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| MATERIALS - HARDNESS TESTING | |
| V. Ryan © 2012 | |
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| VIDEO - - HARDNESS TESTING OF MATERIALS | |
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The hardness of a material can be defined as, ‘the ability of a material to resist scratching, wear and tear and indentation’. |
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| Using a centre punch to ‘indent’ the surface of a material, is a basic test. Different materials require a different amount of force to form an indent. This makes it possible to compare the hardness of a selection of materials. |  |
| When using a hand file to ‘file’ a material, the force / effort required can be felt physically . Filing a selection of materials to the same degree, allows the hardness of each to be compared. |  |
| A more sophisticated method of measuring the hardness of a material, is to drop a ‘plug’ down a tube. When the ‘plug’ hits the material below, the surface will suffer an indent. The indent produced on different materials, can be compared. Consequently, the smaller the indent, the harder the material. |  |
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