Dimensional effect when measuring Martens hardness

Abstract

One of the most common methods of non-destructive testing, hardness testing, is used to evaluate the properties of materials. This is due to the ease of measurement and testing of the finished part, which will be used in the future, high productivity of the method, the ability to assess other mechanical properties of the material: elasticity, creep, tensile strength. An important aspect in the study of the hardness using in the range the Berkovich and Vickers indenters, which are more consistent with non-destructive testing, while the methods of Brinell and Rockwell leave quite large deformations, in our opinion, which further promote the development of structural defects and reduce the service life, which are not acceptable in critical products. Due to the improvement of product manufacturability, more and more manufacturers are trying to minimize the size of the part, while increasing their performance by applying a reinforced layer, which, in turn, should seek to reduce the thickness with increased service life. It is also impossible to study the hardness of very small products in the micro range due to the large mismatch between the dimensions of the product under test and the test method. In our opinion, the study of hardness by the Berkovich method in comparison with the Vickers method is more expedient for use with the same physicochemical properties of the material because of a larger scatter of hardness values between the compared methods, although they should be almost the same, with a small difference. An important omission to a certain year was the dimensional effect. Goal. The aim of the study is to assess the nature of the change in hardness with increasing load on the indenter, using the functional dependence of the hardness on the depth of the indenter. For this purpose, it is necessary to establish such connection for an indenter of various geometry. In this regard, we consider it appropriate to check the validity of the Meyer equation, which relates the load to the size of the imprint, for different indenters and materials. Results. When the hardness is calculated according to the Martens scales, the Vickers and Berkovich indenters are applied to the function of the surface area of the working part of the tip. An important factor of the consistency of the results in the increase in hardness is the small effect. The reasons for this can be very negligible. The sizeable effect is significantly infused into the results of increasing hardness, changing from 2,5 to 3,0 folds.