
6.Non-magnetic

Commonly used nonferrous metals:

• Cu, Al, Mg, Ni, Sn, Pb, Zn.
Less used nonferrous metals:
• Cd, Co, Zr, Be, Ti, Ta.
Precious nonferrous metals:
• Au, Ag, Pt. 6
 Copper
• It has FCC structure
• High thermal & electrical conductivity
• Good corrosion resistance
• Very good machinability
• Moderate to high hardness & Strength,
• Ease of fabrication
• Nonmagnetic, ductile, malleable.
• Can be welded, brazed or soldered
• Good finishing by plating.
• Ease of forming alloys with other
elements like Zn, Sn, Al, Pb, Si, Ni etc.
7
 Uses of Copper

• Electrical parts
• Heat exchangers
• For making various copper alloys, such
as brass and bronze
• Household tools etc.

8
 Alloys of Copper
• Copper possesses a desirable combination of
physical and mechanical properties.
• But, it does not find many engineering
applications due to its poor strength.
• Copper has a tensile strength of about 22
kg/mm2 which is not sufficient for most of the
structural applications.
• Important methods by which strength of
copper can be increased are strain hardening,
solid solution hardening and precipitation
hardening.
9
 Alloys of Copper
• Strength of copper can be increased upto 50
kg/mm2 by cold working. The increase in
strength is due to strain hardening.
• Similarly, strength of copper-alloy can be
increased by cold working.
• Addition of alloying elements such as zinc, tin,
aluminium, silicon, etc. results in the increase
in strength of copper by the method of solid
solution hardening.
• The solid solution alloys of copper are known
as brasses and bronzes.
10
 Alloys of Copper

• Strength of some copper alloys, such as

aluminium and beryllium bronzes can be
further increased by special heat treatment,
called precipitation hardening.

11
 Alloys of Copper
• Important copper alloys can be classified
into various groups such as :

1) Brass
2) Bronze
3) Cupronickels
4) Nickel silvers

12
 BRASS
• It is an alloy of Cu & Zn
• Brasses are subdivided into three
groups:

i) Cu-Zn alloys,
ii)Cu-Pb-Zn alloys or leaded
brasses
iii)Cu-Zn-Sn alloys or tin brasses.
13
 Properties of Brass

• Brass has high resistance to corrosion

• Easily machinable
• It also acts as good bearing material
• Zinc in the brass increases ductility
along with strength
• Brass possesses greater strength than
copper
• It has lower thermal and electrical
conductivity.
14
 Types of Brass
1. Gliding Brass:
• Contains 5-15% Zn & balance is Cu.
• Possess shades of colour from the red of
copper to a brassy yellow.
• They are supplied in the form of sheet strip
and wire.
• Used for jewellery and many other
decorative purpose.
• Like copper, it is hardened and strengthened
by cold work.
• Gliding metal is used for making coins,
metals, tokens, fuse caps etc. 15
2. Cartridge Brass:
• Contains 70%Cu & 30% Zn.
• It has a tensile strength of over 300 N/mm2 in
the fully annealed condition.
• It has greater % elongation and tensile
strength which makes this brass satisfactory
for cold deformation in press.
• This led to its almost universal adoption for
cartridge as well as used in door furniture,
caps of electric lamp.
• Cartridge brass work hardens when deformed
in the cold, and must be annealed if many
successive operations are to be performed.
• An annealing temperature of about 6000 C.
16
3. Admiralty Brass:

• Contains 71%Cu , 28% Zn, and Sn 1%.

• Small amount of tin added to brass improves
its resistance to corrosion.
• It is widely used for the tubes and other
parts of condensers.
• For such applications, modern alloy contains
about 0.04% Arsenic, which improves
resistance to a penetrative form of corrosion
(Dezincification).
• This material at present superseded by
better materials in marine condensers. 17
4. Aluminium Brass:

• Contains 76%Cu & 22% Zn, and Al 2%.

• A little Arsenic is added to inhibit
dezincification.
• In contact with sea water, a protective film
builds up on the surface of this alloy.
• It is self-healing if the film is damaged by
sand particles.

