Composites and Advanced materials

This blog page can be used for a last minute revision on the topic of 'Composites and Advanced materials' from the material science course.

Composites

- Composites are made up of two or more individual materials.

- A huge number of composite types are being represented by the various combination of metals , ceramics and polymers.

-Examples of composites are wood or bone .

- Well , the most common composites is the fiberglass , where the glass fibers are being embedded within a polymeric material.The glass fibers are very strong and stiff  but also brittle. Whereas , the polymer will be flexible. These make the fiberglass a relatively a stronger , stiffer and also flexible material.

                                                   Fiberglass Composite

Advanced materials

- Advanced materials are that materials that are used in  high - technology applications. Advanced materials includes Semiconductors , Biomaterials , Smart Materials .

Semiconductors

- Semiconductors have electrical properties that are intermediate between the electrical conductors (e.g. metal , metal alloys ) and the insulator s.Electrical characteristics of this materials are extremely sensitive to the presence of minute concentrations of impurity atoms where the concerntrations may be controlled over very small spatial regions.

Biomaterials

- Employed in components into the human body to replace the diseased or damaged body parts . These materials must not produce any toxic substances and must be compatible with body tissues .

Smart Materials

- A group of new and state of the art new materials developed which will have a significant influence on many of our technologies . The components of a smart material include same type of sensor and an actuator.

Types of materials used as actuators

-Shape memory alloys

-piezoelectric ceramics

- Magnetostrictive  materials

- Electrorheological / magnetorheological fluids