History of materials science facts for kids
Materials science has shaped human history since the very beginning! Think about it: better tools and weapons helped people explore and conquer new lands. Even today, how we make materials like steel and aluminum still changes our world. Historians even name whole periods of time after the main material people used, like the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age.
For a long time, people learned about materials mostly by trying things out or through old practices like alchemy. But as we learned more about chemistry and physics, a new field called materials science came to be. The history of materials science is all about how different materials were used and developed over time, and how they affected human cultures. Some people even call our modern time, from the late 20th to early 21st centuries, the "Silicon Age" because of how important silicon is in computers and electronics.
Contents
Ancient Times: From Stone to Iron
Sometimes, the only clues we have about ancient cultures are the materials they left behind. Scientists who study human history, called anthropologists, use these materials to understand how people lived. As people started using more advanced materials, archeologists could tell different groups apart. This is partly because of the main material a culture used and its good and bad points.
People in the Stone Age used rocks they found nearby or traded for. Around 300,000 BCE, people started using flint, which some consider the beginning of using ceramics. A big step forward was using polished stone axes, because then many more types of rocks could be made into tools.
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The invention of melting and shaping metals in the Bronze Age changed how cultures grew and interacted. Around 5,500 BCE, early smiths started shaping natural copper and gold without fire. They used tools to hammer them. Heating copper and shaping it with hammers began around 5,000 BCE. Melting and pouring copper into molds started around 4,000 BCE.
The real start of metallurgy (the science of metals) was around 3,500 BCE, when people learned to get copper from its ore. The first alloy, bronze, which is a mix of copper and other metals, came into use around 3,000 BCE.
Stone Age Tools and Materials
The very first materials humans used were in the Stone Age. People used things like bone, plant fibers, feathers, shells, animal skin, and clay. They made weapons, tools, jewelry, and shelters from these. The earliest tools, from the Paleolithic age, were called Oldowan. These were simple chipped rocks used for scavenging.
As time moved into the Mesolithic age, tools became more detailed and symmetrical, with sharper edges. In the Neolithic age, farming began to develop. People found new ways to make tools for agriculture. Near the end of the Stone Age, humans started using copper, gold, and silver. These metals were soft, so they were mostly used for ceremonies, ornaments, or decorations. They didn't replace other materials for tools. The simple tools of the time showed how basic human understanding was back then.
Bronze Age Alloys and Innovations
People learned a lot about copper. They saw it could be hammered into useful shapes and melted to pour into detailed molds. But copper was too soft for many big jobs. Through experiments or by accident, adding other things to copper made a new, harder metal alloy called bronze. Early bronze was made from copper and arsenic, creating "arsenic bronze."
Iron Age: Stronger Metals Emerge
Working with iron became popular around 1,200 BCE. In the 10th century BCE, glass production started in the ancient Near East. In the 3rd century BCE, people in ancient India created wootz steel, which was the first type of crucible steel (steel made in a special container).
In the 1st century BCE, glassblowing techniques became very popular in Phoenicia. By the 2nd century CE, steel-making was common in Han dynasty China. The 4th century CE saw the creation of the Iron pillar of Delhi. This is the oldest example of steel that resists rust.
Materials in Ancient Civilizations
The Roman Empire built structures using materials like wood, bone, stone, and earth. Some buildings were possible because of the type of land they were built on. Romans mixed powdered limestone, volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius, and water to make a cement paste. This paste allowed them to build with oddly shaped stones, filling the gaps to create strong structures. The cement got stronger as it dried, making a stronger bond over time.
After the western Roman Empire fell, much of this knowledge was lost. Only a few people, like Catholic monks, could still read about how to make concrete. This is why the concrete Pantheon in Rome has lasted for 1,850 years. Meanwhile, many old wooden farmhouses have long since fallen apart.
The use of asbestos grew in Ancient Greece. People especially liked its ability to resist fire. Many believe the word asbestos comes from a Greek term meaning "cannot be put out." Clothes for important people, tablecloths, and oven decorations were made from this fibrous material. They could be cleaned by throwing them directly into a fire. However, people noticed it could make workers sick, leading to early ideas about protection.
