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What are metals used for?
How many different uses of metal can you spot?

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Why are metals important?
Metals are a highly valuable group of materials, used for
hundreds of products and produced in huge quantities.
 35,500,000 tons of
aluminium were
produced in 2005.
 The production of copper
increased by more than
20 times in the 20th century.
 Gold is worth more than
£10,000 per kilogram.
Metals have played a vital role in human development.
Periods of civilization are even classified by the metals
that were used during those times, such as the Iron Age.
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Using metals

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Uses of metals – activity

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What else can metals be used for?
It is easy to find products made from metals, but there are
other uses of metals that are less obvious.
Metals are used as catalysts to speed
up reactions. Nickel is used as a
catalyst to make margarine. Platinum
is used in catalytic converters in car
engines to clean up exhaust fumes
and reduce pollution.
Compounds containing metals have many
uses. For example, metal compounds are
used to colour materials including stained
glass and even make-up!
Can you find any other uses of metals?

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What decides what metals are used for?
It is not only the properties of a metal that determines its use.

 Cost. A metal may have the best properties

for a job but it might be too expensive.
For example, silver is a better conductor than copper
but it is too expensive to be used for electric wires.

 Extraction method. This can greatly affect

the price and availability of a metal.
For example, aluminium only became a
commonly used metal in the late 19th century
as better extraction methods made it cheaper.

What other factors might determine how metals are used?

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Do all metals behave in the same way?
What are the properties of different metals?

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What are the typical properties of metals?
Metals are known to have certain properties:

 solid at room temperature

 high melting point
 good conductors of electricity and heat
 malleable: they can be hammered into sheets
 ductile: they can be drawn into wires
 strong
 dense.

Why do metals have these particular properties?

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What is the structure of metals?
The properties of metals can be explained by examining
the structure of their atoms.
lattice structure
Metals have a lattice structure.
The atoms in a pure metal are
arranged in closely-packed
layers. This makes them strong.
The outer electrons of each atom
separate from the atom and
become delocalized. These form
a sea of electrons free to move
in the lattice, which allows metals
to conduct heat and electricity. sea of electrons
The sea of electrons also produces strong bonds between
atoms. This is why metals have high melting points.
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Why can metals be shaped?
When a metal is hit, the layers of atoms are able to move
over each other.
metal before it is hit metal after it is hit

force force

Bonds between atoms are not broken because the electrons

are free to move, but the shape of the metal can be changed.
This behaviour is what makes metals:
 malleable – they can be shaped
 ductile – they can be drawn into wires.
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What is corrosion?
Corrosion is the gradual destruction of a metal due to
reactions with other chemicals in its environment.
Over time, corrosion changes
the appearance of the metal as
it breaks down and it becomes
weaker.
Corrosion can seriously damage
metallic objects and structures.
Coating the surface of a metal
with paint and certain chemicals
can protect it from corrosion.
What happens if the protective coating becomes damaged?

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Do all metals corrode?
Metals behave differently when exposed to the environment.
Gold is an unreactive metal and does not corrode easily.
In many cultures, gold is
considered a precious metal
and is used to make sacred
and decorative objects.
Items made from gold can
survive for thousands of
years and have even been
found in good condition
underwater.
In general, objects made from metals that corrode easily,
do not survive for as long.
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Why doesn’t aluminium corrode?
Aluminium is a very reactive metal. However, it does
not corrode in the presence of oxygen. Why is this?
oxygen in the
atmosphere

coating of
oxygen atoms

aluminium
atoms

The outer aluminium atoms react with oxygen in the

atmosphere. This forms a thin layer of aluminium oxide on
the metal’s surface, which protects the metal from corrosion.

