Metals are an important aspect of our everyday lives. Their importance is seen in technological, construction, and various other industries, and their differing properties can determine their utility in diverse applications.
Today we are going to focus on the properties of metals that allow them to characteristically behave, and the ways we can shape these properties by combining them in novel manners.
PROPERTIES AND BONDING
Metallic bonding is characterized by a delocalized covalent bonding that occurs between atoms; the electrons pass freely throughout the metallic structure. The metal atoms are arranged in a regular pattern and the delocalized electrons are shared between the atoms.
These characteristics of metallic bonding allow metals to function in the ways they do. Their key characteristics can be explained by their structure.
Malleability/Ductility: The delocalized covalent bonding allows the metals to be deformed. The metallic atoms can easily slide past each other, allowing for metals to be easily reshaped.
Electrical Conduction: The delocalized electrons in a metal lattice are free flowing. The valence electrons in the metals can travel through the lattice structure. This property property allows metals to conduct electric currents.
Thermal Conduction: Heat is transferred from molecule to molecule as thermal energy is passed through contact. Metal ions inside a metallic lattice are closely packed in their metal lattice, and availability of free electrons seeds heat transfer. These properties allow for excellent thermal conduction.
High Melting Points: Metals exist in giant lattice structures; electrostatic forces to be overcome are large. Their bonds are very strong, and they require great amounts of energy to be broken. This results in a high melting point.
ALLOYS: TYPES AND BENEFITS
The properties of metals can be combined in many different ways to serve our purposes. We can combine metals in different ratios to make new types of alloys for a diversity of applications.
Interstitial Alloy: These alloys are formed when atoms of different atomic radii are combined. The smaller atomic radius of one element allows it to fit in the gaps in between atoms of another element. These combined atoms can change the properties of the metal to usage.
Example: A key example of interstitial alloys can be found in steel. To make the alloy less ductile, and harder, carbon atoms are added in between the iron atoms. This restricts sliding between planes of the material, and makes the carbon-iron alloy hard and strong.
Substitutional Alloy: This type of alloy is formed when atoms in one metal are replaced by atoms of a similar sized metal. The properties of the combined alloy are characteristic of both alloys.
Example: Brass is a type of substitutional alloy that is used in various applications, such as jewelry and various instruments. It consists mostly of copper and zinc, in various proportions depending on the application, and may contain more elements as well. The presence of zinc increases the resistance of the alloy to corrosion.
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