What is the meaning of ductility?
Ductility is the physical property of the metal which means if we pull the metal it’s going to stretch rather than break. In other words, a material’s ability to undergo significant plastic deformation under tensile stress before rapture is called the ductile properties of the material. The ductile materials are nickel, copper, steel etc.
The property of metal which explains the breaking of metal without forming stretch under tensile stress is called brittle. It is also called sudden failure. The brittle materials are glass, cast iron etc.
Ductility is an important consideration in engineering and manufacturing, defining a material suitable for certain manufacture and capacity to absorb mechanical overload.
Table of Contents
- Definition of Ductility
- Definition of Malleability
- Comparison of Malleability and Ductility
- Applications of Ductility
- Frequently Asked Questions
Definition of Ductility
The physical property of a metal that can be drawn into the thin wire is called ductility or ductility is the property of metal associated with the ability to be hammered thin or stretched into wire without breaking.
The degree of ductility occurs due to metallic bonds. In the metallic bonding formed by the sharing of free electrons among a lattice of positively charged metal ions. It formed a “sea” of electrons that surrounds the positively charged atomic nuclei of the interacting metal ions. The electrons then move freely throughout the space between the atomic nuclei.
The electron-sea model explains the malleability and ductility properties of metal. The sea of electrons surrounding the protons acts like a cushion, and so when the metal is hammered on, for instance, the overall composition of the structure of the metal is not changed. The protons may be rearranged but the sea of electrons will adjust to the new formation of protons and keep the metal intact.
Definition of Malleability
Malleability is the physical property of a solid to bend or be hammered into another shape without breaking. If malleable, a material may be flattened into a thin sheet by hammering or rolling. Examples of malleable metals are gold, silver, aluminium, copper etc.
Comparison of Malleability and Ductility
Ductility and malleability are the two physical properties associated with the metal. This shows that there is not much resistance to deformation of the structure but that a large cohesive force holds the structure together. The difference between ductility and malleability is that ductility is the result of the application of tensile stress on metal and malleability is the compressive stress applied to the metal.
| Ductility | Malleability |
| Ductility is the property of metal associated with the ability to be stretched into wire without breaking. | Malleability is the property of metal associated with the ability to be hammered into a thin sheet without breaking |
| The external force or stress is tensile stress | The external force or stress is compressive stress |
| The ductile materials show high malleability | The malleable materials do not necessarily exhibit good ductility |
| The nature of ductility is stretching | The nature of malleability is compressive |
| Examples are copper, nickel, gold etc.. | Examples are gold, silver aluminium etc. |
Applications of Ductility
- Metals with high ductility such as gold, copper and steel can be drawn into long, thin wires without breaking.
- Gold is the most ductile metal; a wire of about 2 km in length can be drawn from one gram of gold.
- Steel cables are possible because of the ductility of the alloys being used in them.
- Ductility may be expressed as percent elongation or percent area reduction from a tensile test.
Ductility is an important factor in allowing a structure to survive extreme loads, such as those due to large pressure changes, earthquakes and hurricanes, without experiencing a sudden failure or collapse.
Frequently Asked Questions-FAQs
1. What type of change is ductility?
Ductility is a physical property of matter; it can be observed without bringing a chemical change. Ductility is associated with the ability to be stretched into wire without breaking.
2. What is the process of ductility?
Ductility is the process to measure the tensile stress on a metal. Tensile stress is the force that pulls the two ends of an object away from each other.
3. Is ductility extensive or intensive property?
Ductility is an Intensive property. The property which does not depend on the amount of substances is called intensive property. The other examples of intensive properties are colour, melting point, odour, hardness, density, pressure etc.
4. What is plastic deformed?
Plastic deformation is the permanent distortion that occurs during a non-reversible change of shape in response to applied forces. When a material is subjected to tensile, compressive, bending, or torsion stresses that exceed its yield strength and cause it to elongate, compress, buckle, bend, or twist.
5. What is brittleness and its example?
The property of a metal which breaks without forming stretch under tensile stress is called brittle. It is also called sudden failure. The brittle materials are glass, cast iron, concrete etc.
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