DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

Material Failure

 

Imagine driving a car made of rubber, or sleeping on a metal pillow. Wouldnt be so convenient now would it? Well, that's because different materials are suitable for different applications; but we all knew that right? I  really hope so. In lecture 4.2 we focused on different materials and their properties, their strengths (using that term very loosely) and weaknesses (also using it in a loose manner). 

 

Different materials are composed of different properties, for example, there are hundreds grades of steel which can have the slighest variation; yet are utilized for completely different things. I found this picture online and I wanted to share it, it sums up the entirety of the lesson in a very simple diagram.

 

The structure of a material, the property of a material, the processing of a material, the characterization of a material, and performance are all intertwined. Each element is not fixed, e.g. The same exact material can be processed differently and the microstructure can be changed, therefore changing its performance ( like the example, we were given with the sword) Weather, can also impact a material - which would make it colder (charac.) making it more brittle (properties)

 

Like Professor Halada said, eventually every engineer failure leads to a material failure. By testing the materials that have failed in the past it will help us come up with more suitable materials for the future.  

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.