18
5. Basis Brass:

• Contains 61.5-64%Cu & the remainder

being Zn.
• It is used for press work where a relatively
cheap material is required.
• The main commercial forms are sheet, strip
and wire.

19
6. Muntz metal or Yellow metal:

• Contains 60%Cu & 40%Zn.

• It is essentially a hot working material.
• It is manufactured in the form of hot rolled
sizes.
• Yellow metal is frequently used as a brazing
alloy for steel.
• Other applications of muntz metal are as
condenser tubes, valve stems, ship
sheathing, perforated metal etc.

20
7. Leaded 60:40 brass:
• Contains 60%Cu & 40%Zn.
• The lead content ranges from about 0.5%-
3.5%.
• For good machinability, the lead content is
high.
• Low lead content is preferred for hot forging
operation.
• Lead has no effect on tensile strength.
• Lead weaken ductility, weldability and
impact strength.
• It is used for keys, gears, valve parts, lock
parts, clock parts, pipe unions.
21
8. Naval Brass:

• Contains 60%Cu & 39.25%Zn and Sn

0.75%.
• It is used for structural application especially
in cases where sea water is likely to induce
corrosion.
• It is obtainable as hot-rolled plate and in the
form of hot-rolled rod.
• Both sand and die castings are also
available.
• Other applications are propeller shafts, valve
stems, pump impellers. 22
9. Admiralty Brass:

• Contains 71%Cu & 28%Zn and Sn 1%.

• It is used for decorative and architectural
applications, heat exchanger components,
pump impellers etc.

23
 BRONZE
• It is an alloy of Cu containing elements
other than Zn.
• Bronze is basically an alloy of copper
and tin.
• Zn may be present in small amount.
• Commercially important bronzes are:
i) Tin bronze (phosphor bronze),
ii)Aluminium bronze
iii)Silicon bronze and
iv)Beryllium bronze
24
 Properties of Bronze

• High strength than brasses.

• Better corrosion resistance than
brasses.
• Possesses antifriction or bearing
properties.
• It can be shaped or rolled into wire, rod
and sheets.
• Costlier than brasses.
25
 Types of Bronze
1. Phosphor Bronze (Tin Bronze):
• Copper-tin alloys containing up to 25% tin.
• At room temperature, the solubility of tin in
Cu is very small.
• With larger proportion of tin, the hard
electron compound, Cu3Sn, may form and
decrease the ductility of the alloy.
• Tensile strength of alloy increases with
increase in the tin content.
• It is also known as phosphor bronze
because phosphor is always present up to
0.3%. 26
 Phosphor Bronze (Tin Bronze):
• Phosphor is used as a deoxidizer to remove
oxygen.
• It improves fluidity of the casting.
• Phosphorus also improves hardness and
strength of the alloy due to the formation of
the compound Cu3P.
• In amounts greater than 1% phosphorous
causes brittleness and damage surface
appearance but affords a good bearing
surface.
• This property led to use it in gears and
bearings.
27
Phosphor Bronze for Bearing Applications
• It contains 90% Cu, 10%Sn, and 0.5%P.
• In sand cast condition it has a tensile
strength of 220-280 N/mm2 .
• % elongation varies 3-8%.
Phosphor Bronze for Gear Applications
• It contains 88% Cu, 12%Sn, and 0.3%Zn,
0.5%P.
• In sand cast condition it has a tensile
strength of 220-310 N/mm2 .
• % elongation varies 5-15%.
• This material is also used for bearings,
where its rigidity is of advantage.
28
Leaded Phosphor Bronze
• It contains 87% Cu, 7.5%Sn, and 2%Zn, 3.5%Pb,
0.3%P and 1%Ni.
• In sand cast condition it has a tensile strength of
190-250 N/mm2 .
• % elongation varies 3-12%.
• This material is also used for bearings.
General Properties of Phosphor Bronze
• High strength and toughness
• Resistance to corrosion
• Has good load bearing capacity
• Low coefficient of friction.
General Application of Phosphor Bronze
• Bearings, pump parts, springs, gears, clutch discs,
bellows, diaphragms. 29
 Silicon Bronze

• It contains Si 1-4%, Fe 0.5-1%, Mn 0.25-

1.25% and balance is Cu.
• Lead when added as 05% improves
machinability.
• It possess high strength and toughness
comparable to mild steel and corrosion
resistance as that of copper.
• Used in pressure vessels, tanks, marine
constructions, hydraulic pressure lines.

