METALS

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
1. They are hard.
2. They are shiny when polished.
3. They are malleable i.e they can be beaten into different shapes.
4. They are ductile i.e can be drawn into wires.
5. They are good conductors of heat and electricity.
6. They are sonorous, produce a melodious sound when struck.
7. They have high melting and boiling points and because of this they are usually solids
at room temperature and pressure, except for mercury which is a liquid at rtp.

CONDUCTIVITY OF ELECTRICITY
Metals conduct electricity because their atoms lose their outer shell electrons to their
surrounding forming a ‘sea’ of electrons or an ‘electron cloud’ around positively charged
ions. The electrons are said to be delocalized and they cause electricity to flow when they
move.

MALLEABILITY OF METALS
Metals can be beaten into different shapes because the layers of the positively charged
ions in the metal structure can easily slide over one another when the metal is hammered

REACTIVITY SERIES OF METALS

Different metal elements have different reactivities. For example, potassium is very
reactive and reacts vigorously with water whereas gold is very unreactive and will not
react with water. The arrangement of metals according to their reactivity gives the
reactivity series

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The reactivity series of common metals

K Kwame most reactive

Na Nkurumah Extracted using
Ca Can electrolysis
Mg Marry Decrea
Al all sing
Carbon Civilised reactivi
Zn Zambian ty Extracted using reduction
Fe Females
with carbon
Pb Provided
Hydrogen He
Cu Can extracted by reduction with hydrogen
Hg Hug
Ag All Often found as native
least reactive (chemically uncombined)
Au Around

POSITION OF CARBON AND HYDROGEN IN THE REACTIVITY SERIES

Carbon and hydrogen are often included in the reactivity series of metals even though
they are non-metals
Carbon is included because this helps to show which metals can be extracted by using
carbon as a reducing agent.
Carbon is more reactive than the metals below it in the reactivity series and therefore it
reduces them from their compounds
e.g. Zinc oxide + Carbon Zinc metal + Carbon dioxide gas

2ZnO (s) + C (s) 2Zn (s) + CO2 (g)

Hydrogen is included to show the metals that can react with dilute acids and those that
can’t. Hydrogen is more reactive than metals below it in the reactivity series and
therefore any metal below it in the reactivity series cannot displace it from dilute acids.
(metals below hydrogen in the reactivity series are unreactive with dilute acids).
These metals can also be extracted from their compounds using hydrogen as a reducing
agent.

e.g Copper (II) oxide + Hydrogen gas Copper metal + Water

CuO (s) + H2 (g) Cu (s) + H2O (g)

APPARENT UNREACTIVITY OF ALUMINIUM

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In the reactivity series aluminium is relatively high up in the series, between magnesium
and zinc. It is a reactive metal but behaves like an unreactive metal as aluminium sauce
pans do not react with steam or acids in the food during cooking. This is because
aluminium reacts with oxygen in air forming a layer of aluminium oxide which protects
and prevent further reaction of the metal.

Observation: Reaction takes place. Rubbing the

No reaction in experiment 1 because metal with sand paper removes the
the aluminium oxide layer prevents oxide layer and exposes the metal
the aluminium metal from reacting underneath, and because aluminium
with the acid is a reactive metal it will then react
with the acid

EXPERIMENTS TO SHOW ORDER OF REACTIVITY

1. Displacement reactions

Reactive metals displace less reactive ones from their solutions. Metals which fall below
a metal in the reactivity series are less reactive than the metal.
e.g Reacting magnesium metal with copper (II) sulphate solution.

CuSO4 (aq) + Mg (s) MgSO4(aq) + Cu(s)

Magnesium metal strip

OBSERVATIONS
• magnesium metal reduces in size,
• a brown substance is deposited in the
solution
• and the color of the solution fades away until
it become colorless

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EXPLANATION
• This is because the magnesium metal displaces the copper ions from the solution to
form magnesium sulphate (colorless solution) and copper metal (brown substance).

2. Reactivity of metals with water or steam.

Most metals in the reactivity series react with either water or steam. The vigor of the
reaction decreases down the series.

METAL REACTIVITY WATER/STEAM PRODUCTS

Potassium very reactive metal hydroxide

Sodium quite reactive react with cold water and hydrogen
Calcium fairly reactive gas
Magnesiun slightly reactive

Aluminium
Zinc only heated react with steam metal oxide and
Iron metals react hydrogen gas

Copper
Silver No reaction ____ ___
Gold

3. Reactivity of metals with dilute Hydrochloric acid.

Most of the metals in the reactivity series react with dilute hydrochloric acid to produce a
metal chloride (salt) and hydrogen gas. The vigor of the reaction decreases down the
series.

Metal + dilute hydrochloric acid Metal chloride + hydrogen gas

e.g Calcium + dilute hydrochloric acid Calcium Chloride + hydrogen gas

Ca (s) + 2HCl (aq) CaCl2 (aq) + H2 (g)

ACTION OF HEAT ON METAL COMPOUNDS

1. METAL HYDROXIDES / OXIDES

Metal hydroxides of less reactive metals are decomposed by heat to a metal oxide and
water (steam).

