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Malleability |
is a property of a material that
describes the ease with which its shape can be changed by hammering,
rolling, forging or pressing.
Gold (
http://www.simegen.com/writers/lois ) is the most malleable material
followed by aluminium. Copper,
lead, tin and iron are also very malleable.
Heating a material causes an increase in its malleability. Impurities
however can cause a degradation in the malleability of some materials. |
|
Ductility |
this is an ability of a material of
being plastically stretched (flow) without breaking or fracturing. Steel and
copper are highly ductile. The ductility of a material is measured by a
tensile test on a testing machine. Samples of
the material are held at both ends and a stretching force is applied until
the sample breaks.
|
|
Elasticity |
is the ability of a material to regain
its shape after being deformed. A rubber band is very elastic as it regains
its shape when tension is removed. |
|
Hardness |
is the ability of a material to resist
being scratched or cut. |
|
Brittleness |
extremely hard and therefore breaks
easily. ex glass. |
| Toughness |
is a measure of a material's ability
to absorb energy before fracture. |
|
Conductivity |
ability to conduct heat, electricity
sound radiation etc. The material acts as a medium of transport. |