30
 Aluminium Bronze

• It contains Cu 89-91%, Al 6-7%, Fe 1.5-

3.5%, Sn 0.35% and Mn 1%.
• It possess high strength, high corrosion
resistance, good heat resistance and good
cold working properties.
• Used in Bearings, valves seats, gears,
propellers, slide valves, cams, pump parts,
artificial jewellery.

31
 Beryllium Bronze

• It contains upto 2.5% beryllium.

• They posses much higher tensile strength
than other bronzes.
• They also possess excellent corrosion
resistance.
• They can be heat treated by precipitation
hardening and high fatigue and creep
resistance in hardened condition.
• The main dis-advantage for their general
use is the high cost.
32
 Gun Metal

• Gun metal is an alloy of copper, tin and zinc.

• Zinc cleans the metal and increase its
fluidity.
• A small amount of lead may be added to
improve its castability and machinability.
• Gun metal contains 10% Sn, 2%Zn,
1.5%Pb, 15%Ni and balance is Cu.
• It is widely used pump valves,
miscellaneous casting. It has tensile
strength of 260-340 N/mm2 .
33
 Gun Metal
• Nickel gun metal contains 7% Sn, 2.25%Zn,
3%Pb, 55%Ni and balance is Cu. When
sand cast and heat treated it has a tensile
strength of 430-480 N/mm2.
• Leaded gun metal contains 5% Sn, 5%Zn,
5%Pb, 2%Ni and balance is Cu. When sand
cast it has a tensile strength of 200-270
N/mm2. This is among the most widely used
grades, particularly where pressure
tightness is needed.
• In general it is used for bearings, steam
pipe fittings, marine castings, hydraulic
34
valves and gears.
 Cupronickels
• These are Cu-Ni alloys that contain up to 30%
Ni.
• Their properties can be changed only by cold
working.
• They have high resistance to corrosion fatigue
& corrosive sea water.
• They are widely used for condenser, distiller,
evaporator and HX tubes for naval vessels &
coastal power plants.
• A copper alloy containing 25% Ni is used for
cladding on both sides of copper in the
manufacture of coins in U.S.A. 35
 Nickel Silvers
• These are alloys of Cu, Ni & Zn.
• It contains 50-70Cu, 5-30Ni & 5-40Zn.
• The addition of Ni to Cu-Zn alloy gives
pleasing silver-blue light color and
resistance to corrosion from food
chemicals, water and atmosphere.
• They are used as base metal for plating
with Cr, Ni or Ag.
• They are used for screws, rivets, name
plates, costume jewellery etc.
36
 Bearing metals
• Generally in manufacturing of fluid
film bearings non-ferrous metals are
used.
• Generally ferrous and non-ferrous
metal combination is used to reduce
adhesive friction between bearing and
the shaft.
• Shaft is mostly made from ferrous
metals and bearing from non-ferrous.
37
Bearing metals should have following
properties:
• It should have high compressive strength
• High hardness and Wear resisting to provide
longer life
• It should have good conformability and
embedability.
• It should have good fatigue strength.
• Low coefficient of friction
• High thermal conductivity
• Oil retention and good casting qualities
• Minimum shrinkage after casting
• Non-corrosive
• Economical 38
Metallurgical Structure of Bearing metals :
• The bearing material should possess
somewhat contradictory combination of
mechanical properties.
• It has been achieved by the control of structure
of the material.
• Most bearing materials have duplex structure
consisting of hard crystal embedded in a soft
matrix.
• The hard crystal would support the load and
resist wear, whereas the softer matrix would
yield under pressure until the bearing face
conformed to the shaft over its whole surface.
39
Metallurgical Structure of Bearing metals :
• The above belief, that a bearing material must
posses a structure consisting of hard crystal in
a soft matrix has been proven wrong.
• Bearings of pure metals such as tin, lead,
aluminium and silver have worked successfully.
• Copper-lead alloy has given a good
performance and its structure consists of
islands of soft lead in a hard matrix.

