Instrumented indentation hardness testing significantly expands on the capabilities of traditional hardness testing. It employs high-resolution instrumentation to continuously control and monitor the loads and displacements of an indenter as it is driven into and withdrawn from a material. The scope of application comprises displacements even smaller than 200 nm (nano range) and forces even up to 30 kN . Mechanical properties are derived from the indentation load-displacement data obtained in simple tests. The chapter presents the elements of contact mechanics that are important for the application of the instrumented indentation test. The test method according to the international standard (ISO 14577) is discussed, and this information is supplemented by information about the testing technique and some example applications. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the extensions of the standard that are expected in the future (estimation of the measurement uncertainty and procedures for the determination of true stress-strain curves).

This chapter reviews the general principles involved in codifying standards and describes the historical development of materials testing standards. It provides information on the standards related to the Brinell, Vickers, Rockwell, and Knoop methods as well as those for the instrumented indentation test and hardness conversions.

This chapter reviews the tests and procedures used for measuring hardness of plastics and elastomers. The conventional testing methods (Rockwell, Vickers, Brinell, and Knoop) used for testing of metals are based on the idea that hardness represents the resistance against permanent plastic deformation of the material to be tested. However, elastic deformation must be considered in hardness measurement of elastomers. This chapter discusses the equipment and processes involved in the durometer (Shore) test, the International Rubber Hardness Degree test, and other specialized tests. It presents the criteria that can be used to select a suitable hardness testing method for elastomers or plastics and describes processes involved in specimen preparation and equipment calibration.

This chapter discusses the characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages of nondestructive hardness testing methods for metals, including electromagnetic impulse testing, photothermal testing, scratch hardness testing, and ultrasonic contact impedance testing. It also discusses the use of ultrasound to determine the depth of hardening in a metal or alloy. The chapter reviews methods used to check and calibrate hardness testing machines and indenters and the use of hardness reference blocks for verification and calibration of test machines. It also addresses conversion of hardness values determined by one method to equivalent values for a different method.

This chapter discusses the history of hardness testing and defines the term hardness. It describes the interrelationship between material structure and hardness and the relationships between hardness and other mechanical material properties. In addition, information on the hardness unit and traceability of the hardness measurement are provided.

Several specialized instruments are available for the metallographer to use as tools to gather key information on the characteristics of the microstructure being analyzed. These include microscopes that use electrons as a source of illumination instead of light and x-ray diffraction equipment. This chapter describes how these instruments can be used to gather important information about a microstructure. The instruments covered include image analyzers, transmission electron microscopes, scanning electron microscopes, electron probe microanalyzers, scanning transmission electron microscopes, x-ray diffractometers, microhardness testers, and hot microhardness testers. A list of other instruments that are usually located in a research laboratory or specialized testing laboratory is also provided.

When a material is sintered and evaluated for performance, the primary focus is on mechanical properties. This chapter discusses structural properties for representative materials. Some guidelines are presented on the types of tests and how property values depend on the testing procedure. Mechanical hardness and strength tabulations are provided to document sintered properties.

This chapter discusses the operating mechanism, applications, advantages, and limitations of Brinell hardness testing, Rockwell hardness testing, Vickers hardness testing, Scleroscope hardness testing, and microhardness testing. In addition, the general precautions and selection criteria to be considered are described and details of equipment setup provided.

Hardness tests provide valuable information about the quality of materials and how they are likely to perform in different types of service. This chapter covers some of the most widely used hardness testing methods, including Vickers, Rockwell, and Brinell tests, Shore scleroscope and Equotip hardness tests, and microindentation tests. It describes the equipment and procedures used, discusses the factors that influence accuracy, and provides hardness conversion equations for different types of materials. It also explains how hardness testing sheds light on anisotropy, machinability, wear, fracture toughness, and tensile strength as well as temperature effects, residual stress, and quality control.

In dynamic hardness tests, the test force is applied to the defined indenter in an accelerated way (with a high application rate). Dynamic test methods relate hardness to the elastic response of a material, whereas the classical static indentation tests determine hardness in terms of plastic behavior. This chapter describes the most important and widespread dynamic hardness testing methods. These tests fall into two categories: methods in which the deformation is measured and methods in which the energy is measured. Methods that measure deformation include the Poldi hammer method, the shearing force method, the Baumann hammer method, and the Dynatest method. Methods that measure energy include the Shore method, the Leeb method, and the Nitronic method. The chapter concludes with a discussion of applications of dynamic hardness testing.

This chapter explains how metallography and hardness testing are used to evaluate the quality and condition of metal products. It also discusses the use of tensile testing, fracture toughness and impact testing, fatigue testing, and nondestructive test methods including ultrasonic, x-ray, and eddy current testing.

This chapter provides an overview of the various inspection methods used with metals and alloys, namely visual inspection, coordinate measuring machines, machine vision, hardness testing, tensile testing, chemical analysis, metallography, and nondestructive testing. The nondestructive testing methods discussed are liquid penetrant inspection, magnetic particle inspection, eddy current inspection, radiographic inspection, and ultrasonic testing.

This chapter discusses the methods and procedures used for inspecting induction-hardened parts. It provides information on hardness and case depth measurements, nondestructive testing and surface analysis, the effect of various hardening errors, and relevant test standards.

This chapter discusses the general principles of measuring hardness and hardenability of steel. The discussion begins by defining hardness and exploring the history of hardness testing. This is followed by a discussion on the principles, applications, advantages, and disadvantages of commonly used hardness testing systems: the Brinell, Rockwell, Vickers, Scleroscope, and various microhardness testers that employ Vickers or Knoop indenters. The effect of carbon content on annealed steels and hardened steels is then discussed. A brief discussion on the concept of the ideal critical diameter and austenitic grain size of steels is also provided to understand how one can calculate and quantify hardenability. The processes involved in various methods for evaluating hardenability are reviewed, discussing the effect of alloying elements on hardenability.

Scanning Probe Microscope (SPM) has an increasing important role in the development of nanoscale semiconductor technologies. This article presents a detailed discussion on various SPM techniques including Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Kelvin Probe Microscopy, Scanning Capacitance Microscopy, Scanning Spreading Resistance Microscopy, Conductive-AFM, Magnetic Force Microscopy, Scanning Surface Photo Voltage Microscopy, and Scanning Microwave Impedance Microscopy. An overview of each SPM technique is given along with examples of how each is used in the development of novel technologies, the monitoring of manufacturing processes, and the failure analysis of nanoscale semiconductor devices.

This chapter describes some of the most effective tools for investigating boiler tube failures, including scanning electron microscopy, optical emission spectroscopy, atomic absorption spectroscopy, x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It explains how the tools work and what they reveal. It also covers the topic of image analysis and its application in the measurement of grain size, phase/volume fraction, delta ferrite and retained austenite, inclusion rating, depth of carburization/decarburization, scale thickness, pearlite banding, microhardness, and hardness profiles. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion on the effect of scaling and deposition and how to measure it.

Glasses and ceramics are susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking (SCC), as are metals, but the underlying mechanisms differ in many ways. One of the major differences stems from the lack of active dislocation motion that, in metals, serves to arrest cracks by reducing stress concentrations at flaw tips. As a result, even relatively small flaws (20 to 50 μm in radius) can cause glasses and ceramics to fail. This chapter examines the propensity of flaws to grow in glass and ceramic materials exposed to different environments, especially water, at stresses well below those that would produce immediate failure. It describes crack growth mechanisms, explains how to measure crack growth rates and predict time to failure, and provides crack growth data for a number of materials and environments.