Metal alloys are more mechanically sturdy than pure metals a

Metal alloys are more mechanically sturdy than pure metals and if you were designing elements for electric heaters metal alloys might be a good choice. Explain why?

Solution

Alloys are combination of one or two metals. Though metals possess useful properties like good conductivity and high strength, alloys combine these properties making a metal useful for a particular application. When metals are alloyed, properties like their melting point, conductivity etc are affected.There are coils inside electrical appliances that take part in electrical heating. Electrical heating is a process in which electrical energy gets converted to heat energy. The size and shape of the coil varies according to its use. Modern home appliances use nichrome which is wound in coils that produce heat when current passes through the coil.Nichrome is an alloy of nickel (80%) and chromium (20%). It is silver grey in color, resistant to corrosion and has high melting point of about 1400 degree centigrade.Most heating elements use Nichrome 80/20 (80% nickel, 20% chromium) wire, ribbon, or strip. Nichrome 80/20 is an ideal material, because it has relatively high resistance and forms an adherent layer of chromium oxide when it is heated for the first time. Material beneath this layer will not oxidize, preventing the wire from breaking or burning out.