Interaction of Materials, Processing and Design

1. Role of Processing in Design

Design production is a critical link in the series of events which starts with a

creative idea and ends with a product in the market place. The function of

production no longer is a single separate task in modern days. Design,

material selection and processing are inseparable tasks.

The activity of determining the workflow, equipment needs, and

implementation requirements for a particular process is called process

design. Process design typically uses a number of tools including

flowcharting, process simulation software, and scale models.

There lies confusion of terminology called manufacturing concerning the

engineering function. The term material processing is used by materials

engineers to refer to the conversion of semi-finished products like steel

billets into finished products like hot-rolled bar. An industrial, mechanical or

manufacturing engineer is likely to refer to the conversion of the metal

sheet into an automotive body structure as manufacturing. Processing is a

more generic term while manufacturing is the more broad and common

term. The term Production engineering is used in Europe to describe what

is called manufacturing in the United States zone.

The first half of the 20th century did realize the maturation of manufacturing

operations in western world. Results were Increases in scale, speed of

operations, productivity, and dropping in manufacturing costs. One of the

major achievements of this era was the development of the production line

for mass-producing automobiles, appliances, and other consumer goods.

The manufacturing positions in industry have been always considered as

routine and not challenging. The nature and perception of manufacturing is

being changed by increasing automation and computer-aided

manufacturing.
Overview of Manufacturing Processes
The processes that converts a raw material into a finished product is called

manufacturing process. The change takes place with respect to part

geometry, or they can affect the internal microstructure and the properties

of the material. For example: a brass sheet being drawn into the cylindrical

shape of a case is also getting hardened and reduced in ductility by the

process of dislocation on slip planes.

A different way of dividing manufacturing processes is to classify them into

three broad families:

1. Primary processes

Primary processes take raw materials and create a shape. The chief

categories are casting processes, polymer processing or molding

processes, deformation processes, and powder processes.

2. Secondary processes

Secondary processes modify shape by adding features such as keyways,

screw threads, and grooves. Machining processes are the main type of

secondary processes. Other important categories are joining processes

that fasten parts together, and heat treatment to change mechanical

properties.

3. Finishing processes

Finishing processes produce the final appearance and look of a product by

processes such as coating, polishing or painting.

Brief Description of the Classes of Manufacturing Processes

Casting (solidification) processes:

Molten liquid is poured into a mold and solidified into a shape defined by

the contours of the mold. The liquid fills the mold by flow under its own

weight or with a modest pressure. Cast shapes are designed so the liquid

flows to all parts of the mold cavity, and solidification occurs progressively

so there are no trapped liquid pockets in a solidified shell.

Polymer processing (molding):

In most of these processes a hot viscous polymer is either compressed or

injected into a mold. The distinction between casting and molding is the
viscosity of the material being worked. Molding can take such extreme

forms as compression molding plastic pellets in a hot mold, or blowing a

plastic tube into the shape of a milk bottle against a mold wall.

Deformation processes:

A material mainly metal, is plastically deformed cold or hot to give it

improved properties and change its shape. Deformation processes are also

called metal-forming processes. Typical processes of this type are forging,

rolling, extrusion, and wire drawing. Sheet-metal forming is a special

category in which the deformation occurs in a two-dimensional stress state

instead of three dimensions.

Powder processing:

This process includes the consolidation of particles of metal, polymers or

ceramics by pressing and sintering, plastic deformation or hot compaction.

Powder metallurgy is used to make small parts with precision dimensions

that require no machining or finishing. Powder processing is the best route

for materials that cannot be cast or deformed, such as very high melting

point metals and ceramics.

Material removal or cutting (machining) processes:

Material is removed from a work piece with a hard, sharp tool by a variety

of methods such as turning, milling, grinding, and shaving. Material removal

occurs by controlled fracture, producing chips. Essentially any shape can

be produced by a series of machining operations. Because a machining

operation starts with a manufactured shape, such as bar stock, casting, or

forging, it is classified as a secondary process.

Joining processing:

Joining processing are all categories of brazing, soldering, diffusion

bonding, welding, riveting, bolting, and bonding (adhesives). These

operations make attaching of the parts to one another. Fastening takes

place in the assembly step of manufacturing.

Heat treatment and surface treatment:

The category includes improvement of the mechanical properties by

thermal treatment processes as well as improvement of surface properties

by diffusion processes such as carburizing and nitriding or by alternative

ways like sprayed or hot-dip coatings, painting and electroplating. This

class of processes may be either secondary or the finishing processes.

Assembly processes:

Usually this is the final step in manufacturing where a number of parts are

brought close together and combined into the subassembly or finished

product.

Factors Affecting the Design Process

Mechanical Properties of Metals
The mechanical properties of the metals are associated with their ability to

resist mechanical forces and load.

These properties are discussed as follows:

Strength

It is the ability of material to resist externally applied forces without yielding.

The internal resistance that is offered by it to an externally applied force is

termed as stress.

Stiffness.

It is the material's ability to resist deformation under the stress. The

modulus of elasticity is a measure of stiffness.

Elasticity.

It is the material's property to regain its original shape after the deformation

after the removal of the external forces. Materials used in tools and

machines desire this property.

It must be noted that the steel is more elastic than the rubber.

Plasticity.

It is defined as the property of a material that retains the deformation

produced under load permanently. This property is needed for forgings,

stamping images on coins as well as in ornamental work.

Ductility.
It is the material's property to be drawn into wire form with an application of

a tensile force. A ductile material should be both strong and plastic. The

ductility is measured by the terms, percentage elongation and percentage

area reduction.

Brittleness.

It is opposite to ductility which is the property of material breaking with little

permanent distortion. Brittle materials as subjected to tensile loads break

off without giving any sensible elongation.

Malleability.

The special case of ductility which allows materials to be rolled or to be

hammered into thin sheets is called malleability. A malleable material must

be plastic but it is not important to be so strong. The malleable materials

used mostly in engineering practice are lead, wrought iron, soft steel,

copper and aluminium.

Toughness.

It is the material's ability to resist fracture under high impact loads as

hammer. It is indicated by the amount of energy absorbed per unit volume

of the material after being stressed upto point of fracture. This property is

desirable in machine parts that are subjected to impact and shock loads.

Machinability.
It is the property of a material that refers to a relative ease with which a

material can be cut. The machinability of a material can be measured in a

number of ways such as comparing the tool life for cutting different

materials or thrust required to remove the material at some given rate or

the energy required to remove a unit volume of the material. Brass can be

machined easily than steel.

Resilience.

It's the material's property to absorb energy resisting shock and impact

loads. The amount of energy that is absorbed per unit volume within an

elastic limit measures resilience. This property is essential for the spring

materials.

Creep.

A part subjected to a constant stress for a long period of time at a high

temperature will undergoes a slow and a permanent deformation called

creep. This property is to be considered in designing internal combustion

engines, boilers and turbines.

Fatigue.

When a material is subjected to repeating stresses, it may fail at stresses

below yield point stresses. This type of failure is known as fatigue. The
cause for it is a progressive crack formation usually of fine and microscopic

size. The property is to be considered while designing shafts, springs,

gears, etc.

Hardness.

The property embraces many properties like resistance to wear,

deformation, scratches and machinability etc. It also means the ability of a

metal to cut another metal.