Thesis Abstract

Abstract
The accessibility or availability of suitable materials has played a crucial role in the development of civilization throughout history. From the Stone Age to the modern era, civilizations have thrived or declined based on their ability to access and utilize materials effectively. This research paper examines the significance of material availability in shaping human societies and technological advancements. The Stone Age marked the beginning of human civilization, characterized by the use of simple tools and materials like stone, wood, and bone. The availability of these raw materials in different regions determined the progress of early human settlements. For example, areas with abundant flint deposits saw the development of advanced tools and weapons, enabling communities to thrive and expand. As civilizations progressed into the Bronze Age, the introduction of metalworking revolutionized society. Regions with access to copper, tin, and other metals gained significant advantages in warfare, trade, and agriculture. The Bronze Age collapse, a period of societal upheaval around 1200 BCE, was partly attributed to disruptions in metal supply chains, highlighting the critical role of material availability in sustaining civilization. The Iron Age further exemplified the impact of material access on civilization. Iron, a stronger and more versatile metal, transformed warfare, agriculture, and infrastructure. Civilizations like the Roman Empire utilized iron extensively for construction, leading to impressive architectural achievements. The fall of Rome and subsequent Dark Ages underscored the consequences of losing access to crucial materials, as technological regression and societal decline followed. During the Industrial Revolution, the availability of coal, iron ore, and other resources fueled rapid advancements in manufacturing and transportation. Regions with abundant natural resources became centers of industrial power, driving global trade and colonization. The shift towards fossil fuels in the 19th century further emphasized the importance of material accessibility in shaping modern civilization. In contemporary society, the availability of materials like silicon, rare earth metals, and petroleum continues to drive technological innovation and economic growth. The digital age relies heavily on materials for electronics, communication, and renewable energy technologies. However, concerns about resource depletion, environmental impact, and unequal access to materials pose challenges for future civilization development. In conclusion, the accessibility or availability of suitable materials has been a fundamental factor in the development of civilization. Understanding the historical significance of material resources can provide insights into sustainable practices and equitable resource management for future societies.

Thesis Overview

INTRODUCTION

Material selection is a step in the process of designing any physical object. In the context of product design, the main goal of material selection is to minimize cost while meeting product performance goals. Systematic selection of the best material for a given application begins with properties and costs of candidate materials.

Understanding the material selection process is necessary for any form of application or design. The set of properties for a particular material is called the material attributes. Material selection involves seeking the best match between the design requirements and the material attributes. [“Material Selection”, 2014][1]

The selection of materials on a purely rational basis is a very difficult process, the process is not only often made difficult by insufficient property data but is typically one of decision making in the face of multiple constraints without a clear objective function.

The problem of material selection usually involves one or two difficulties such as;

Selection of the material for a new product or design.

Reevaluation of existing product or design to reduce cost, increase reliability, improves performance e t c.

Material selection like any other aspect of engineering design is a problem solving process whose steps can be defined by:

Analysis of material/application requirement: This is to determine the conditions of service and environment that the product must be able to withstand.

Possible materials: Possible materials are defined by the application requirements. For example; you cannot use clothes to build a bicycle. It also has to do with comparing the needed properties with a large material property data base to select a few materials that look promising for the application i.e. screening out of materials that fail the design constraints.

Selection of Candidate Material: This is to analyze candidate materials in terms of trade-off of product performance, cost, processibility and availability to select the best material for the application.

Development of Design Data: This is to determine experimentally the key material property of the selected material to obtain reliable statistical measures of the material performance under specific conditions to be encountered in service.

Strengthening of Materials Using Material Selection Technique

If the materials available do not meet the requirements or do not have all the properties needed; the properties of the material can be changed using methods that are learned through Material Science Technique. Though, there are many manufacturing techniques used to strengthen and form materials; three common physical principles used for functional material strengthening are densification, composites and alloying.

Densification is the most common way to strengthen any material. Generally, this increases the tensile strength by reducing the porosity of the material. [“Material Selection”, 2014][1]

Composites are materials that are comprised of various parts. They can be natural e. g wood, rocks e t c and they can be manmade e.g.concrete. One of the major reasons for the prevalent use of composite materials in construction is the adaptability of the composite to many kinds of applications. The standard composite rule of mixtures is when standard matrix is soft and the reinforcing material is tensile strong. The selection of mixture proportions can result in the change of the mechanical properties of the material.

Alloying of metals is one of the oldest and most fundamental material processing techniques. An alloy is a solid solution that is composed of two or more elements. There is a solvent (majority composite) and a solute. The solute element can strengthen the overall solid solution by different element size, density and other material properties. [Mahmoud Farag, 2000][2]

The goal of design is to create products that perform their function effectively, safely and at an acceptable cost.

Given the application requirements, possible materials and physical principles (i.e. strengthening mechanism), we can select the best material. [George E. Dieter, 1997][3]