Materials
Material Properties
When making products, the designers always looks at the materials and their properties when designing. It could be as simple as copper being a good conductor so we use it in electrical cable or that concrete is really strong when squashed so it is used in foundations for houses. There is always a balance between the properties and the designer needs to make sure that the decision is based on many factors including cost and availability. (That is why most house are built using bricks in Essex as there is a lot of clay in the area).
Task:
Why do you think that the following common items are made from the material that they are?
Tyres: - Rubber
Car Bodies - Mild Steel
Cutlery - Stainless Steel
Shop Signs - Acrylic
Wall insulation - Expanded polystyrene
playground flooring - Shredded Tyres
Material properties can be basically reduced to the following categories:
Aesthetic - how it looks
Environmental - Its impact on the environment
Mechanical - reaction to a force
Physical - reaction to physical states
Task:
Why do you think that the following common items are made from the material that they are?
Tyres: - Rubber
Car Bodies - Mild Steel
Cutlery - Stainless Steel
Shop Signs - Acrylic
Wall insulation - Expanded polystyrene
playground flooring - Shredded Tyres
Material properties can be basically reduced to the following categories:
Aesthetic - how it looks
Environmental - Its impact on the environment
Mechanical - reaction to a force
Physical - reaction to physical states
Mechanical Properties
Strength
Strength is the amount of force that can be withstood with permanent deformation or failure.... that is it doesnt bend and stay like that or break!! Strength can be broken down into compression, tension, bending, torsion and shear
Compressive Strength
![Picture](/uploads/1/1/1/3/11139306/760696209.png)
The ability to withstand squashing
Tensile Strength
![Picture](/uploads/1/1/1/3/11139306/266434916.png)
The ability to withstand Pulling
Bending
![Picture](/uploads/1/1/1/3/11139306/459404507.jpg)
The ability to withstand bending... (obvious!)
Torsion
![Picture](/uploads/1/1/1/3/11139306/739918298.jpg)
The ability to withstand twisting
Shear
![Picture](/uploads/1/1/1/3/11139306/895922635.png)
A difficult one this, but forces act like tension but are at not in line... look at the pictures...