Video Transcript
Fill in the blank. Bronze is an alloy of copper and
blank.
Let us review our understanding of
alloys, and then we can start to answer this question about bronze.
We can describe an alloy as a
metallic solid solution that contains at least two different types of elements. The particles of one of the
alloying elements disperses through the lattice of the other. The alloy is solid and has a
particle configuration somewhat like a liquid solution.
Bronze is considered to be the
oldest alloy, and most historians think humans first made it thousands of years
ago. We know that copper is one of the
elements in the bronze alloy, and we need to determine the other one. Let us take some time to discuss
information about the bronze alloy.
Bronze has an unusual reddish-brown
color and is mechanically more robust or harder than copper. It is also less malleable and
ductile than pure copper. Malleability is the ability of a
material to be hammered or pressed into different shapes and thin sheets without
breaking or cracking. Ductility is the ability for a
material to be drawn into wires. Bronze is not highly malleable or
ductile because of its composition. It contains copper with at least
one other metal that is usually tin or arsenic.
Tin is most likely the correct
answer since it is the more commonly used alloying metal for bronze.