40
 Various Bearing Metals
Common bearing materials are:
• tin-base alloy,
• lead-base alloys,
• copper-lead alloys,
• tin bronze,
•silver platings,
• aluminium alloys,
•grey cast iron,
•self lubricating porous bearings,
•sintered carbide and non-metallic
41
 White Metal Alloys

• White metal alloys represent the majority of

sliding bearing alloys.

• They are referred to as Babbitts after Isaac

Babbitt, their original Patentee.

• Babbitts are divided in to tin-base and lead

base alloys.

42
 White Metal Alloys
1) Tin base alloys (Babbit metal):
• The tin-base alloy consists of a soft matrix
of a tin-antimony (SnSb) white cuboids-rich
solution in which hard copper-tin(Cu6Sn6)
white needle compounds are embedded.
•88Sn-8Sb-4Cu

43
 Various Bearing Metals :
2) Lead base alloy:
•83Pb-15Sb-1.5Sn-0.5Cu
• Lead-base babbitt consists of a soft matrix of
pure lead (Black-white) containing hard
crystallites cuboids of tin and antimony (SbSn-
Black).

44
 Characteristics of Babbitts
• Low friction properties of the babbitts are due
to their soft matrix materials.
• This material are easily extruded and smeared
out during sliding to form a thin lubricating film.
• This accounts for the low friction of the
bearing, since the shearing stress of the soft
matrix is low.
•Hard crystals dispersed in the soft matrix
impart hardness to the alloy, but they do not
affect its frictional properties.
•Any abrasive particles present, are embedded
in the soft matrix, thus any possible scratching
45
effect on the steel shaft is eliminated.
 Characteristics of Babbitts
• They have excellent anti-seizure qualities.
•Tin base alloys resist corrosion better than
lead-base alloys.
• Babbitt alloys are mechanically weak,
particularly at elevated temperature.
• So, it must be supported by a bearing shell
made of stronger material such as steel.
•The layer thickness of a babbitt alloy when
bonded to steel may vary from 0.025 to 0.5mm.
• Such bearings are called as bimetal or
composite bearings.
•This bearings are generally produced as
46
continuously cast bimetallic (steel-babbitt) strip.
 Uses of Babbitts

•Lead based used in large bearings subjected

to light service.
• Tin base alloys used with CI boxes where the
bearings are subjected to high pressure and
load.

47
 Copper-Lead Alloy
• Stronger than white bearing metals
• Copper-lead alloys are extensively used in
automotive and aircraft applications.
• They are generally manufactured as steel
backed bearings .
• The bearings are also made by powdered
metallurgy technique by applying copper-
lead powder to steel strip.
• The alloy contains about 20 to 40% lead and
small amount of silver.

48
 Tin Bronzes
• The copper base alloy generally contains 5 to 20%
of tin and a small % of residual phosphorus.
• These alloys are sometimes referred to as
‘Phosphor bronze’.
• When 2 to 6% zinc is used instead of
phosphorous, the alloy is known as gun-metal.
• These bearings are used for heavy loads at low
speeds.
• They possess high strength, toughness, bearing
qualities and high resistance to corrosion in sea
water.
• A small amount of lead may be added to improve
its machinability of the castings.
49
 Aluminium Alloys
• Aluminium alloys have been used satisfactorily for
connecting rod and main bearings in engines.
• The structure of aluminium bearing alloy consists
of fine particles of tin, NiAl3 and CuAl2 phases,
distributed through the aluminium solid solution
matrix.
• It contains 6% of tin and small amounts of copper,
nickle, silicon and magnesium.
• These bearings are used for high speed and high
load applications.
• It possess excellent corrosion resistance, high
fatigue strength, high compressive strength, good
embeddability, wear resistance, good anti seizure
characteristics, high thermal conductivity and low
50
cost.
 Aluminium Alloys
• Aluminium alloys can be bonded to steel back for
better performance.
• The bimetal bearings can be overlay with lead to
improve anti-seizure characteristics and fatigue
strength.
• The resulting bearing is called trimetal bearing.
• Example of trimetal bearing is as shown in figure.