After early hunter-gatherers used bone daggers, and then wood and stone axes, better tools came along. These included copper, bronze, and iron tools from the Roman civilization. This meant more valuable materials could be found and collected. For example, the medieval goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini worked with gold to create beautiful objects for important leaders. His book, The Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini, has one of the first descriptions of how metals were processed.
Cork is a material that has recently been studied more in materials science. It was first mentioned by ancient writers like Horace and Pliny the Elder. In ancient times, cork had many uses because it floats. It was used in fishing and safety devices. It was also used for engraving, as soles for sandals to make people taller, as stoppers for containers, and as an insulator. In the second century, it was even used to try and cure baldness!
In ancient Rome, glassblowing became an art form. People added decorations and colors to glass. They could also make complex shapes using molds. This technology allowed them to copy gemstones. Window glass was made by pouring melted glass into flat clay molds, then removing and cleaning it. The texture in stained glass comes from the sand mold it touched.
Early forms of polymeric composites (materials made from different parts, like plastic reinforced with fibers) also appeared. By 80 BC, petrified resin (like tree sap) and keratin (a protein found in hair and nails) were used in accessories. These included amber and tortoise shell.
In Alexandria, Egypt, around the first century BC, glassblowing developed further. This was partly due to new furnaces that could create higher temperatures. They used a clay-coated reed pipe to blow the glass. Glass made from plant ash and natron (a natural mineral) was used for blown pieces. Plants from coastal and semi-desert areas worked best because they had low amounts of magnesium oxide and potassium oxide. Blown glass vessels were most common in the Levant (Middle East), North Africa, and Italy.
Materials in the Middle Ages
Very early porcelain-like material has been found from the Neolithic period. Pieces from the Eastern Han period in China show that these items were fired at very high temperatures, from 1260°C to 1300°C. In the 8th century, true porcelain was invented in the Tang dynasty in China. This led to better kilns (ovens for firing ceramics) that improved the quality and amount of porcelain that could be made.
Tin-glazing for ceramics was invented by Arabic chemists and potters in Basra, Iraq.
During the early Middle Ages, windows were made by blowing non-colored glass balls and then flattening them. But in the late Middle Ages, the method went back to how it was in ancient times, with some small changes, like using metal rollers.
In the 9th century, stonepaste ceramics were invented in Iraq. Also, lustreware (pottery with a shiny, metallic surface) appeared in Mesopotamia. In the 11th century, Damascus steel was developed in the Middle East. In the 15th century, Johann Gutenberg created a special type metal alloy for printing. Around the same time, Angelo Barovier invented cristallo, a clear, soda-based glass.
Early Modern Discoveries
In 1540, Vannoccio Biringuccio published De la pirotechnia. This was the first organized book about metallurgy (the study of metals). In 1556, Georg Agricola wrote De Re Metallica, an important book about metallurgy and mining. Also, glass lenses were developed in the Netherlands and used for the first time in microscopes and telescopes.
In the 17th century, Galileo's book Two New Sciences included the first scientific measurements in the study of materials. This covered topics like the strength of materials and how things move.
In the 18th century, William Champion patented a way to make metallic zinc by heating calamine (a zinc ore) with charcoal. Bryan Higgins received a patent for hydraulic cement (stucco), which could be used as an exterior plaster. And Alessandro Volta created a copper or zinc acid battery.
In the 19th century, many important inventions happened. Thomas Johann Seebeck invented the thermocouple (a device that measures temperature). Joseph Aspin invented Portland cement, a very common type of cement. Charles Goodyear invented vulcanized rubber, which made rubber much stronger. Louis Daguerre and William Fox Talbot invented silver-based photographic processes. James Clerk Maxwell showed how to make color photographs. And Charles Fritts made the first solar cells using selenium.
Before the early 1800s, aluminum had not been made as a pure metal. It wasn't until 1825 that Hans Christian Ørsted found a way to create elemental aluminum. Because aluminum is light and strong, people wanted to use it instead of heavier, less useful metals like silver and gold. Napoleon III even used aluminum plates and utensils for his special guests, while others got silver. However, this process was still expensive and couldn't make much aluminum.
