Interested in conducting your own webinar? Email webinars@bnpmedia.

com

by Daniel H. Herring The Heat Treat Doctor 2011 The HERRING GROUP, Inc.

Designed & Built for Heat

Treaters by Heat Treaters

Vertical Vacuum Furnaces

Horizontal Vacuum Furnaces

www.VACAERO.com

For more information about Struers full range of comprehensive lab solutions Contact: Struers Inc. 888-STRUERS (888-787-8377) info@struers.com

www.struers.com

www.industrialheating.com

Archive

Add to your favorites

Materials Testers
Exceeding R&D/QA/QC requirements in the development of safer, more reliable, and higher quality materials and products
Shimadzus testing instruments include: High-precision universal testing machines Servohydraulic testing systems Fatigue/endurance testers Micro testing systems High-speed impact testers Hardness testers Viscosity & flow testing systems

Over 90 years of testing machine history

Shimadzu, 7102 Riverwood Drive, Columbia, MD 21046 800-477-1227, www.ssi.shimadzu.com

by Daniel H. Herring The Heat Treat Doctor 2011 The HERRING GROUP, Inc.

Why Mechanical Testing?

The purpose of mechanical testing is to help us predict how a given material and/or component will respond to its end-use environment, in both the short and long term, before its application in the field.

2006 Accident in Bostons Big Dig Kills Woman in Car - $16 Million Dollar Settlement

What is Mechanical Testing?

Mechanical testing involves the response of metals to applied forces or loads. Common testing techniques related to the mechanical failure of heat treated metals include:
- Hardness - Tension (tensile and transverse rupture) - Torsion - Fatigue - Creep and Stress-Rupture - Impact tests

The type of mechanical test method used MUST be representative of the forces the component will experience in service.

Hardness Testing
A part is usually hardness tested after heat treating, and the value obtained is an indication of the effectiveness of the treatment. A test tip (indenter) of defined configuration is pressed into the surface of the specimen using a constant, predetermined force.
- The tip deforms the steel such that a high hardness corresponds to a small impression or indentation and a low hardness corresponds to a large impression or indentation.
Photograph Courtesy of Instron Corporation

Hardness Testing
Among mechanical testing equipment, heat treaters probably are most familiar with the hardness tester.
Almost every shop has either a Rockwell-scale or Rockwell superficial-scale tester. Some shops also have Brinell and/or microhardness or microindentation hardness testers.

Hardness Testing
Hardness testing is used because it is easy to measure out on the shop floor. Hardness values tell us valuable information about various properties of the metal but does not actually measure these properties.
-So, hardness is not a fundamental property of the metal but rather a composite value influenced by work hardening, the yield strength, true tensile strength, and modulus of elasticity of the material.

Brandt, Daniel A., Metallurgy Fundamentals, The Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc., 1985, pg. 83

Hardness Testing
Hardness testing is only one of many tests that help us to determine if parts will bent, or break in service.
The greater the hardness of the metal, the greater resistance it has to deformation.
Penetrator Hardness is proportional to the size of the penetration.

The ability of the material to resist plastic deformation depends on the microstructure of the material.
- Therefore, the same material can have different hardness values depending on its microstructure which is influenced by the heat treatment process.

Hardness Testing
In general, hardness is the measure of the resistance of a material to an applied force.
- For a metal, the property is a measure of its resistance to permanent or plastic deformation.

Hardness can also refer to and be measured by stiffness or temper, resistance to scratching, abrasion, or cutting.

Hardness testing files

Photograph Courtesy of Fred V. Fowler Co.

Hardness Testing
Although indentation hardness is of major engineering interest for metals many other types of tests have been devised to measure hardness and successfully employed.

Shallow case vacuum carbonitrided low caron steel die cutting punches

Hardness Testing Procedures

Many materials are hardness tested using indentation type Rockwell testers.
- Indentation tests involve using a verified machine to force a spheroconical diamond or a hard steel ball indenter into the surface of the material being tested and to measure the difference in depth of the resulting indentations. - For an accurate readings, an indentation must be a minimum of two indentation diameters from any edge of the sample, and the sample must be a minimum of two indentation diameters thick.
Photograph Courtesy of Struers A/S

Hardness Testing Procedures

Selecting the correct indenter and load for the metal sample being tested is critical.

Verify the tester is working properly by checking the reading on a calibrated test block of known hardness. Be sure to select a test block with a hardness value close to that expected during the actual testing.