51
52
 Silver plated Bearings
• Electroplated silver bearings are used in air-craft
industry for heavy duty applications.
• It also possess high fatigue strength, highest anti-
seizure properties and corrosion resistance.
• These bearings have three layer construction.
• The steel shells are electroplated with silver, which
are then machined to very close dimensional
tolerances, and finally precision plated to size with
lead, and then with indium or lead tin alloy.

53
 Grey Cast Iron
• In applications involving friction and wear, such as
brake-drums, piston rings, cylinder liners, and
gears, cast iron is a standard material.
• Because of its properties, grey iron casting have
proved successful in refrigeration compressors.
• Properties may be further improved by phosphate
coatings.

54
 Porous Self Lubricating Bearings
• Porous metal bearings are made from fine metallic
powders by powder metallurgical techniques of
pressing and sintering.
• They have sufficient porosity to hold up to 40%
lubricating oil which prevents a direct metal to metal
contact.
• They do not require any other external source of
lubrication.
• These porous bearings, when impregnated with oil,
possess the property known as ‘self-lubrication’.
• During operation, the oil held in the voids, gradually
comes out and forms a lubricating film on the
working surface.
55
 Porous Self Lubricating Bearings
• When the bearing is stopped and allowed to cool
down the oil is partially sucked back into the voids.
• The consumption of oil in self lubricating bearing is
much less as compared to conventional bearings.
• They are generally made of copper and iron base
powders.

56
 Non-metallic Material
• Some non-metallic materials, such as nylon, teflon
and graphite can also be used as bearing under
light loads and at low speeds.
• These materials are used under corrosive
conditions when the use of conventional bearings
are excluded.
• To improve their wear resistance, these materials
may be reinforced with glass, graphite, etc.
• Teflon (poly tetra fluoroethylene resin) is a
thermoplastic material and finds its used due to
chemical inertness.

57
 Cadmium base alloys
• 95Cd-5Ag
• Used for medium loaded bearings subjected to high
temperature.

58
Typical Composition of Bearings

59
 Aluminium
• Aluminium occupies third place amongst
commercially used engineering materials after iron
and copper.
• It is easily available and much less expensive as
compared to copper, tin, nickle etc.
• Most of the aluminium is produced from its ore,
called bauxite, which is a mixture of aluminium,
contaminated with iron, silicon, and titanium oxide.
• A relatively thick oxide coating on Al and Al alloys
may be produced by placing the metal in to an
aqueous solution containing 15-25% sulphuric acid.
• This process is known as anodizing.
• Anodizing produces transparent coating that
prevents absorption and staining. 60
 Properties of Aluminium
• Aluminium has FCC structure.
• It has specific gravity 2.7 and melting point is
658°C. It is about one third that of steel or copper
alloys.
• High electrical and thermal conductivity. Its
electrical conductivity is about 62% that of copper.
• It has high corrosion resistance in water, industrial
and marine atmospheres. It is due to the formation
of a very thin passive film of aluminium oxide on the
surface of Al.
• Aluminium has good machinability, formability,
workability and castability.
• It is nontoxic, nonmagnetic and non-sparking.
• The main drawback of aluminium is its low
61
hardness and poor strength.
 Aluminium Alloy
• Due to increased strength, aluminium alloys are
extensively used in commercial applications.
• Aluminium alloy can be divided in to the following
three groups:
(1) Aluminium castings
(2) Wrought aluminium alloys
(3)Dispersion strengthened and fiber-reinforced
aluminium composites.
1) Aluminium castings alloys:
Apart from the light weight, the special advantage
of aluminium alloys for castings are the relatively
low melting temperatures,
negligible solubility for all gases except hydrogen,
and good surface finish.
62
1) Aluminium castings alloys:
 Most alloys have good fluidity, and composition can
be selected based on properties and applications.
The major problem with aluminium castings is the
relatively high shrinkage between 3.5 to 8.5%.
Allowance must be made in mould design to achieve
dimensional accuracy.
Aluminium Association of United states uses three digit
numerical system and British Standards have the prefix
LM.
Commonly used alloys for sand castings are 208(Al-4
Cu-3 Si), 413(Al-11.5 Si), 213(Al-7 Cu-2 Si2.5 Zn) and
356(Al-7 Si0.3 Mg).
Alloy 332 and 319 are favored for permanent mold
castings and 380 and 413 are used for pressure die
casting. 63
1) Aluminium castings alloys:
 In Britain, most cast Al alloy components are made
from LM 2, LM 4, LM 6 and LM 21.
Aluminium-Silicon alloys are the most important of the
aluminium casting alloy, mainly because of the high
fluidity.
The strength of the aluminium alloy can be improved
by refining the coarse structure by rapid cooling ,
modification process, and by the addition of copper
and magnesium.
In modification process the 0.001% sodium is added to
the melt prior to pouring which gives modified alloy
gives higher mechanical properties and lower porosity.
Large quantity of castings are made from Al-Si-Mg
alloy such as 365 or LM25. These alloy find particular
use for aircraft and automotive applications. 64
2) Wrought Aluminium alloys:
 About 85% of aluminium is used as wrought products
e.g. rolled plate(> 6 mm thickness),sheet(0.15 to 6
mm), foil (<0.15 mm), extrusions, tubes, rod, bar etc.
 These are produced from cast ingots.
Commercial purity aluminium (11XX series) containing
up to 1% of impurities has a low strength and widely
used for various applications including electrical
conductors, chemical process equipment, foil,
architectural products requiring decorative finishes.
Strength of Al can be increased by addition of
manganese and magnesium through the formation of
solid solution.

