Take a Closer Look at the Metal Processes

Take a Closer Look at the Metal Processes Everything round us is made of metal. Come to think of it. What makes metal a conducive material for everything? I know that there is something about it that we can't find in woods, plastic and other materials. I come to think about the properties there is in metal that differentiate it from other materials.

The first property of metal pertains to hardness or the metal's ability to resist permanent distortion, abrasion, cutting, and penetration. Don't you know that structures uses metals in their soft state? To harden the metal, it is treated with heat and the original state will be retained. Hardness can be reduced or increased by working the metal or in some cases, heat treatment and cold working is necessary.

Another metal property is brittleness or the ability of the metal to be bent, or to be deformed without shattering. Take note that metals could have cracks and damages but the shape remain unscathed. Brittleness is one of the metal properties that are not found in other materials such as wood or plastic.

Examples are cast aluminum and iron, and hard steel. Malleability is another property which is the ability of the metal to be hammered, folded, pressed, and rolled into different shapes without shattering or breaking. It is a vital property for sheet metals, including copper. Ductility refers to the permanent bending, rolling, drawing, and twisting of the metal without breaking.It is commonly used for wiring as well as tubing. Don't you know that ductile metals are utilized to form aircraft materials because it's easy to form and its failure resistance under severe shock load?

Another property pertains to the ability of the metal to return to its original shape. This usually happens when a certain force that causes the change in shape is removed from it.

This is actually considered one of the most valuable properties of a metallic material.

Elastic property is limited to a certain point, whereas when a metal is loaded beyond this limit of elasticity, it causes metal distortion, a permanent one which is termed as strained metal distortion. Toughness on the other hand is the ability of the metal to withstand shearing and tearing without breaking.When a metal is tough, it can't be broken with just a simple force. It could break but with excessive force applied to it. Fusibility is one factor which allows the metal to be in liquid state if heat is applied to it, but with a considerable temperature.

Conductivity is the metal's ability to conduct heat and electricity. Metals vary in their ability to conduct heat. It is commonly used in welding and other processes. Contraction and expansion is one distinct property of a metal. This is said as the hot and cold of the metal. Metal, when heated tend to expand and go larger, and when cooled, tend to contract or shrink.By understanding the properties of the metal, we could better understand its nature and characteristics. This will allow a better perspective towards metal properties.