Non-Metallic and Composite Materials

Introduction
- Non-Metallic Materials are ones which is not having metal as their constituent. They are
used widely because of their lower cost.
- Non-Metallic Materials are also providing higher strength to weight ratio.
- Non-Metallic Materials includes plastics, rubber, ceramics, refractory materials,
insulators, abrasives, lubricants, adhesives, fiber and Teflon.
- Composite Material can be defined as a combination of two or more materials which
results in better properties than those of the individual components used alone.
- In contrast to metallic alloys, each material retains its separate chemical, physical and
mechanical properties.
- Two constituent forms the reinforcement and thus a matrix.

Types of Non-Metallic and Composite Materials

1. Plastics:
- A plastic is made up principally of a binder together with plasticizers, fillers, pigments,
and other additives.
- The binder gives a plastic its main characteristics and usually its name. Thus, polyvinyl
chloride is both the name of a binder and the name of a plastic into which it is made.
- Binders may be natural materials, e.g., cellulose derivatives, casein, or milk protein, but
are more commonly synthetic resins.
- In either case, the binder materials consist of very long chainlike molecules
called polymers.
- Cellulose derivatives are made from cellulose, a naturally occurring polymer; casein is
also a naturally occurring polymer.
- Synthetic resins are polymerized, or built up, from small simple molecules called
monomers.
- Plasticizers are added to a binder to increase flexibility and toughness. Fillers are added
to improve particular properties, e.g., hardness or resistance to shock. Pigments are
used to impart various colors.
- Virtually any desired color or shape and many combinations of the properties of
hardness, durability, elasticity, and resistance to heat, cold, and acid can be obtained in
a plastic.
- There are two basic types of plastic: thermosetting, which cannot be resoftened after
being subjected to heat and pressure; and thermoplastic, which can be repeatedly
softened and remolded by heat and pressure.
 - When heat and pressure are applied to a thermoplastic binder, the chainlike polymers
slide past each other, giving the material "plasticity."
- However, when heat and pressure are initially applied to a thermosetting binder, the
molecular chains become cross-linked, thus preventing any slippage if heat and pressure
are reapplied.

Applications of Plastics

- Plastic offers a variety of benefits, in a variety of shapes, such as sheets, panels, film
which can all be as flexible as the application requires. Plastic is price competitive with
other materials that offer similar advantages in industrial applications, which is why it is
used a number of applications.
Rubbers

Crude rubber is primarily hydrocarbon in nature.

In 1826 English chemist Michael Faraday (17911867) analyzed natural rubber and
found it to have the empirical (simplest) formula C5H8, along with 2 to 4 percent protein
and 1 to 4 percent acetone-soluble materials (resins, fatty acids, and sterols).
In 1860 English chemist Charles Hanson Greville Williams (18291910) confirmed
Faraday's analysis and in 1862 distilled natural rubber to obtain the pure monomer,
which he named isoprene.
He determined isoprene's vapor density and molecular formula, and he showed that it
polymerizes to a rubbery productan observation that led to the notion that rubber is a
linear polymer of isoprene, proposed in 1910 by English chemist Samuel Shrowder
Pickles(18781962).

Application of Rubber

Compared to vulcanized rubber, uncured rubber has relatively few uses. It is used for
cements; for adhesive, insulating, and friction tapes; and for crepe rubber used in
insulating blankets and footwear.
Vulcanized rubber, on the other hand, has numerous applications. Resistance to
abrasion makes softer kinds of rubber valuable for the treads of vehicle tires and
conveyor belts, and makes hard rubber valuable for pump housings and piping used in
the handling of abrasive sludge.
The flexibility of rubber is often used in hose, tires, and rollers for a wide variety of
devices ranging from domestic clothes wringers to printing presses, its elasticity makes
it suitable for various kinds of shock absorbers and for specialized machinery mountings
designed to reduce vibration.
Being relatively impermeable to gases, rubber is useful in the manufacture of articles
such as air hoses, balloons, balls, and cushions.
The resistance of rubber to water and to the action of most fluid chemicals has led to its
use in rainwear, diving gear, and chemical and medicinal tubing, and as a lining for
storage tanks, processing equipment, and railroad tank cars.
Because of their electrical resistance, soft rubber goods are used as insulation and for
protective gloves, shoes, and blankets; hard rubber is used for articles such as telephone
housings, parts for radio sets, meters, and other electrical instruments.
The coefficient of friction of rubber, which is high on dry surfaces and low on wet
surfaces, leads to the use of rubber both for power-transmission belting and for water-
lubricated bearings in deep-well pumps.
Ceramics

Industrial ceramics are commonly understood to be all industrially used materials that
are inorganic, nonmetallic solids.
Usually they are metal oxides (that is, compounds of metallic elements and oxygen), but
many ceramics (especially advanced ceramics) are compounds of metallic elements and
carbon, nitrogen, or sulfur.
In atomic structure they are most often crystalline, although they also may contain a
combination of glassy and crystalline phases.