65
2) Wrought Aluminium alloys:
Aluminium-Manganese alloy(3XXX series) are used
when moderate strength with high ductility and
excellent corrosion resistance required. They find use
for the manufacture of cans for beverage industry,
roofing sheets and cooking apparatus.
Aluminum-magnesium alloys (5XXX series) work-
hardened rapidly and have good weldability. They are
used for dump truck body, large tank for carrying
petrol, milk, and for hulls of small boats.
Wrought alloys that respond to heat treatment by age-
hardening are Al-Cu, Al-Cu-Mg(2XXX series), Al-Mg-
Si(6XXXseries) and Al-Zn-Mg-Cu(7XXX series). A
common alloy of this group is Duralumin. The alloy has
a tensile strength of 45 to 55 kg/mm2, and is used for
high strength rivets and aircraft structures. 66
3) Dispersion Strengthened and composites
 Dispersion strengthened alloys are produced by
dispersion of particles of Al2O3 in the matrix of Al. The
resulting alloy is known as SAP(sintered aluminium
product) with 10% Al2O3 has tensile strength of 40
kg/mm2 at room temperature.
 Fiber-reinforced aluminium composites have been
produced by incorporating different types of fibers in
the aluminum matrix. Aluminium-boron composites
containing 50% boron in the aluminium matrix will
have a tensile strength of 130 kg/mm2 at room
temperature. The composites have been used in
aircraft structure and skins, and turbine engine blades.
 Nickle-Al composites possess a tensile strength of 35
kg/mm2 and shows a remarkable high temperature
strength. 67
 Applications of Aluminium Alloy
1) Electrical applications like electrical conductors, Al
cables or steel reinforced Al cables, bus bar
conductors, windings for motors, generators etc.
2) Used in refrigerator evaporators, electric range
cookers, sandwich grills, cooking utensils etc. In
these applications high corrosion resistance with
low cost of Al combine with thermal conductivity.
3) Due to light weight and other properties, Al castings
are used in automotive, railroad and marine
applications like pistons, connecting rods, flywheel
and clutch housing, oil and fuel pumps etc.
4) Al is used in many parts of the aircraft, missile and
spacecraft including airframe, engine, propellers.
5) Used at elevated temperature for structural parts in
temperature range of -240 to 200 0C. 68
 Main alloys of Al