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What is rusting?
Rusting is the specific name
given to the corrosion of iron.
It is a chemical reaction between
iron, oxygen and water.
The chemical name for rust is
hydrated iron oxide. Rust can
form on cars and buildings,
making them unsafe. It is an
expensive problem.
Salt can increase the rate of rusting. This iron bolt is on a
seaside structure and is nearly completely corroded.
What is the word equation for the formation of rust?
iron + oxygen + water  hydrated iron oxide

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Rate of corrosion experiment

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Finding metals
Are some metals easier to find than others?

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Where do metals come from?
Metals can be found in the Earth’s
crust combined with other elements or
uncombined as pure substances.
Some unreactive metals, like gold,
silver and copper, can be found
uncombined as elements.
Metals that are found in a pure form
are said to occur ‘native’.
Most metals are actually found combined with other elements,
as compounds in ores. These metals must be extracted
from their ores before they can be made useful.
Highly reactive metals, such as titanium, require complicated
extraction. This can increase the cost of the pure metal.

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How does reactivity affect extraction?
The reactivity of a metal determines how it is extracted.
potassium Metals above carbon in the
sodium reactivity series must be
calcium extracted using electrolysis.
magnesium Electrolysis can also be
increasing reactivity

aluminium used to purify copper.

(carbon) Metals below carbon can
zinc be extracted from their ores
iron
by reduction using carbon,
lead
coke or charcoal.
(hydrogen)
copper Platinum, gold, silver and
silver copper can occur native and
gold
do not need to be extracted.
platinum
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How is carbon used to extract metals?
Metals that are less reactive
than carbon can be extracted
from their ores by burning with
carbon. raw materials
Iron is extracted by this method
in a blast furnace. The iron ore
is heated with carbon-rich coke
at very high temperatures.
hot air
The iron collected from a blast
furnace is only 96% pure.
Usually, this product needs to
be treated further because
the impurities make the iron molten molten
brittle. iron slag

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What is electrolysis?
Metals that are more reactive than carbon are extracted
using electrolysis.
This process uses an electrical current to extract the metal.
Aluminium is extracted
from its ore, bauxite,
using this method.
Electrolysis is also used to
further purify metals, such
as copper, after extraction
with carbon.
Electrolysis is more expensive than using a blast furnace,
and this increases the price of the metal.

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Extraction quiz

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Can metals be recycled?
Metals are easy to recycle and do not change their properties.
What are the benefits of recycling metals?
Recycling aluminium uses 95% less
Saves energy
energy than extracting it from its ores.
Uses less Recycling one car saves over 1000 kg of
resources iron ore and over 600 kg of coal.
Reduces 14 million fewer dustbins would be filled
waste per year by recycling aluminium in the UK.
Less damage Recycling reduces the need to mine
to environment sensitive areas for new ores.
Recycled copper can be resold for up to
Profitable 90% of what it was worth when new.

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What are the drawbacks of recycling?
Metallic materials are often mixtures of different metals.
Pure metals can be obtained by purifying recycled materials
but this can be expensive and may use more electricity than
extracting metals from ores.
Recycled copper is too impure
for electric wires. However, scrap
copper can be used in products,
such as coins and ornaments,
that do not need pure metal.
Sorting mixed metals for recycling
can be difficult. Iron and steel
(a mixture of iron with other
elements) are exceptions. These
materials can be separated from
waste using a magnet.
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Recycling or extraction?

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Guess the metal – activity

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What is an alloy?
An alloy is a mixture of a metal with at least one other
element.
Steel is a common example of an alloy. It contains iron mixed
with carbon and other elements. Adding other elements to a
metal changes its structure and so changes its properties.

The final alloy may have

very different properties
to the original metal.
By changing the amount
of each element in an
alloy, material scientists
can custom-make alloys
to fit a given job.

