When zinc is added to copper to make brass, what is the effect on the strength of the metal?
Question 1 Report
When zinc is added to copper to make brass, what is the effect on the strength of the metal?
Answer Details
Adding zinc to copper to make brass means the strength increases. Zinc atoms are a different size from copper atoms, so when they take up positions among them the neat layers are disrupted. The layers can no longer slide over one another when a force is applied, so a larger force is needed to deform the metal, which we measure as greater strength and hardness.
Alloying is only mixing at the atomic level, so the metal stays solid at room temperature and cannot turn into a gas. The strength rises rather than falling. The metallic bonding and its sea of delocalised electrons survive alloying, so brass still conducts electricity, although less well than pure copper because the irregular lattice scatters those electrons.
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