• Duralumin
• Y-alloy
• Magnalium
• Hindalium

69
Aluminium alloys:
• Duralumin:
• 3.5-4.5Cu, 0.4-0.7Mn, & remaining is
Al.
• This alloy has maximum strength
after heat treatment and age
hardening.
• It is used for forging, stamping, bars,
sheets, tubes and rivets.
• Due to its high strength it can be
used in automobile and aircraft. 70
Aluminium alloys:
• Y-alloy:
• It is Al-Cu alloy
• Addition of Cu increases strength and
machinability of Al.
• 3.5-4.5 Cu, 1.2-1.7Mn, 1.8-2.3Ni,
0.6Si,Mg,Fe and remaining is Al.
• It is used in aircraft engines for cylinder
heads and pistons.
• Magnalium:
• 2-10Mg, 1.75Cu, remaining is Al.
• Used for automobile & aircraft parts. 71
Aluminium alloys:
• Hindalium:
• It is an alloy of Al and Mg with small
quantity of Cr.
• It is the trade name of Al alloy produced
by Hindustan Aluminium Corporation
Ltd.
• It is used for utensils manufacture.

72
Magnesium and its alloys
• Magnesium is a silvery white metal.
• It has a lowest density of the common
structural materials.
• It has a melting point of 6500C.
• Specific gravity of magnesium is 1.74.
• Magnesium is not used in its pure state
because it is not sufficiently strong.
• Magnesium being costly, finds applications
where light weight is a very important
requirement, such as in aircraft industry.
• Magnesium is alloyed with Al, Zn, Mn, Zr etc.
73
Magnesium and its alloys

Various magnesium alloys are as given

below:

• Dow metal
• Cast alloys of Mg
• Wrought alloys of Mg

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Dow metal
• 90Mg-10Al
• It is very light and can be welded and
machined.
• It is used in automobile and aircraft
parts.
Cast alloys
• 8Al-0.5Zn-0.3Mn (good ductility and
shock resistance)
• 8Al-0.5Zn-0.3Mn-0.0015Be(pressure
die-casting alloy)
75
Wrought alloys of Mg
• 3Zn-0.6Zr-remaining Mg( used for high
strength sheets, extrusion and forging)
• 0.8Th-0.6Zn-0.6Zr-remaining Mg (creep
resistant and fully weldable)

76
 Uses of alloys of Mg
• Parts such as gear boxes, flooring
for airplanes , helicopter, satellites.
• Material handling equipments such
as hand truck, gravity conveyors etc.
• Moving parts of textile machines and
printing equipments.
• Binocular and camera bodies

77
• Nickel alloys:
• These have high mechanical strength
and corrosion resistance.
• Main Ni alloys are:
• Monel metal
• K-alloy
• Inconel
• Nichrome
• Nimonic
• Incoloy
• Hastelloy
78
• Monel metal:
• 68Ni-29Cu-3others(Fe,Mn,Si,C)
• It is superior to brass and bronze in
corrosion resisting properties.
• It is used for pump fittings, condenser
tubes, steam turbine blades, sea-water
exposed parts, chemical and food
handling plants.
• K-alloy:
• In addition to constituents of Monel
metal it contains Al and Ti.
79
• K-alloy:
• It is used in parts required high strength
and good corrosion resistance.
• It has better mechanical properties than
Monel metal.
• Inconel:
• 80Ni-14Cr-and remaining iron.
• It has excellent mechanical properties at
ordinary and elevated temperatures.
• It is used for springs which have to
withstand high temperature and are
exposed to corrosive action. 80
• Nichrome:
• 65Ni-15Cr-20Fe
• It is used for making electrical resistance
wire for electric furnace and heating
elements.
• Nimonic:
• 80Ni-20Cr
• It has high strength and ability to operate
under intermittent heating and cooling.
• It is used in gas turbine engines.

81
• High temperature Ni alloys:
• high temperature alloys are those
which can withstand temperature
above 1100°C. These alloys are
used in components of nuclear
plants, jet and rocket engines
• Incoloy:
• It is high temp. alloy.
• 42Ni-13Cr-6Mb-2.4Ti-0.4C and
remaining is iron.
82
• High temperature Ni alloys:
• Hastelloy:
• It is high temp. alloy.45Ni-22Cr-9Mb-
1.5Co-0.5W-0.15C and remaining is
iron.

