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Composite Materials

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Key Stage 3

Meaning

A composite material is one made from two or more different materials using properties of both to make it more useful for an application.

About Composite Material

Any clothes made of more than one fabric is a composite material.
Buildings made from steel and concrete are composite materials.

Key Stage 4

Meaning

A composite material is one made from two or more different materials using properties of both to make it more useful for an application.

Applications and Properties

Application Composite Properties
Pillars Reinforced Concrete (Concrete and Steel) Hard - Does not break easily when struck.

Strong - Does not change shape when a force is applied.

Resistant to Bending - The steel prevents it from breaking even after a slight bend.

Car Bodies Carbon Fiber (Graphite fibers and resin) Strong - Does not stretch easily under a force.

Hard - Does not break easily under a force.

Can be set - The Graphite fibres are flexible so can be molded around any shape and only set after the resin is added.

References

Edexcel

Composite materials, pages 204-205, GCSE Chemistry, Pearson, Edexcel

OCR

Composite materials, pages 222-223, Gateway GCSE Chemistry, Oxford, OCR