Many materials, especially metals, are used in industries and daily life due to their flexibility and ductility. Electrical wires and conductors are used for domestic purposes as well as small to heavy industries. Many of you may not know that the main component of these wires and conductors is highly ductile metal. Now, you may be curious to know what is ductile metals and why it is used in electrical wires and conductors. Stay on this page as we will share the information you need to understand what is a highly ductile metal and what is ductility.
Ductility is a feature of metals that is responsible for their flexibility of being stretched without breaking. In simple words, due to ductility, a metal can handle extreme temperatures and pressure without breaking but stretches itself and reshapes.
All the metals are not ductile, and each one does not have the same ductility. A particular kind of crystal (face-centered cubic) is responsible for ductility, and the metals made up of this crystal (FCC) are highly ductile. The atoms of the ductile metals can slide past each other without conflict while under pressure.
Few metals are known for their ductility and thus used for many industries such as electrical and construction. Gold, platinum, copper, and nickel are known as highly ductile metal. Ductility helps in shaping the metal as you want. Thus, gold and platinum are used in making jewelry and some crucial parts of machinery.
The ductility of all the metals is not the same. Two major parameters determine the ductility of a metal. One is the percentage of elongation, which means how much it will extend without breaking. You can find it by elongated length divided by the length in normal conditions.
The other one is the reduction of area, which means the area of cross-section just before breaking.
Copper and aluminum are largely used in making electrical wires and products as they are ductile and good conductors of electricity. Gold is also used in making some parts for high ductility.
However, copper is used in most electrical wires and conductors as it is a highly ductile metal, a superior conductor of electricity, and non-corrosive. As copper is highly ductile, it can be shaped into thin wires and other electrical components easily.
For making electrical wires and conductors, we need a highly ductile metal that is a good conductor of electricity as well. We have already mentioned that copper fits in both categories. Now, let us check why we need highly ductile metal.
The electrical wires need to be very thin, and we have to achieve the desired thickness without breaking it and distorting its strength. Only a highly ductile metal can be pressed and elongated into thin wires. As ductile metals are flexible, we can make wires of the desired thickness and conductors of the desired shapes.
However, gold and silver are more ductile than copper, but they are expensive too. That is why it is not feasible to use them in electrical wires.
The ductility of metal is a feature that makes it ideal to give it any shape you want without breaking it or reducing its strength. Electrical wires should be shaped very thin, and that is why a highly ductile metal is ideal to make electrical wires and conductors. Copper is ideal for making electrical wires and conductors as it has both ductility and conductivity of electricity.
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