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What types of alloys are there?
Alloys have been used for thousands of years. Bronze, an
alloy of copper and tin, was commonly used by civilizations
before iron extraction methods were developed.
Other well-known alloys are:
 brass – an alloy of copper and zinc.
It does not tarnish and is used for door
knobs, buttons and musical instruments.
 solder – an alloy of zinc and lead.
It is used in electronics to fix
components to circuit boards.
 amalgam – an alloy of mercury with
silver or tin. It is used for dental fillings
because it can be shaped when warm
and resists corrosion.
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Is gold an alloy?
Although pure gold is sometimes used in electronics, gold
jewellery is always a mixture of gold and other metals.
Pure gold is actually quite soft. Adding small amounts of
other metals makes the gold hard enough to use in jewellery.
Alloying gold with different metals also affects its colour.
The familiar yellow gold is an
alloy of gold mixed with copper
and silver. Adding more copper
than silver gives redder shades.
White gold is an alloy of gold
with nickel, platinum or palladium.
Around 12% of people may be
allergic to the nickel in white gold.

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When is a copper coin not a copper coin?

When it is a copper-coated alloy!

Copper coins used to be made from
pure copper but most ‘copper’ coins
used around the world are now made
from copper alloys.
Previously, as the value of copper
increased, the metal used to make
the coin became worth more than the
actual coins. A melted-down, pure
copper coin could have been sold for
more than the face value of the coin!
Since 1992, UK copper coins have been made from
copper-plated steel and are magnetic. A magnet can be
used to separate copper coins by age.

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What is steel?
Steel is an alloy of iron and other elements, including carbon,
nickel and chromium.
Steel is stronger than pure iron and can be used for
everything from sauce pans… …to suspension bridges!

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Why is steel stronger than iron?
The atoms in pure iron are
arranged in densely packed
layers. These layers can slide
over each other. This makes
pure iron a very soft material.
The atoms of other elements
are different sizes. When other
elements are added to iron,
their atoms distort the regular
structure of the iron atoms.
It is more difficult for the layers
of iron atoms in steel to slide
over each other and so this
alloy is stronger than pure iron.
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What types of steel are there?
Steel can contain up to 2% carbon.
Varying the amount of carbon gives
steel different properties. For example,
increasing the carbon content,
increases the hardness of the steel.
Different types of steel are classified
by how much carbon they contain:
 low carbon steel contains less than 0.25% carbon.
 high carbon steel contains more than 0.5% carbon.
Two other important types of steel are:
 stainless steel – an alloy of iron that contains at least
11% chromium and smaller amounts of nickel and carbon.
 titanium steel – an alloy of iron and titanium.
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Using different types of steel

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Using different types of steel – activity

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What’s so clever about smart alloys?
A smart material can change one or more of its physical
characteristics under the influence of an external stimulus.
Shape memory alloy is a type of smart material made from
metals that returns to its original shape after being deformed.
Nitinol is a type of shape
memory alloy made from
nickel and titanium.
This material can be used
to make a pair of glasses
that ‘remembers’ its shape
and does not break when
crushed.
Nitinol has also been used to hold badly broken bones
in place whilst they heal.
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 Glossary (1/2)
 alloy – A mixture of a metal with at least one other element.
 amalgam – An alloy of mercury that is used for dental
fillings.
 blast furnace – A tall oven used to extract iron from iron
ore by burning it with carbon at high temperatures.
 brass – An alloy of copper and zinc that is used for
ornaments.
 corrosion – The destruction of a metal caused by
reactions with chemicals in the environment.
 ductile – The ability of metals to be drawn into wires.
 electrolysis – A process that uses electricity to extract or
purify metals.

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 Glossary (2/2)
 malleable – The ability of metals to be bent or hammered
into different shapes.
 native – The natural occurrence of a metal as an element
in the environment.
 ore – A rock that contains a metal combined with other
elements in concentrations that make it profitable to mine.
 rusting – The specific name for the corrosion of iron and
iron-containing alloys, such as steel.
 shape memory alloy – A type of alloy that can return to
its original shape after being deformed.
 solder – An alloy of lead and tin that is used in electronics.
 steel – An alloy containing iron and other elements.

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Anagrams

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Multiple-choice quiz

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