Edexcel GCSE Chemistry 1CH0
Key Concepts in Chemistry
States of Matter and Mixtures
Chemical Changes
Extracting Metals and Equilibria
Transition Metals, Quantitative Chemistry and Industrial Processes
Groups in the Periodic Table
Rates of Reaction and Energy Changes
Fuels and Earth Science
Chemical Analysis, Organic Chemistry and Materials
Transition Metals, Quantitative Chemistry and Industrial Processes
Alloys and alloy steels
- 3 things to know
- Paper 1
Overview
What an alloy is, why pure metals bend easily while atoms of a different size make alloys stronger and less malleable, gold alloys for rings, steel and stainless steel, and the properties of high-carbon and low-carbon steel.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
What is an alloy?
Describe how the atoms are arranged in a pure metal.
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What is an alloy?
Model answer
An alloy is a mixture of a metal with one or more other elements.
- 2
Describe how the atoms are arranged in a pure metal.
Model answer
The atoms are all the same size and are packed in regular layers.
- 3
Explain why a pure metal can be bent and shaped easily.
Model answer
Its layers of identical atoms can slide over one another when a force is applied.
- 4
Explain, in terms of atoms, why an alloy is usually stronger than the pure metal it is made from.
Model answer
The added atoms are a different size, so they distort the regular layers and prevent them sliding over each other.
- 5
Suggest why adding a small amount of carbon to iron makes the metal much harder.
Model answer
Carbon atoms are a different size from iron atoms, so they disrupt the layers and stop them sliding.
- 6
What happens to the malleability of a metal when it is alloyed?
Model answer
Malleability decreases, because the distorted layers can no longer slide over each other easily.
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