Hardness Testing Procedures

Placing the sample into hardness tester, using the correct anvil and supporting the sample (if necessary) to prevent movement during testing is critical.
- If the anvil or indenter are changed prior to or during testing, recalibration using the test block is needed.

Hardness Testing Procedures

Many times the size and complexity (geometry) of the part being tested determines the anvil and support arrangement.

Hardness Testing Procedures

The type and size of indenter and the test load determines the hardness scale (e.g. B, C, M, E and K).
- Rockwell B and C scales are the most common scales for ferrous parts.

Hardness Testing Procedures

The Rockwell test uses two loads: a minor (10kg) load to help seat the indenter on the part, and a major load one applied directly after the other.
- The difference in the depth of the indentation between the minor and major loads provides the Rockwell Hardness number.

Proper designation of the scale will be a number followed by HR (Hardness Rockwell), which will than be followed by the letter of the Rockwell scale used.
- For example, 40 HRC would indicate a specimen with a hardness of 40 on the C scale.

Hardness Testing Procedures

For most materials encountered in heat treating, the major load is released within 3 seconds after the total test force is applied.
- For dead-weight machines, it is when the needle stops moving. - For load-cell equipment, the load is removed automatically. - For dial machines, HRC reading are taken on the black scale and all other readings are taken on the color scale indicated for that scale measurement (usually red or green). - Electronic equipment should directly display the readings.

Photograph Courtesy of Buehler, Ltd.

Hardness Testing Procedures

Rockwell Superficial Hardness Testers (or combination testers) are used to test thin strip, or lightly carburized surfaces, small parts or parts that might collapse under the conditions of the regular test.
The superficial tester uses a reduced minor load, just 3 kg (from 10 kg), and has the major load reduced to either 15, 30, or 45 kg. The indenters for Superficial Hardness Testing are the same as the indenters for common Rockwell Testing scales.
Photograph Courtesy of Ametek, Inc.

Hardness Testing
The hardness value is a function of the size of the indent (Brinell and Vickers) or the depth of penetration by the indenter (Rockwell). Hardness testers are also provided in portable models.

Photograph Courtesy of Electro Arc Manufacturing Company

Photograph Courtesy of Ray Company

Microhardness Testing
Microhardness testing is another common test performed by the heat treater.

Microhardness tests can be highly accurate provided the right techniques are followed.
Photograph Courtesy of Instron Corporation

Common Hardness Testing Problems

Cleanliness of the part and tester
Remove and clean the indenter and anvil prior to operation and at shift change. A small amount of debris can alter the reading by several points.

Curvature of the surface

A correction factor must be added to the hardness reading of small diameter shapes for Rockwell C, A and D and varies with the apparent hardness and part diameter.
The correction factor to be added is shown in ASTM E18 Tables 2 and 3.

Non-flat surfaces
Extremely rough or textured surfaces may give inconsistent readings. Remove any scale, debris, dirt and oil before testing.

Common Hardness Testing Problems

Surfaces not perpendicular to the indenter
Surfaces should be flat within 2 degrees. Be careful when taking readings on mounted samples, they must be flat, thick and not flex under load. A microhardness test may be more appropriate.

Readings taken too close to the sample edge

Indentations should be no closer than 2 times the indenter diameter from the edge. If the metal buckles outward, the indenter is too close to the edge and the reading is invalid.

Readings taken too close together

Indentations should be three diameters apart.

Common Hardness Testing Problems

Indenter is damaged
Periodically remove the indenter from the hardness tester and inspect the tip using a low power (10 - 50X) stereomicroscope or loop to check for cracking. Look for a flattened ball. Large and irregularly shaped parts need to be supported. Parts that move, even slightly during the test, produce a false reading.

Parts that are not supported

-

Changing the anvil to one that keeps the part stationary using the variety that should be available with your tester. Additional outside support (such as a Steady-Rest) may also be required.

Common Hardness Testing Problems

Sample is too thin
The material should have a thickness at least ten times the depth of the indentation. Minimum acceptable thicknesses can be found in ASTM E18 Tables 4 and 5.

Tensile Testing
Tensile tests are a type of tension test designed to pull a specimen to failure. This destructive test measures the force and stretch of a material during testing.

Tensile Testing
With continued loading and stretching, the tensile specimen permanently deforms, exhibiting plastic deformation.
The yield strength is the stress at which the specimen shifts from elastic (recoverable) stretching to plastic (permanent) deformation.

