Determination of Hardness Strength of Materials by Brinell Testing Methods

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BACKGROUND

Hardness is defined as the ability of a material to resist the permanent deformation of material through indentation, wear, scratch, abrasion, etc. It is a characteristic property which is used to measure the lasting depth of indentation.¹

In other words, the amount of hardness of a material depends upon the depth of indentation, i.e., if the indentation is small using a given indentor and a fixed load, then it has high hardness value.

Brinell hardness test methods are also known as ASTM E10, and it is most commonly used to test if a material is coarse or have too much rough surface.² Hardness test shows a relationship between hardness and other properties of the metal. This test is preferred because it is more convenient, simple and relatively non-destructive as compared to the other attributes of the material.

The main objective of this test is to determine the hardness strength of the material by “Brinell” testing methods.

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REQUIREMENTS

Materials:  Brinell hardness testing machine

Brinell Microscope

Specimen of mild Steel / Cast Iron

Steel balls (Dia. of Ball = 2.5 mm, 5 mm, 10 mm).

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PROCEDURE

First of all, insert a ball of dia. ‘D’ into the ball holder of the machine. Clean the specimen with a soft cloth by removing any dust, dirt, oil or grease. Then make a smooth contact between the surface of the sample and the ball by rotating the jack adjusting wheel. Now push the loading button on the machine. After pressing the load release level, wait for a minimum time of 15 seconds. After some seconds, the load will automatically apply gradually. Now remove the specimen and mark the indentation point. After this, observe the diameter of the indentation (d) through a microscope which is fitted on the lens. Now, repeat the entire process for three to four times to find its average diameter.

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CONCLUSION

The process of finding the hardness of a material through Brinell Hardness testing method is discussed. It is a characteristic property which is used to measure the depth of indentation.

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REFERENCES

1. George E. Dieter, “Metallurgy and Metallurgical Engineering Series,” in Mechanical Metallurgy, New York, TMH, 1961, pp. 47-82.
   
2. F. R. S. B. S. A. B. Z. R. Hill, “A theoretical study of the Brinell hardness test,” The Royal Society, Munich, 1989.