ALLOYS

Pure Metals
1. Most metals are solid. Metals are very good conductors of heat and electricity.
2. Pure metals are made up of the same type of atoms and are of the same size.
3. The metals are malleable and ductile. The arrangement of atoms in metals
explained their properties.
4. The orderly arrangement of atoms in metals enables the layer of atoms to slide on
one another when force is applied, as shown in Figure 1.1.Thus, metals are ductile
or can be stretched.

Force
Layers of
atoms
slide

Force

Figure 1.1 Metals are ductile

5. When a metal is knocked, atoms slide. This is why metals are malleable or can be
shaped as shown in Figure 1.2.

The shape of
the metal
changes

Force

Figure 1.2 Metals are malleable

6. Pure metals are weak and soft. Alloying can increase the strength of metals.

Alloys
1. An alloy is a mixture of two or more elements with a certain fixed composition in which
the major component is a metal.
2. Most alloys are mixture of metals. For example, brass is an alloy of copper and zinc.
2. Alloys have properties which are more useful than those of the pure metal alone.
3. The aim of making alloys is to make them stronger, harder, resistant to corrosion, have
a better furnish and luster.
4. The presence of small quantities of second element in metal increases its strength. For
example, the alloy brass is much stronger than either copper or pure zinc.
5. Atoms of the second element can be different size to those of the original metal. The
presence of atoms of other metals that are from different sizes disturb the orderly
arrangement of atoms in the metal.
6. This will make it more difficult for the layers of atoms to slide across one another when a
force is applied, making alloys stronger and harder than pure metals. Figure 1.3.

The foreign atom interrupts

the orderly arrangement of
atoms in the pure metal

Figure 1.3 The arrangement of atoms in an alloy

Why make Alloys ?

Alloying improves the qualities of pure metals. The aim of alloying is :

1) to improve the appearance of pure metal

2) to increase the strength and hardness of the pure metal
3) to increase the resistance to corrosion of the pure metal

Composition, properties and uses of alloys

Table below shows the properties and uses of some common alloys.
Alloy
Brass

Composition
Copper
Zinc

Bronze

Copper
Tin

Duralumin

Aluminium
Copper

Pewter

Tin
Antimony
Copper

Steel

Iron
Carbon

Stainless
steel

Iron
Carbon
Chromium
Nickel

Properties
High strength
Resistance of corrosion

Uses
Ornaments, door knobs,
bullet cases, electrical
parts, musical
instruments

High strength
Resistance to corrosion

Medals, statues,
monuments, art object

95 %
5%

Low density
High strength
Resistance to corrosion

Aircraft, electrical
cable

91 %
7%
2%

High strength
Resistance to corrosion
Bright shiny surface

Ornaments, souvenirs

High strength

Car bodies, bridges,

ships

Great resistance to
corrosion

Cutlery, sinks, knives,

pipes

70 %
30 %

90 %
10 %

99 %
1%
80.6 %
0.4 %
18 %
1%

Questions
Section A : Objectives
1) Which of the following particle arrangements shows the structure of an alloy ?
A)

C)

B)

D)

2) Brass is made by mixing copper with

A) zinc
B) sternum

C) carbon
D) lead

3) Which of the following alloys are used to make coins ?

A) Bronze

C) Pewter

B) Cupronickel

D) Duralumin

4) Which of the following correctly shows the difference between steel and pure ion ?
A) Pure ion is harder than steel
B) Steel is more resistance to corrosion than pure iron
C) Pure ion is more resistance to oxidation than steel
D) The atoms is steel are more closely packed than the atoms in pure ion
5) The malleability of a pure metal is caused by
A) the weak metal bond
B) atoms located at a distance from each other
C) layers of metal atoms gliding on each other
D) the giant structure constructed by the bonding of the atoms
6) The purpose of making alloys is to improve the following properties of a metal.
I
II
III
IV

Strength and hardness

Corrosion resistance
Malleability
Shine

A) I and III only

C) I, III and IV only

B) I, II and IV only

D) I, II, III and IV

7) Which of the following is not an alloy ? `

A) Steel

C) Duralumin

B) Bauxite

D) Bronze

8) The main elements is steel are

A) iron and sulphur

C) iron and magnum

B) iron and carbon

D) iron and chromium

9) An alloy of iron is made by mixing iron with the following elements.

Carbon
Chromium

Nickel

The alloy produced is

A) duralumin

C) steel

B) bronze

D) stainless steel

10) The percentage of carbon in steel is

A) 10%

C) 1 5 %

B) 5 10%

D) 1%

Section B : Structure
1) An experiment to compare the hardness of pure copper and brass is carried out. The results are
shown in Table below.
Reading
Diameter of indentation on
copper block/cm
Diameter of indentation on
copper block/cm

1
0.36

2
0.35

3
0.34

Average diameter
0.35

0.24

0.26

0.25

0.25

a) (i) State the elements present in brass.

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(ii) Give one use of brass.
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b) Draw the arrangement of atoms in
(i) pure copper

(ii) brass

c) What are the inference can be made from the experiment ?

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d) What can you conclude from the results of the experiment shown in Table above.
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e) (i) State the elements present in pewter.
________________________________________________________________________
(ii) Give one use of pewter.
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f) State three reasons for alloying.
1 : ___________________________________________________________________
2 : ___________________________________________________________________
3 : ___________________________________________________________________

ANSWERS
Section A : Objective
1) D
5) C
9) D

2) A
6) B
10) D

3) C
7) C

4) B
8) B

Section B : Structure
1) (a) (i) Copper and zinc
(ii) To make electrical appliances
(b) (i) Pure copper

(ii) Brass

(c) The smaller the diameter of the indentation, the harder the block is.

(d) (i) The average diameter of the indentation is smaller on the brass block than on
the copper block. This shows that brass is harder than copper.
(ii) The regular close-packed arrangement of atoms in copper enables the layers
of atoms to slide over one another when a force is applied. The presence of
foreign atoms disturbs the regular arrangement of atoms. This makes it
harder for the layers of atoms to slide over one another.
(e) (i) Tin, copper and antimony
(ii) Decorative ornaments
(f) 1: Improve hardness of metals
2: Prevent corrosion of metals
3: Improve appearance of metals