In a perfect crystalline structure, there is an orderly repetition of the lattice in every direction in space. Real crystals contain a considerable number of imperfections, or defects, that affect their physical, chemical, mechanical, and electronic properties. Defects play an important role in processes such as deformation, annealing, precipitation, diffusion, and sintering. All defects and imperfections can be conveniently classified under four main divisions: point defects, line defects, planar defects, and volume defects. This chapter provides a detailed discussion on the causes, nature, and impact of these defects in metals. It also describes the mechanisms that cause plastic deformation in metals.

This chapter discusses the role of plastic deformation in forging and the effect of strain and strain rate on metal flow. It demonstrates the use of stress tensors and shows how metal flow can be represented qualitatively by the displacement of volume elements and quantitatively by the distribution of velocity components and strain rates. It describes the conditions associated with homogeneous deformation in a frictionless upset forging and explains how they can also be obtained using engineering and true stress-strain curves.

This chapter covers the fundamentals of metal flow and the tools and techniques used to predict and control it. It begins by illustrating the local state of stress in a metal cylinder during upset forging and showing how stress components can be expressed in matrix form. It then explains how to determine the onset of yielding, which corresponds to the start of plastic deformation and the flow of metal within the workpiece. The chapter then goes on to present two important yield criteria, one based on shear stress (Tresca criterion), the other on distortion energy (von Mises criterion). It compares and contrasts the two methods and demonstrates their use as flow rules. It also explains how to calculate effective strain and strain rate and includes a brief discussion on the mechanical energy consumed during deformation.

This chapter discusses the fundamentals of plastic deformation and the role of strain and strain rate in sheet metal forming processes. It describes the conditions associated with uniform deformation, the significance of engineering and true strain, the effect of volume constancy on the tensile response of isotropic and anisotropic materials, and how infinitesimal strains or strain rates are used to express and analyze instantaneous deformation and local stain. It also discusses the concept of principal strain and strain paths and explains how to determine, and when to use, equivalent strain and strain rate.

This chapter discusses the factors that influence the load-deformation relationship at the heart of most metal forming operations. It describes the changes that occur in tensile test samples and the various ways test data can be plotted and analyzed, particularly for design purposes. It discusses the effect of normal and planar anisotropy, the development and use of flow stress curves, and how formability is usually measured and expressed. It explains how formability measurements serve as a guide for process and tool design engineers as well as others. It also discusses the development and use of forming limit curves and the extensive amount of information they provide.

The design and optimization of sheet metal forming operations is aided by tools and techniques that have been developed and refined over several decades. This chapter covers many of these methods and practices and explains where and how they are used. It begins by showing how the stress state at any point in a material can be expressed in different ways for different purposes. It then compares and contrasts some of the more widely used yield criteria and demonstrates the use of flow rules. It also explains how to calculate power, energy, and effective strain and strain rate and how hardening laws are used to predict strain-hardening behaviors.

Plastic gears are continuing to displace metal gears in applications ranging from automotive components to office automation equipment. This chapter discusses the characteristics, classification, advantages, and disadvantages of plastics for gear applications. It provides a comparison between the properties of metals and plastics for designing gears. The chapter reviews some of the commonly used plastic materials for gear applications including thermoplastic and thermoset gear materials. The chapter also describes the processes involved in plastic gear manufacturing.

This chapter describes the molecular structures and chemical reactions associated with the production of thermoset and thermoplastic components. It compares and contrasts the mechanical properties of engineering plastics with those of metals, and explains how fillers and reinforcements affect impact and tensile strength, shrinkage, thermal expansion, and thermal conductivity. It examines the relationship between tensile modulus and temperature, provides thermal property data for selected plastics, and discusses the effect of chemical exposure, operating temperature, and residual stress. The chapter also includes a section on the uses of thermoplastic and thermosetting resins and provides information on fabrication processes and fastening and joining methods.

The key to any successful part development is the proper choice of material, process, and design matched to the part performance requirements. This article presents examples of reliable material performance indicators and common practices to avoid. Simple tools and techniques for predicting plastic part performance (stiffness, strength/impact, creep/stress relaxation, and fatigue) integrated with manufacturing concerns (flow length and cycle time) are demonstrated for design and material selection.

This introductory article describes the various aspects of chemical structure and composition that are important to an understanding of polymer properties and their eventual effect on the end-use performance of engineering plastics, namely thermoplastics and thermosets. The most important properties of polymers and the most significant influences of structure on those properties are covered. The article also includes some general information on the classification and naming of polymers and plastics.

This article provides details on several of the classifications of polymer wear mechanisms, using wear data and micrographs from published works. The primary goals are to present the mechanisms of polymer wear and to quantify wear in terms of wear rate. The discussion begins by providing information on the processes involved in interfacial and cohesive wear. This is followed by sections describing the wear process and applications of elastomers, thermosets, glassy thermoplastics, and semicrystalline thermoplastics. The effects of environmental and lubricant on the wear failures of polymers are then discussed. The article further includes a case study describing the tribological performance of nylon. It ends by presenting some examples of wear failures of plastics.

The testing of plastics includes a wide variety of chemical, thermal, and mechanical tests. This chapter reviews the tensile testing of plastics, which has been standardized in ASTM D 638, "Standard Test Method for Tensile Properties of Plastics," and other comparable standards. It describes the fundamental factors that affect data from tensile tests, examines the stipulations in standardized tensile testing, and discusses the utilization of data from tensile tests.

This chapter covers the friction and wear behaviors of plastics and elastomers. It begins by describing the molecular differences between the two types of polymers and their typical uses. It then discusses the important attributes of engineering plastics and their suitability for applications involving friction, erosion, and adhesive and abrasive wear. It also discusses the tribology of elastomers and rubber along with their basic differences and the conditions under which they produce Schallamach waves. It includes information on polymer composites as well.