Hardness and Impact Testing

Hardness Testing

The hardness of a material is defined as its ability to resist permanent deformation, either by scratching or indentation.

Typically in engineering terms we typically think in terms of hardness as the ability to resist deformation from an indenter under a given compressive load. The hardness of a material can either by measured by the size of indent given by a specified load, or the amount of force required to indent a material. With metallic materials it is often possible to estimate the ultimate tensile strength from a simple hardness measurement.

At R-TECH Materials, we are able to offer a comprehensive range of hardness testing solutions across a number of engineering materials.

Impact Testing

The toughness of a material is the level of energy a material can absorb prior to fracture. One means of measuring this is through impact testing. This is usually measured by means of a weighted hammer on a  swinging pendulum arm. Alternatively a ball ended weight can be dropped onto a material in a controlled fashion.