Applications

Knife blades: They remain sharp for much longer time as compared to steel knife.
Carbon-ceramic brake disks: For vehicles are resistant to brake fade at high
temperatures.
Advanced composite ceramic and metal matrices are designed for most modern
armoured fighting vehicles. They are even having superior penetrating resistance
against shaped charges and kinetic energy penetraters.
Can also be used in place of steel for ball bearings.

For more applications visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ceramic#Applications

Insulators

There are a class of insulators made from a number of materials that are a mixture of
multiple components.
These are frequently made from an insulating filler material (Fiberglass, asbestos, mica,
etc.) mixed with a binder material (resin, tar, shellac, etc.) to form a moldable material
that will stand up to outdoor use.
Almost all varieties of insulators have been molded out of composition materials, but all
the pintypes are somewhat uncommon.

Applications

Insulators work as protectors.

They may protect heat, sound and the passage of electricity.
Thermal insulators, sound insulators and electrical insulators are used for various
reasons, from keeping houses warm to protecting electrical wires and soundproofing
rooms.
Depending on what you plan to use an insulator for will depend on which type of
insulator to use.
Abrasives

Abrasives for use in the production sector must be secured or designed as different tools and
formulations, including as abrasive cutting and grinding wheels.

1. Cut-off wheel for metal is made of brown aluminum oxide* on bakelite bond which
gives strength to cutoff wheel and prevents spreading of fragments in case of jamming
or damaging of the wheel.
2. Stainless steel cutoff wheel for metal differs from the usual cutoff wheel for metal by
its composition: iron, sulfur and chlorine are excluded from the alloy.
3. Cutoff wheel for stone is made of black silicon carbide** on bakelite bond.
4. Grinding wheel is composed of brown aluminum oxide* on bakelite bond.
5. Bakelite bond consists of bakelite - the synthetic resin made of carbolic acid and
formaldehyde.

Applications

Applications of abrasive materials is quite large which includes:

It can be used as control cables in bicycle brakes, car parking brakes & chokes, etc
Abrasives are used in flexible steel hoses like shower hoses, armored cables, etc
It is used in collets for chucks
Abrasives are used in diesel injection needles
It is used in valve stems such as internal combustion engine valves
It is used in axle shafts
Abrasives are used in hypodermic needles in medical, dental & veterinary
It is used in tungsten rod for contact points
It is used in precious metal contact points
It is used in tungsten wire electrodes for lamp bulbs
Abrasives are used in trigger components for firearms
It is sprag bar for sprag clutches in automotive transmissions, elevators, helicopter
transmissions
It is used in precious tubes in solar panels, soldering irons, etc.
It is used in spark plug electrodes
It is used in copper rod for soldering guns
It is used in piston rings
It is used in cutting expensive metals
It is used in laminated magnetic cores like transformer cores
It is used in Ferrite Rods for Magnets
It is used in high speed steel (twist drills, etc.)
It is used in sewing needles
It is used in wafering in various materials
It is used in capillary tubes metal and glass
It is used in tubing for extendable telescopic aerials
 It is used in thin walled tubes in aircraft, helicopters

Lubricants

A lubricant is a mixture a blend of two key components of oil: Base Oil and Additives. Base
oil consists of basic three types: mineral base oil, semi-synthetic base oil and synthetic base oil.
Other 10-30 percent of the lubricant consists of additives. They are forming composition of
several chemical compositions which are blended into the base oil for enhancing its stability
and adding specific performance features.

Application

Efficient operation of machinery largely depends not only on the lubricant selected but
also on its method of application.
Lubricants formerly were applied by hand, but modern machinery requires exact
methods that can be precisely controlled.
For most machinery, different methods of lubrication and types of lubricants must be
employed for different parts.
In an automobile, for example, the chassis is lubricated with grease, the manual
transmission and rear-axle housings are filled with heavy oil, the automatic transmission
is lubricated with a special-grade light oil, wheel bearings are packed with a grease that
has a thickener composed of long fibers, and the crankcase oil that lubricates engine
parts is a lightweight, free-flowing oil.

