Lecture 06

Selection of material

Dr. J. Ramkumar
Professor
Dept of Mechanical Engg. & Design Program
IIT Kanpur, India.
Contents
Material Selection: Need and reasons
Material Property
Material Selection Process
Material Selection Methods
Material Selection
The behavior and performance of a product depend on the types
of materials used in making the part.
There are more than 50,000 materials available for the design and
manufacture of a product. Every material cannot be a right choice
for a given application; therefore, there is a need for suitable
material selection.
Depending on the selection of a material, product exhibits change
in
design,
processing,
cost,
quality, and
performance.
Material Selection: Need and reason
Need for Material Selection
Without proper knowledge of material section, opportunities
offered by advanced material systems can cause decreased
competitiveness and can lead to loss of market

With the increase in customer demand for higher performance

and quality, competition among companies has increased.

Governments are passing new laws for a better environment.

Material Selection: Need and reason
Reasons for Material Selection
To redesign an existing product for better performance, lower
cost, increased reliability, decreased weight, etc.
To select a material for a new product or application.

For example, parts made by injection molding should be compared

with the parts made by the die casting or sand casting process,
including the machining operations to get the final part.
Material Selection: Need and reason
Reasons for Material Selection
To redesign an existing product for better performance, lower
cost, increased reliability, decreased weight, etc.
To select a material for a new product or application.

For example, parts made by injection molding should be compared

with the parts made by the die casting or sand casting process,
including the machining operations to get the final part.
Material Property ( just recalling)

Mazumdar, S., 2001. Composites manufacturing: materials, product, and process engineering. CrC press.
Material Selection Process
Understanding and Determining the Requirements

Selection of Possible Materials

Determination of Candidate Materials

Testing and Evaluation

Understanding and Determining the
Requirements
The first step in identifying a material is to define the requirements
of a product.
There may be several benefits a material can offer but some
requirements are critical to the application.
Some of the requirements that need to be considered during
material selection process are:
1. Strength
2. Impact resistance
3. Temperature resistance
4. Humidity, chemical and electrical resistance
5. Process
6. Production rate
7. Cost
Selection of Possible Materials
Based on the requirements of an application, possible materials and
manufacturing processes that meet minimum or maximum
requirements of the application are determined.
One should set the minimum or maximum requirements that the
material and the process must possess and should result in a
positive yes or no answer.
The purpose of this screening phase is to obtain a definite answer
as to whether a particular material and the process should be
considered for the application.
Selection of potential materials is done from material databases
obtained from material suppliers and handbooks.
Determination of Candidate Materials
In the conceptual design phase, more than one material system and
manufacturing method are selected to provide a wide choice of
creative and innovative designs.
The cost, weight, and performance characteristics of each of these
design concepts will.
Stress and other analyses must be performed to evaluate each
design concept.
Finite element analysis (FEA) software and other tools can greatly
reduce the cost and time associated with the product development
phase.
A make-and-break approach must be avoided.
A good understanding of the product requirements will greatly help
in making the right material and processing choices.
Testing and Evaluation
Prototype parts are made and then tested to validate the design.
Depending on the seriousness of an application, the number of
parts to be tested should be decided.
Aerospace and automobile parts generally require more tests to
ensure that the part functions safely and reliably under various
service conditions.
Large property database is created to understand the behavior of
the part under various service conditions.
For example, the driveshaft needs to be tested for automotive fluid
exposures, water and salt exposures, and temperature extremes
of -40 and +150C.
Static and dynamic tests are conducted under these conditions.
The behavior of the adhesive is investigated for these service
conditions.
The effect of thermal cycling and stone impingement on the
performance should be understood.
Material Selection Methods
Cost vs. Property Analysis

Weighted Property Comparison Method

Expert System for Material Selection

Cost vs. Property Analysis
The present method compares the material cost for equivalent
material property requirements.
The property could be tensile strength, compressive strength,
flexural strength, fatigue, creep, impact, or any other property that
is critical to the application.
The method determines the weight required by different materials
to meet the desired property.
From the weight, it determines the cost of the material.
Cost vs. Property Analysis
Cost vs. Property Analysis
Cost vs. Property Analysis
Cost vs. Property Analysis
Weighted Property Comparison Method
Scaling for Nonquantitative Property

Scaling for Maximum Property Requirement

Scaling for Minimum Property Requirement

Weighted Property Comparison Method
Scaling for Nonquantitative Property
Weighted Property Comparison Method
Scaling for Maximum Property Requirement
Weighted Property Comparison Method
Scaling for Minimum Property Requirement
Expert System for Material Selection
Thousands of material choices calls for the need for an expert
system for the selection of alternative materials for a given
application.
Raw material suppliers provide designers and fabricators with a list
of basic material properties.
These datasheets are useful for initial screening of materials but
not for final selection.
Few expert systems are being developed for composite material
selection.
In an expert system, the user feeds in the service condition
requirements
e.g., operating temperature range, chemical resistance, fluid
exposure, percent elongation, fracture toughness, strength, etc.
Based on the available material database, the expert system
provides material systems that are suitable for the application.
Assignment

Take any product and try to find out all

loads acting on it.
If two loads are acting simultaneously, try
to find out their weightages.