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 Iron (II) hydroxide Iron (II) oxide + Water

2 Fe (OH) 2 (s) 2 FeO (s) + 2 H2O (g)

Metal oxides are decomposed by heat to metal and oxygen gas.

e.g Copper (II) oxide Copper metal + Oxygen gas

2CuO (s) 2 Cu(s) + O2 (g)

Test for oxygen gas:

Test: Lower a glowing Splint into
Copper II oxide the gas .
Result: Glowing Splint relights if
the gas is oxygen

Hydroxides of more reactive metals like Potassium and Sodium are not decomposed by
heat because they are strongly bonded to the other ion and their compounds are very
stable. A lot of energy is required to break them.

2. METAL CARBONATES

Metal carbonates are decomposed by heat to a metal oxide and carbon dioxide gas.
e.g Calcium carbonate Calcium oxide + Carbon dioxide gas

CaCO3 (s) CaO (s) + CO2 (g)

Test for Carbon dioxide gas

Test: Bubble the gas in lime water.

Result: Lime water turns milky.

Carbonates of potassium and sodium metals are not decomposed by heat because they are
strongly bonded to the carbonate ion.

3. METAL NITRATES

Metal nitrates are decomposed by heat to a metal oxide, nitrogen dioxide gas and oxygen
gas.

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e.g Zinc nitrate Zinc oxide + Nitrogen dioxide gas + Oxygen gas

Zn (NO3)2 (s) ZnO (s) + 2 NO2 (g) + O2 (g)

Test for nitrogen dioxide gas:

Test: Contact the gas with a damp blue litmus
paper.
Result: The damp blue litmus paper turns red.
Zinc nitrate crystals

Potassium and Sodium nitrates do not decompose when heated. When they are heated a
nitrite and oxygen gas are produced.

i.e Sodium nitrate Sodium nitrite + Oxygen gas

Na NO3 (s) NaNO2 (s) + O2 (g)

This is because the two metals are very reactive therefore the nitrate ion is strongly
bonded to the metal. The oxygen gas is from the nitrate not the splitting of the metal and
the nitrates.

EXTRACTION OF METALS

Metals are extracted from their ores. The methods of extraction are related to the
reactivity of the metals.

Metal Methods of extraction

K
Na
Ca
Mg Electrolysis
Al

Zn Reduction of heated metal oxide by coke

Fe (carbon).
e.g ZnO (s) Zn (s) + O2 (g)
Cu
Thermal decomposition of the metal sulphide
i.e CuS (s) Cu (s) + SO2 (g)
Au Physical means because it is found free on
earth.

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ORES OF SOME METALS

Metal Ore Chemical name of the

ore Fomulae of
compound

Aluminium Bauxite Aluminium oxide Al2O3. 3H2O

Copper Copper pyrites Copper iron sulphide Cu Fe S2

Chalcocite/chalcopyrite Copper I sulphide Cu2S

Iron Haematite Iron (III) oxide Fe2 O3

Zinc Zinc Blende Zinc Sulphide ZnS

EXTRACTION OF ALUMINIUM

Aluminium is extracted from the Bauxite by electrolysis.

Electrolysis is the process of decomposing a compound using electrical energy.

Aluminium is the most abundant element in the earth’s crust. It is a very reactive metal
and as such it is difficult to extract from its ore because it is strongly bonded to other
elements. It is found as minerals like Bauxite, cyslite, mica and clay.

The main ore of aluminium is Bauxite. It is an impure form of aluminium oxide. The
impurities in the bauxite are:- Iron (III) oxide
- Sand
The impurities are removed from the ore before it is electrolysed. They are removed by
treating the ore with Sodium hydroxide.

The pure aluminium oxide is called Alumina. It has a very high melting point of 2017oC
which is expensive to maintain and dangerous to work at.

The melting point of alumina is reduced to between 800oC and 1000oC by dissolving
alumina in molten Cryolite (Na3AlF6). The cryolite provide a considerable saving in the
energy requirements of the process.

The mixture of pure aluminium oxide and cryolite is then electrolysed in the Hall Herolt
cell as shown below

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 The anodes are blocks of graphite which are lowered into the mixture of molten alumina
and cryolite. The cathode is the graphite lining of the steel vessel containing the cell.

During the electrolysis, the negatively charged oxide ions are attracted to the anode
where they lose electrons to form oxygen gas.

2O2- - 4e- O2 (g) : Oxidation

The positive aluminium ions are attracted to the cathode where they gain electrons to
form molten aluminium metal.

Al3+ + 3e Al (s) : Reduction

Overall the reaction taking place is:

2Al2O3 (l) 4Al (l) + 3 O2 (g)

The molten aluminium collects at the bottom of the cell and it is syphoned out at regular
intervals. The cryolite is not affected by flow of electricity therefore there is no problem
of other metals being deposited.

The problem is only with the burning away of the anodes as oxygen gas produced reacts
with graphite producing carbon dioxide gas. This leads to regular replacement of anode.

C (s) + O2 CO2 (g)

EXTRACTION OF IRON

Iron is the second most abundant metal in the earth’s crust after aluminium. It is a fairly
reactive metal therefore it is extracted from its ore by reducing its metal oxide with
carbon monoxide. Iron ores are Haematite (Fe2O3) and Magnitite (Fe3O4).