83
• Lead and its alloys:
• Lead has FCC structure.
• It is very resistant to corrosion
against most acids.
• It is poisonous.
• Its strength, hardness and elasticity
are low.
• Lead can be easily soldered, welded
and cast.
• Lead can be spread over other
metals. 84
• Lead and its alloys:
• Pb-Sb alloy ( used in storage battery
plates, cable sheathing, collapsible
tubes) (Sb increases hardness and
strength)
• 60Pb-40Sn alloy (Sn increases
hardness and strength) (used for
soldering)
• 80-75Pb-20-25Sn ( known as Terne
metal) (used for coating steel sheets
for roofing) 85
• Lead and its alloys:
• Pb alloy containing Bi, Sn, & Cd is
used in electric fuses, boiler fusible
plugs.
• Pb-Sn-Sb alloy is used in printing
industry as type metal.
• Babbit metal

86
• Tin and its alloys:
• Tin is soft metal
• It has good resistance to corrosion.
• It has good lubricating properties.
• The most common alloying
elements for tin are Sb and Cu.
• Alloys of tin:
• Soft solders (20-70Sn-remaining is
lead)
• Cu-Sn alloys (bronzes)
87
• Tin and its alloys:
• Al-Sn alloys 6Sn-Al alloy can be
bonded to steel by rolling.
• Pewter (7Sb-2Cu- remaining Pb)
(used for high grade bearing
applications)
• Titanium and its alloys:
• Ti can exist in two different
crystallographic forms. (alpha; At
room temp. is HCP & Beta; at
around 885°C is BCC) 88
• Alloys of Ti:
• Alpha alloy:
• It contains elements like; Al, Sn, V,
Mo Zr varying from 1-10%
• 5Al-25Sn-remaining Ti is widely
used in space and aircraft
application. It has good oxidation
resistance, weldability and
formability
• Beta alloy
• Alpha-Beta alloy 89
• Alloys of Ti:
• Beta alloy:
• Exceptionally high strength, low
toughness, low fatigue strength.
• Can not be used at higher
temperatures (above 320°C)
• Alpha-Beta alloy:
• Heat treatable, more formable than
alpha alloys but less tough and
difficult to weld.
90
• Alloys of Ti:
• Alpha-Beta alloy:
• 6Al-4V-remaining Ti is the most
popular alloy in this group.
• Unlike other alpha-beta alloys it is
weldable.

91
• Zinc and its alloys:
• Zn has good resistance to
atmospheric corrosion, solubility in
Cu, ductility, malleability.
• Zn has HCP structure.
• Most of the die-castings are
produced from zinc based alloys.
• Alloying elements for Zn are Al, Cu
& Mg.

92
• Zinc and its alloys:
• Zn is mainly used for coating the
steel to prevent corrosion of steel.
• Metallic Zn coating may be applied
by the methods such as hot-dip
galvanizing, electrogalvanizing,
painting, metallizing or spraying of
molten metal and by sherardizing.

93
• Sherardizing:
• Parts to be coated are tightly packed
with Zn dust in an air tight container,
which is revolved and heated to a
temp. slightly below the melting
point of Zn. Due to the heat, Zn
diffuses into the steel providing a
thin uniform coating.

94
• Steel products that are galvanized ;
include bolts, chains, fencing, pipe
and tubing, screws, sheets, tanks,
wires etc.
• ZnO is used in the manufacture of
dental cement, glass, paint, rubber
goods, tyres and tubes.

95
• Alloys of Zn:
• Standard die-casting Zn alloys are:
• 4.1Al-0.1Cu-0.04Mg-remaining is Zn
• 4.1Al-1Cu-0.04Mg-remaining is Zn
• Al improves mechanical properties,
Cu increases tensile strength,
hardness and ductility and Mg
makes castings permanently stable.
• These alloys are used in automotive
industry, washing machines, oil
burners, refrigerators, TV, radios.
96
• Alloys of Zn:
• Wrought zinc alloy containing 0.5-
1.5Cu-0.12-1.5Ti has very high
creep resistance and is used for
corrugated roofing.
• 4Al-0.04Mg-up to 3.5Cu is used in
the form of heavy rolled plate in the
aircraft industry.

97