WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF HARDNESS TESTING?

The application of hardness testing enables you to evaluate a material’s properties,

such as strength, ductility and wear resistance, and so helps you determine
whether a material or material treatment is suitable for the purpose you require.

The definition of hardness testing is ‘a test to determine the resistance a material

exhibits to permanent deformation by penetration of another harder material.’
However, hardness is not a fundamental property of a material. Therefore, when
drawing conclusions of a hardness test, you should always evaluate the
quantitative value in relation to:

 The given load on the indenter

 A specific loading time profile and a specific load duration
 A specific indenter geometry

HOW DO HARDNESS TESTS WORK?

A hardness test is typically performed by pressing a specifically dimensioned and

loaded object (indenter) into the surface of the material you are testing. The
hardness is determined by measuring the depth of indenter penetration or by
measuring the size of the impression left by an indenter.

 Hardness tests that measure the depth of indenter penetration include:

Rockwell, Instrumented Indentation Testing, and Ball Indentation Hardness
 Hardness tests that measure the size of the impression left by the indenter
include: Vickers, Knoop, and Brinell

SELECTING THE BEST HARDNESS TEST METHOD

How to select the test method

The hardness test you choose should be determined by the microstructure – e.g.
the homogeneity – of the material you are testing, as well as the type of material,
the size of the part and its condition.

In all hardness tests, the material under the indent should be representative of the
whole microstructure (unless you attempting to ascertain the different constituents
in the microstructure). Therefore, if a microstructure is very coarse and
heterogeneous, you need a larger impression than for a homogeneous material.

There are four main hardness tests, each with their own set of benefits and
requirements. There are different standards for these tests, which explain the
procedures and application of the hardness test in detail.
When selecting a hardness test method, important considerations include:

1. The type of material to be hardness tested

2. Whether compliance with a standard is required
3. The approximate hardness of the material
4. The homogeneity/heterogeneity of the material
5. The size of the part
6. Whether mounting is necessary
7. The number of samples to be tested
8. The required accuracy of the result

Standards
Rockwell – ASTM E18-18Standard Test Methods for Rockwell Hardness of
Metallic Materials

Brinell - ASTM E10 - 10 Standard Test Method for Brinell Hardness of Metallic
Materials

Vickers - ASTM E384 - 11e1 Standard Test Method for Knoop and Vickers
Hardness of Materials

Knoop - ASTM E384 - 11e1 Standard Test Method for Knoop and Vickers
Hardness of Materials

Method

a) Vickers Hardness Test

1) The specimen (carbonate steel) is correctly place on anvil of the

Vickers Hardness instrument.

2) The specimen is being focused and changed it below the indenter

exactly.

3) The ‘START’ button is pressed and the machine will shine with the
sound showed that the machine is readily operated.

4) When the ‘START’ light goes off, the indenter is assured that it
doesn’t touches the specimen’s surface.

5) Change the indenter with the lens.

6) The width of the corner is measured and noted.

7) Step 1-6 is repeated for the other area of the steel and for the mild
steel.

b) Rockwell Hardness Test

1) The specimen is correctly placed on the anvil of the Rockwell

Hardness instrument.

2) The base of the instrument is slowly rotated the LED will started
to move until it reaches ‘SET’.

3) The test is automatically started.

4) The reading is taken after ‘TI’

5) Step 1-4 is repeated for the other area of the steel

c) Brinell Hardness Test

1) The mild steel was placed correctly on the anvil of the instrument.
2) The base of the instrument is slowly rotated until the specimen
touches the indenter.

3) The right holder of the machine is adjusted until it reaches the

1000kgf load and wait until 15 minutes.

4) The holder is moved forward again.

5) The base is anti-clockwise rotated.

6) The specimen is removed, and the reading is taken by using the

microscope.

7) Step 1-4 is repeated for carbonate steel

Factors that influence hardness testing

A number of factors influence hardness tests results. As a general rule,

the lower the load you use in the hardness test, the more factors that
need to be controlled to ensure an accurate conclusion of the hardness
test.

Here are a few of the most important factors to consider to ensure an

accurate conclusion from a hardness test.

 External factors such as light, dirt, vibrations, temperature, and

humidity should be controlled
 The tester and stage should be secured on a solid horizontal
table, and the sample should be clamped or held in a holder or
anvil
 The indenter should be perpendicular to the tested surface
 Illumination settings should be constant during the test when
using Vickers, Knoop, or Brinell
 The tester should be recalibrated/verified every time you change
the indenter or objective lens
 1. The Rockwell hardness test

The Rockwell hardness test is often used as a ‘quick test’ on the production
floor or in the laboratory, mainly for metallic materials. However, it can also
be used for more advanced tests, such as the Jominy test (End Quench
Test). Due to the relatively high loads used, application of the Rockwell
hardness test is generally limited to larger sample geometries.

Rockwell is a fast hardness test method developed for production control, with a
direct readout, mainly used for metallic materials. The Rockwell hardness (HR) is
calculated by measuring the depth of an indent after an indenter has been forced
into the specimen material at a given load.

 Generally used for larger sample geometries

 A ‘quick test’ mainly used for metallic materials
 Can be used for advanced tests, such as the Jominy (end quench) test (HRC)

The Rockwell hardness test at a glance:

 No optical readout
 Standards: ASTM E18, ISO 6508 and JIS Z 2245