Adhesives

As occurs in paints coatings, adhesives consist of various chemical components where each
of these compounds has a specific function, inside of an adhesive in addition of the main
polymer that provides the main properties of the adhesive, there are other compounds such
as additives and fillers that provides specific properties to the adhesive.
The adhesives are polymers that can be classified into 2 major groups according to the
manner in which cross linking or curing reached:
Chemical curing adhesives.
Physical curing adhesives.
Application

Applicators of different adhesives are designed according to the adhesive being used and the
size of the area to which the adhesive will be applied. The adhesive is applied to either one or
both of the materials being bonded. The pieces are aligned and pressure is added to aid in
adhesion and rid the bond of air bubbles.
Common ways of applying an adhesive include brushes, rollers, using films or pellets, spray
guns and applicator guns (e.g., caulk gun). All of these can be used manually or automated as
part of a machine.
Fibre

The fibres are usually glass, carbon, aramid, or basalt. Rarely, other fibres such as paper or
wood or asbestos have been used. The polymer is usually an epoxy, vinylester or polyester
thermosetting plastic; and phenol formaldehyde resins are still in use.

Application

FRP can be applied to strengthen the beams, columns, and slabs of buildings and
bridges.
It is possible to increase the strength of structural members even after they have been
severely damaged due to loading conditions.
In the case of damaged reinforced concrete members, this would first require the repair
of the member by removing loose debris and filling in cavities and cracks
with mortar or epoxy resin.
Once the member is repaired, strengthening can be achieved through wet, hand lay-up
of impregnating the fibre sheets with epoxy resin then applying them to the cleaned and
prepared surfaces of the member.

Teflon
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is a synthetic fluoropolymerof tetrafluoroethylene that has
numerous applications. The best known brand name of PTFE-based formulas is Teflon by
Chemours.
Application
PTFE has one of the lowest coefficients of friction of any solid. PTFE is used as a non-stick
coating for pans and other cookware. It is very non-reactive, partly because of the strength of
carbonfluorine bonds, and so it is often used in containers and pipework for reactive and
corrosive chemicals.

Composite Materials
A composite material is made by combining two or more materials often ones that have very
different properties. The two materials work together to give the composite unique properties.
Concrete is the most common artificial composite material of all and typically consists of loose
stones (aggregate) held with a matrix of cement.Shape memory polymer composites are high-
performance composites, formulated using fibre or fabric reinforcement and shape memory
polymer resin as the matrix.High strain composites are another type of high-performance
 composites that are designed to perform in a high deformation setting and are often used in
deployable systems where structural flexing is advantageous.
Common materials
mortars, concrete.
Reinforced plastics, such as fiber-reinforced polymer.
Metal composites.
Ceramic composites (composite ceramic and metal matrices)

Physical Properties of Composite materials

1. High Strength to weight ratio.: For a given weight of composite material it provides
more strength to the material. Thus it is capable of using in application which requires
higher strength for a given weight.
2. Lightweight: Often light weight.
3. Fire Resistance.: Capable of resisting fire. Fire Retardent: Self extinguishing laminates.
Fire Resistant: It requires high degree of post curing to achieve fire resistant.
4. Good insulation properties: Good insulation properties against electric shock.
5. Chemical and Weathering resistance: Capable to withstand highly reacting chemicals
and weathering conditions which results in deterioration of materials.
6. Design Flexibility: Its offers high range of flexibility of design
7. Lower thermal conductivity: Conducts very less quantity of thermal energy.
8. Manufacturing economy: Cost effective.
Advantages

Design Flexibility Thermoset Composites give designers nearly unlimited flexibility in

designing shapes and forms. They be molded into the most intricate components and can be
made a wide range of densities and chemical formulations to have precise performance
properties.

Low cost per cubic inch When comparing costs based on volume, thermoset composites have
lower material costs than traditional materials such as wood, engineered thermoplastics and
metals. In addition, because thermoset composites have a low petroleum-based content, they
are not subjected to the price fluctuations experienced in petroleum-based products.

Lower material costs Because thermoset composites can be precisely molded, there is little
waste and therefore significantly lower overall material costs than metals products.

Improved productivity Industrial Designers and Engineers are able to reduce assembly costs
by combining several previously assembles parts into a single component. Also, inserts can be
molded directly into the part during the molding process thereby eliminating the need for a
post-process. In addition, composites do not usually require additional machining, thereby
reducing work-in-process and time to market.

Applications
Appliance
Cooking, Dishwasher, Refrigerator, Small Appliances, Laundry, Ice Machines

Construction
Entry Doors, Garage Doors, Architecture, Countertops, Waste Water Treatment

Electrical Distribution
Circuit Breakers, Motor Control, Centers, Generators, Switchgear, Busway, Control Cabinets, Cross
Arms

Energy
Wind Turbine, Fuel Cells, Solar Panels, Pumps

Sanitary/Plumbing
Faucets, Sinks, Drains, Showers, Bathtubs
Transportation
Resisters, Drive Motors, Controls, Valve Covers, Oil Pans, Air Suspensions