Physical properties of Metals
The physical characteristics of metal are as follows::
Physical state
Hardness
Density
Ductility
Melting and boiling point
Lustre
Malleability
Sonorous
Conductivity
Let's take a closer look at them.
Physical state
Metals are typically solid at normal temperature and pressure.
Mercury, on the other hand, is a liquid at room temperature.
Cesium (Cs), rubidium (Rb), francium (Fr), and gallium (Ga) become liquid at room temperature.
Lustre
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=bWkcBu1v8Rc&list=PLwYHnGeDqk4bn8O6kRfKpJ4oUfMri5HNO&index=8)
Let's try to group the substances by comparing their physical properties.
Let's do it with one of the physical properties called lustre.
Luster is the property of substances to shine.
We have taken samples of metals like iron, copper, aluminium, and gold and nonmetals like coal
and sulfur.
Clean the surface of each sample with sandpaper and take note of its appearance.
We can see that metals have a shiny surface, whereas nonmetals do not shine after rubbing with
sandpaper.
Metals have a sparkling lustre when they are pure.
This property is called metallic lustre; in this way, we can use this property to distinguish between
metals and nonmetals, except for iodine, which is a nonmetal but lustrous.
Activity 2:
Harness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Fv7PRP_s5OY&list=PLwYHnGeDqk4bn8O6kRfKpJ4oUfMri5HNO&index=9
Let's try to group the substances by comparing their physical properties.
Let's start with the hardness.
We have taken samples of metals like iron, copper, aluminum, and gold and nonmetals like coal and
sulfur, and used a knife to cut the samples.
Try to cut each sample with a sharp knife and check if it cuts.
We can see that metals do not cut, whereas nonmetals do.
We can find that metals are generally hard in nature and nonmetals are not.
From this observation, we can differentiate between metals and nonmetals. the exception being
diamond which is a nonmetal but the
hardest material.
Activity 3:
Malleability
Let's try to group the substances by comparing their physical properties.
Let's do it with one of the physical properties called malleability.
Malleability is a substance's ability to deform under pressure without breaking.
We have taken samples of metals such as iron, copper, aluminium, and gold, and nonmetals such as
coal and sulfur, and used a hammer to hit the samples. hit each sample with a hammer multiple
times and observe the change in the shape of the samples.
We can see that metals are deformed without breaking further; they can be beaten into thin sheets,
whereas nonmetals break, so they can't be used to form sheet-like structures.
This property of substances being able to deform without breaking is called malleability.
We find that metals are malleable, and nonmetals are not malleable. In this way, we can
differentiate between metals and nonmetals with this property.
Activity 4
Sonority
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=wgwJE_5m460&list=PLwYHnGeDqk4bn8O6kRfKpJ4oUfMri5HNO&index=11
Let's try to group the substances by comparing their physical properties.
Let's do it with one of the physical properties called sonority.
Sonority is the property of substances to produce a ringing sound.
We have taken samples of metals like iron, copper, and aluminium and nonmetals like coal and
sulfur, and used a rod to strike the samples with the rod and hear the sound produced by it.
We can see that metal salutes a ringing sound whereas nonmetals don't metals produce a ringing
sound when hit
with a rod, this property is called sonority in this way we can use this property to differentiate
between metals and nonmetals.
Activity 5:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cH-
_9aue59o&list=PLwYHnGeDqk4bn8O6kRfKpJ4oUfMri5HNO&index=12
Let us find out the metals' and nonmetals' ability to conduct electricity.
We have taken an electric circuit connected with a cell, a plug key, a bulb, and a metal piece.
Insert the plug key and check if the current flows in the circuit through the metal piece.
We can see that the current flows through the circuit.
Now place a few other metals and nonmetals to check if all the samples conduct electricity.
We see that metals conduct electricity where nonmetals don't conduct electricity hence, we can
conclude that
metals are generally good conductors of electricity and nonmetals are not good conductors of
electricity exception
being graphite, which is a nonmetal but conducts electricity.
Activity 6:
Let us find out the ability of the metal to conduct heat.
We have taken an iron rod and connected it to a stand as shown.
A pin is attached to the free end of the rod using wax.
A bunsen burner is kept below the iron rod near the stand.
Heat the iron rod with the Bunsen burner and observe the melting of the wax.
We can see that the pin falls after some time as the wax melts due to the heat or rising temperature
of the iron rod.
Although the iron rod is heated on the other side, the wax melts at the free end.
It indicates that the heat has passed through the rod, which means the iron rod is a good conductor
of heat.
Now replace the iron rod with aluminum, copper, and silver rods and find out the time it took for
the pin to fall down.
We find that all of these metal samples are good conductors of heat, and the heat conductivity
varies for different metals.
