Properties of Materials: We use a lot of things or objects in our everyday life. These things or objects are made from a variety of materials. For example, the furniture that we use in our everyday life is made of wood. The vessels that we use for cooking are made up of metals, ceramic or plastic. Materials are the matter from which an object is or can be made.

Different materials have different properties. Hence, one needs to select the material appropriately depending on the purpose or use. For example, chalk made of wood or plastic would be of no use because it cannot write on the blackboard. This article will learn and understand materials, the different properties of materials such as roughness, lustre, hardness, transparency, solubility, flotation, attraction towards a magnet, etc.

What are Properties of Materials?

Various materials are utilised to create various items. Do you know what factors go into deciding which materials are utilised to create a specific object? Why are metal cooking utensils used instead of paper? Cooking utensils made of paper will burn if they are placed in a fire. As a result, when preparing cooking equipment, we must utilise materials that can withstand fire.

Learn Properties of Matter

Choosing a material for making any object is based on two factors, namely, the property of the material and the usage of the object.

Materials are classified based on certain properties such as:

1 Appearance (shiny or dull)
2 Texture (rough or smooth)
3 Heaviness or Lightness
4 Hardness or Softness
5 Solubility or Insolubility
6 Transparency or Translucency or Opaque

We shall now discuss these methods for the classification of materials in detail.

Appearance of Materials

Shiny and dull materials are separated into two categories based on their appearance. For example, iron looks different from coal, and wood looks different from copper or aluminium. At the same time, iron, copper, and aluminium may have certain commonalities. Those aren’t to be found in the woods. Gold, on the other hand, is visible. It has a gleaming finish.

The term ‘lustre’ refers to a shining look, and some metals, such as iron and copper, lose their lustre and seem dull as a result of the action of air and moisture on their surface. As a result, we only see the brilliance on their freshly cut surface.

Those materials with a shiny appearance are said to have lustre, e.g. gold, silver, copper, aluminium, stainless steel, etc.

Those materials with dull appearance are said to have non-lustrous, e.g. paper, chalk, plastic, rubber, etc.

Roughness

Materials can be smooth or rough. The surface of rough materials has bumps or ridges that can be felt when touched. These bumps are absent in smooth materials. Rocks, sandpaper, and the bark of a tree are examples of rough surfaces.

A glass sheet, flower petals, and the surface of an apple are examples of smooth surfaces.

Hardness and Softness

We can classify the materials on the basis of hardness and softness. When pressing different materials with your hands, some will be difficult to compress while others will be simple. If we press a piece of iron metal with our hand, we will find that it cannot be compressed at all. A piece of iron can also not be cut, bent or scratched easily. We can say that iron is a hard material. Material that can be compressed or scratched easily is called soft, while some other materials which are difficult to compress are called hard. e.g. cotton or sponge is soft while the iron is hard.

Soluble and Insoluble Material

Soluble materials include sugar, common salt, and other substances that totally dissolve or disappear in water. Insoluble materials include sand, chalk powder, sawdust, and other items that do not dissolve or disappear in water after a long period of stirring. Because it can dissolve a huge variety of substances, water plays a crucial part in the functioning of our bodies.

Let’s do an activity to learn about the solubility of solid material.

Solubility of Solids in Water

Some solid substances dissolve in water, whereas others do not. You can understand this by doing this activity.

Activity 1:

Aim: To test for solubility of solids in water Materials required: Five test tubes (each half-filled with water), common salt, sugar, sand, sawdust, glucose, stirrer. Procedure: Take five test tubes, each one half-filled with water and mark them as \({\text{A,B,C,D}}\) and \({\text{E}}{\text{.}}\) Add small amounts of common salt, sugar, sand, sawdust and glucose, respectively, into these test tubes. Stir the contents and wait for a few minutes. Observation: Observe what happens to these substances in water. Conclusion: We notice that common salt, sugar and glucose are completely soluble in water, whereas sawdust and sand remain insoluble.

Solubility of Liquids in Water

Most of the liquids are soluble in water. However, some liquids such as edible oil, kerosene and petrol do not dissolve in water. The liquids which get mixed with water completely are called miscible liquids. Liquids that do not get mixed with water and form a separate layer on keeping for some time are called immiscible liquids.

Let us perform an activity to know more about this.

Activity 2:

Aim: To test for solubility of liquids in water Materials required: Two test tubes, water, ink, edible oil Procedure: Take two test tubes, each containing some water. Add a few drops of ink to one test tube and edible oil to the second test tube. Shake them well and wait for \(5\) minutes. Observation: Observe what happens to the substances in water. We find that ink has completely mixed with water, whereas the edible oil forms a separate layer over water. Conclusion: Ink and water are miscible liquids, whereas edible oil and water are immiscible liquids.

Solubility of Gases in Water

Like solids and liquids, some gases are soluble in water, while others are insoluble in it. For example, oxygen and carbon dioxide are soluble in water. Oxygen dissolved in water helps aquatic plants and animals to survive in water.

Carbon dioxide dissolved in water helps the aquatic plants in photosynthesis. Methane and nitrogen are examples of gases that are insoluble in water.

