GCSE Chemistry revision

Properties of metals and alloys

How bonding and structure are related to the properties of substances

AQA 4.2.2.7 Foundation & Higher

Your specification

AQA student objectives

Learning pathway

ALL 🎯

MOST 🎯🎯

SOME 🎯🎯🎯

Revision summary

Read on screen, then print for Cornell-style active revision.

Atomic Layer Distortion: Pure metals have regular layers of identical atoms that slide over each other easily when a force is applied, making the metal soft and malleable.
Disruption of Sliding: In an alloy, the addition of different-sized atoms disrupts the regular arrangement, preventing the atomic layers from sliding over one another and making the alloy harder and stronger.

1. Alloy Hardness AQA

Atomic Layer Distortion: Pure metals have regular layers of identical atoms that slide over each other easily when a force is applied, making the metal soft and malleable.
Disruption of Sliding: In an alloy, the addition of different-sized atoms disrupts the regular arrangement, preventing the atomic layers from sliding over one another and making the alloy harder and stronger.

Enhanced Physical Properties: Mixing a pure metal with other elements creates an alloy that possesses greater hardness and tensile strength than the pure base metal alone.
Increased Practical Utility: Because pure metals (like copper or gold) are often too soft for heavy-duty use, alloys are manufactured to make metals far more suitable for structural, engineering, and construction applications.

2. Hardness, Strength, and Utility of Alloys AQA

Enhanced Physical Properties: Mixing a pure metal with other elements creates an alloy that possesses greater hardness and tensile strength than the pure base metal alone.
Increased Practical Utility: Because pure metals (like copper or gold) are often too soft for heavy-duty use, alloys are manufactured to make metals far more suitable for structural, engineering, and construction applications.

Identifying Pure Metals: Structural diagrams of pure metals display uniform, neatly arranged rows and columns composed entirely of identically sized circles forming a regular lattice.
Identifying Alloys: Structural diagrams of alloys show larger or smaller circles scattered throughout the lattice, visually highlighting the distorted regular structure caused by differing atomic sizes.

3. Visual Representations of Alloys AQA

Identifying Pure Metals: Structural diagrams of pure metals display uniform, neatly arranged rows and columns composed entirely of identically sized circles forming a regular lattice.
Identifying Alloys: Structural diagrams of alloys show larger or smaller circles scattered throughout the lattice, visually highlighting the distorted regular structure caused by differing atomic sizes.