19 Malleability

All metals are malleable. Historically, materials were considered malleable if they were amenable to forming by hammering or rolling. Metals can be hammered or beaten into thin sheets without breaking. Malleable means that metallic bonds in the metals do not break easily. Gold and silver are highly malleable metals.

Malleability, as a mechanical property, is characterized by a material’s ability to deform plastically without failure under compressive stress. Lead is an example of a material which is relatively malleable but not ductile.

Malleable materials can be formed cold using stamping or pressing.

The ductility property follows from the malleability property.

Derived from Ductility – Wikipedia accessed and available online 5 March 2024, and The Virtual Machine Shop (http://www.jjjtrain.com/vms/eng_metallurgy/eng_metallurgy_06.html) retrieved from the Wayback Machine 15 January 2024.