Aim: To classify materials on the basis of their solubility Materials required: A beaker, water, stirrer, a little quantity of the following items—milk, sand, wax, sugar, washing soda, common salt, plastic, glass, coconut oil, paper. Procedure: 1. Put a small quantity of the substances, one at a time mentioned in the table in a beaker containing water. 2. Use a stirrer to stir. 3. Use fresh water every time to check the solubility of the substance. Observation: Now, classify the materials on the basis of their solubility in water.

S.No	Materials	Soluble in water
1.	milk	yes
2.	sand	No
3.	Wax	No
4.	sugar	yes
5.	Washing soda	yes
6.	common salt	yes
7.	plastic	No
8.	glass	No
9.	coconut oil	No
10.	paper	No

Conclusion: We can classify substances on the basis of their solubility in water.

Floating or Sinking Materials

Materials may be so heavy that they might sink in water. Rock, sugar, stone, metals, etc., are found to sink in water. But, softwood, cork, etc., may float on the surface of the water. This is due to the heaviness or lightness of the materials.

We can group objects on the basis of their floatation—whether they float on the surface of water or get drowned, that is based on whether their density is less than or more than that of water.

Floatation

You observe that some materials float on water while others sink. This property of materials is known as floatation. Materials float or sink due to their density. Density is the mass per unit volume. The materials, having a higher density than water, sink in it (e.g., metals, rocks). The materials, having a lower density than water, float on it (e.g., wood, cork, dry leaf).

We can classify materials on the basis of this property.

Transparency

Transparency is a property that allows different amounts of light to travel through different materials. Materials can be classified into three categories based on their transparency: transparent, translucent, and opaque.

Transparent materials are those that enable all of the light to pass through them. Transparent materials include glass, water, acrylic sheet, and cellophane paper. To make things easier to view, shopkeepers prefer to put items like toffee, biscuits, and sweets in transparent jars. Glass is also commonly used in windows to allow light to enter through and light our rooms.

Translucent materials are those that allow some light to pass through them. Translucent materials include oiled paper and coloured glass.

Opaque materials are those that do not allow light to pass through them. Opaque materials include wood, metal, leaf, stone, and cardboard.

Magnetic and Non-magnetic Materials

Materials can be classified according to whether or not they are magnetically attracted. Magnetic materials are the materials that are attracted to a magnet. Magnetism is the name for this characteristic. A magnet attracts objects that are formed of iron. Nickel and cobalt, in addition to iron, are attracted to a magnet. Non-magnetic materials are materials that are not attracted to a magnet.

Malleability, Ductility, Combustibility and Conductivity

We can classify substances as malleable, ductile, combustible or conductive.

Malleability	Substances such as gold, silver, zinc, copper and aluminium, which can be beaten into thin sheets without breaking, are said to be malleable, and the property is called malleability.
Ductility	Substances such as silver, copper, gold and platinum, which can be drawn into wires, are called ductile, and the property is known as ductility.
Combustibility	Substances that can burn easily are called combustible substances, and the property is known as combustibility. Petrol, diesel, kerosene and LPG are combustible materials, whereas sand, bricks, marble, etc., are non-combustible.
Conductivity	Substances such as copper, aluminium, silver, platinum, etc., which allow heat and electricity to flow through them, are called good conductors and the property is known as conductivity. Substances that do not allow heat and electricity to flow through them are bad conductors or insulators. Rubber, plastic and wood are examples of bad conductors.

Summary

Materials are grouped based on similarities or differences in their properties, i.e. materials can be grouped on the basis of their physical state; solid, liquid and gas. Materials can be grouped on the basis of that they float or sink in water, appearance (shiny or dull), solubility or insolubility in water and on the basis of that they are transparent, translucent or opaque materials.

FAQs on Properties of Materials

Q.1.What are the main properties of the material?
Ans: Appearance, hardness, transparency, soluble or insoluble are the main properties of materials.

Q.2. What are the four properties of materials?
Ans: The four properties of the material are density, soluble or insoluble, hardness and malleability. Materials occur in nature according to their compactness. Material is categorized into three common states in which they are present. They are solid, liquid and gas.

Q.3. What are the properties of materials and their meaning?
Ans: A material’s physical properties denote the physical state of materials exclusive to their chemical or mechanical components. In particular, these properties encompass texture, density, mass, melting and boiling points, and electrical and thermal conductivity.

Q.4. What are the different material properties?
Ans: The material properties are size, shape, the density of the particles, and their intrinsic mechanical properties.

Q.5. What are the four properties of metals?
Ans: Malleability, ductility, high density, good conductors of electricity are the four properties of metals.

Q.6. What are the four properties of air?
Ans: The four properties of air are air has space, air exerts pressure, the air has mass, and air can be compressed.

Q.7. What are the chemical properties of metals?
Ans: Metals react with oxygen to form a metal oxide, metals react with water to form a metal hydroxide and hydrogen gas, metal react with dilute acids, then a metal salt and hydrogen gas are formed, the metal reacts with chlorine to form ionic chlorides.

Learn Properties of Aluminium

We hope this article on ‘Properties of Materials’ has helped you. If you have any queries, drop a comment below and we will get back to you.