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The main iron ore is Haematite, it is the one from which iron is extracted. The reduction
of the iron ore is done in a steel tower lined with a heat resistant bricks. The tower is
called the blast furnace because it is kept at very high temperatures.

The raw materials for extraction of iron are:-

1. Iron ore – Haematite (which is mainly iron (III) oxide mixed with sand as an impurity)

2. Limestone- Calcium carbonate.

3. Coke – Carbon
The raw material are mixed together to give a mixture called Charge. The charge is
heated in the blast furnace and several reactions take place that lead to the production of
liquid iron.

The reactions are:

1. The coke reacts with oxygen in air giving carbon dioxide gas.

C (s) + O2 (g) CO2 (g)

2. The carbon dioxide reacts with more coke giving carbon monoxide gas.

CO2 (g) + C (s) 2 CO (g)

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3. The carbon monoxide is the reducing agent and reduces the iron (III) oxide to iron
metal and carbon dioxide gas.

Fe2O3 (s) + 3CO (g) 2Fe(l) + 3CO2 (g)

The liquid or molten iron trickles to the bottom of the furnace because it has a high
density.

4. The limestone (Calcium carbonate) is decomposed by heat to Calcium Oxide and

carbon dioxide gas.
heat
CaCO3 (s) CaO (s) + CO2 (g)
The Calcium oxide is used to remove impurities as it reacts with sand (Silicon dioxide)
giving Slag (Calcium silicate).

CaO (s) + SiO2 (s) CaSiO3 (l)

The slag also tickles to the bottom of the furnace and float on top of the molten iron
because it is less dense than iron.

The slag is used in making road and buildings for foundations.

The iron obtained is called ‘pig’ or cast iron. It is hard and brittle therefore it has limited
uses. It is used to make gas cylinders. To improve its quality and increase its uses it is
converted to steel.

PRODUTION OF STEEL

The pig iron produced from the blast furnace contains 5% - 10% carbon and other
impurities like sulphur, silicon and phosphorus. These impurities make the iron hard and
brittle. To improve the quality of the iron, the impurities are removed hence steel is
produced. Steel is an alloy. The impurities are removed in the basic oxygen furnace.

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-Molten iron from the blast furnace is poured into the basic oxygen furnace.

-A water cooled pipe is introduced into the furnace and oxygen at 5-15 atmospheric
pressure is blown onto the surface of the molten iron. The impurities are oxidized to
their oxides. i.e - Carbon to carbon dioxide gas
- Sulphur to sulphur dioxide gas
- Silicon to solid silicon dioxide
- Phosphorus to solid phosphorus (V) oxide
The gaseous oxide escape into the atmosphere while the solid ones are reacted with
calcium oxide to form slag which is then poured off the furnace. Samples of the molten
iron are then checked for carbon content. When the required amount of carbon is reached,
the blast oxygen is stopped. If other types of steel are required then up to 30% scrap iron
is added along with other metals and all the carbon is burned off.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF STEEL

Steel type Typical composition Properties Uses

1. Mild steel 99.5% Iron, 0.5% It has lost most of In making car
Carbon its brittleness and it bodies, building
is easily worked. bridges and ships.

2. Hard steel 99% Iron, 1% Carbon It is tough and For cutting tools,
brittle. chisels and razor
blades.

3. Manganese 87% iron, It is tough and In making drill bits

steel 13% Manganese springy. and springs.

4. Stainless 75% Iron, It is tough and does In making cutlery,

steel 18% chromium, not corrode. kitchen sinks,
7% nickel surgical instruments
and chemical plants.

5. Tungsten 95% Iron, 5% tungsten It is tough and hard In making edges of

steel even at high high speed cutting
temperatures. tools.

ALLOYS
An alloy is a mixture of metals or metals and non-metals. Alloys are metallic substances
that have more useful properties than the original pure metals they are made from.
Alloying metals improve their quality e.g. steel.

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Other common alloys

Alloy Composition Use

1. Brass 65% Copper, 35% Zinc In making jewellery, door

handles, machine bearings
and in electrical
connections because it does
not corrode easily and is
decorative.

2.Bronze 90% Copper, 10% Tin In making medals, statues,

machine castings and
machine parts because it is
hard and decorative.

3. Duralumin 95% aluminium, In aircraft construction and

4% Copper, making bicycle parts
1% magnesium, manganese because it has a low density
and iron and does not corrode.

4. Solder 70% Lead, 30% Tin In connecting electric wires

because it has a low melting
point and set easily.

5. Alnico Aluminium, Nickel, Cobalt In making permanent

magnets.

USES OF SOME METALS

1. Aluminium
- It is used in the manufacture of aircraft bodies because of its high strength and low
density.
- It is also used for food containers because of its resistance corrosion.
2. Zinc
- It is used for galvanizing iron because it does not corrode easily.
- In making outer casing of dry cells because it does not corrode easily.
- In making brass because it is decorative.
3. Copper
- In making electrical wires, cooking utensils, car radiators and ornaments.

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