In 1886, American Charles Martin Hall and Frenchman Paul Héroult independently invented a new process. They found a way to produce aluminum from aluminum oxide using electrolysis (using electricity to separate chemicals). This process made aluminum much cheaper to produce. It turned aluminum from a rare metal into something easily available. Around the same time, in 1888, Carl Josef Bayer developed a method to make pure alumina (aluminum oxide) for the textile industry. This process involved dissolving aluminum oxide from the bauxite mineral. The Bayer process and the Hall-Héroult process are still used today to make most of the world's alumina and aluminum.
Materials Science as a Field of Study
Most fields of study have a single "founding father," like Isaac Newton for physics. But materials science doesn't have one central figure. In the 1940s, during wartime, different fields of study worked together to create new technologies. This teamwork became the basis for what would become materials science and engineering.
During the Cold War in the 1950s, the US President's Science Advisory Committee (PSAC) made materials a top priority. They realized that materials were holding back progress in space and military technology. In 1958, President Dwight D. Eisenhower created the Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA). In 1960, ARPA encouraged universities to set up special interdisciplinary laboratories (IDLs). These labs would research materials and teach students how to do materials science research.
ARPA offered four-year contracts to universities for these IDLs. The first ones were at Cornell University, University of Pennsylvania, and Northwestern University. Eventually, nine more contracts were given out. Even though ARPA no longer runs the IDL program (the National Science Foundation took over in 1972), setting up these labs was a huge step for materials science research in the United States. In the 1960s, many university departments changed their names from "metallurgy" to "metallurgy and materials science."
Modern Materials Science
In the early 20th century, most engineering schools had departments for metallurgy and sometimes ceramics. A lot of effort went into understanding the different forms of iron and carbon that are important for making steel. The basic understanding of other materials wasn't advanced enough for them to be separate academic subjects.
After World War II, the study of polymers (like plastics) grew very quickly. Instead of creating new polymer science departments, leaders and scientists started to see materials science as a new, combined field. This field would look at all important engineering materials from a single point of view. Northwestern University started the first materials science department in 1955.
Richard E. Tressler was a global leader in developing materials that could withstand high temperatures. He was a pioneer in testing and using high-temperature fibers. He also improved tools and testing methods for materials used in hot environments, like in aerospace and energy. He helped create the Center for Advanced Materials (CAM), which supported many students and professors in materials research. His idea of working across different fields was key to creating the Materials Research Institute. Penn State University even has a lecture named in his honor.
The Materials Research Society (MRS) has been very important in giving this new field its own identity in the US. MRS started from discussions by Professor Rustum Roy in 1970. The first MRS meeting was in 1973. By 2006, MRS had become an international society with over 13,000 members. It sponsors many annual meetings that cover a wide range of topics. This is different from other groups that focus on just one area, like physics. The way MRS meetings bring different fields together has greatly influenced science, especially in the study of soft materials. These materials are where biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering all meet. Because there are textbooks, research societies, university programs (BA, MA, PhD), and other signs of a clear field, it's fair to call materials science (and engineering) a true academic discipline.
The Silicon Age and Beyond
The field of crystallography was founded by William Henry Bragg and his son William Lawrence Bragg. This is where X-rays are shined through crystals to understand their structure. Materials science became a major field after the start of the Silicon Age and Information Age. This led to the development of modern computers and then mobile phones. The need to make these devices smaller, faster, and more powerful pushed materials science to create lighter materials that could handle complex calculations.
In turn, computers helped solve complex crystallography problems and automate experiments. This allowed researchers to design even more accurate and powerful techniques. Along with computers and crystallography, the development of laser technology from 1960 onwards led to many new inventions. These include light-emitting diodes (used in DVD players and smartphones), fibre-optic communication (used for global telecommunications), and confocal microscopy, which is a key tool in materials science.
See also
- Timeline of materials technology
- History of Ferrous Metallurgy
- History of hide materials
- History of silk
- Category:Materials scientists and engineers