Brandt, Daniel A., Metallurgy Fundamentals, The Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc., 1985, pg. 111

Tension is a pulling apart

Tensile Testing

In a tension test, a specimen is subjected to a continuously increasing uniaxial tensile force.

An engineering stress strain curve is constructed from the measurements.
Stress is the (applied) load divided by the cross-sectional area of the test specimen at its center. Strain is the change in a dimension divided by the original dimension, and is measured over the central portion of the specimen length (where the cross section is constant).

Engineering Stress-Strain Curve Intersection of the dashed line with the curve determines the offset yield strength.

Dieter,Jr., George E., Mechanical Metallurgy, McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1961, pg. 237

Tensile Testing
The shape and magnitude of the stress-strain curve will depend on:
Material Composition Heat Treatment Stress State (imposed (during the testing)

The parameters used to describe the stress strain curve of a metal are:
Tensile strength, Yield strength (or yield point), Percentage elongation Reduction in area

Tensile Testing
As the specimen is stretched, the load required to induce each level of strain is measured. When the load is first applied the tensile specimen stretches in proportion to the applied load.
If the load is removed during this portion of the test, the specimen will return to its original length. This is called elastic deformation.

Brandt, Daniel A., Metallurgy Fundamentals, The Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc., 1985, pg. 114

Percent elongation is the percent the material will stretch before it breaks

Tension Testing
Tensile strength is the highest stress encountered in the tensile test.
For many steels this corresponds to the stress at fracture.
For very ductile steels, the stress at fracture is lower than the tensile strength. For very brittle steels, the yield strength is the same as the tensile strength (and fracture strength).

Tensile Testing
A common measure of ductility is the elongation (given as total stretch to failure divided by the initial specimencenter test length, or gauge length).
Elongation is a dimensionless number, expressed as a percentage.

Another measure of ductility is reduction in area, also dimensionless and expressed as a percentage.
Reduction in area is a measure of the change in cross sectional area at the point of failure (change in area divided by the original area).

Shear Testing
Transverse rupture testing is a strength test primarily designed for low-ductility materials, including carbides and certain powder metallurgy (P/M) materials.
This destructive test involves bending rather than pulling the specimen.
Maximum load, specimen dimensions, and test time are used to calculate the stress needed to cause failure. A typical transverse rupture strength is 1.5 to 2 times the tensile strength.

Photograph Courtesy of Fuel Instruments & Engineers PVT, LTD.

Shear Testing
Shear and double sheer testing are tension tests used, for example, to evaluate fastener performance (its ability to resist being pulled out of the base material to which it is attached).
Shear strength is the maximum load that can be supported prior to fracture when the load is applied at right angles to the components principal axis. There is a relationship between a materials tensile strength and shear strength.
For alloy steels, the shear strength is approximately 60% of its tensile strength For 300 series stainless steels, the tensile/shear relationship is only 50% - 55%.
Photograph Courtesy of Instron Corporation Double Shear Test Apparatus

Torsion Testing
Torsion testing is used to determine such properties as modulus of elasticity in shear, torsional yield strength, and modulus of rupture.
Any part subject to torsional loading in service, such as shafts and axles, are torsion tested.

Photograph Courtesy of Instron Corporation

Torsion Testing
Torsion testers consist of a twisting head, with a chuck for gripping the specimen and for applying the twisting moment, and a weighing head, which grips the other end of the specimen and measures the twisting moment, or torque.
Deformation of the specimen is measured by a twist measuring device called a troptometer.

Necked specimen after combined tension and torsion testing.

Torsion Testing
Torsion testing provides a more fundamental measure of the plasticity of a material than does tension testing. Torsion testing directly yields a shear stress-shear strain curve.
In torsion, the critical shear stress for plastic flow is reached before the critical normal stress for fracture; while in tension, the critical normal stress is reached before the critical shear stress.

Torsion test results can be used to validate or expand on the information gleaned from tensile testing.

Fatigue Testing
Fatigue is a measure of the stress that a material can withstand repeatedly without failure.
A fatigue failure is particularly catastrophic because it occurs without warning.

Fatigue crack in root fillet of a gear tooth

Photograph Courtesy of Instron Corporation

Fatigue Testing
The process of fatigue consists of three (3) stages:
Initial crack initiation Progressive crack growth across the part Final sudden fracture of the remaining cross section

Three basic factors are necessary to cause a fatigue failure:

A maximum tensile stress of sufficiently high value A large enough variation or fluctuation in the applied stress A sufficiently large number of cycles of the applied stress

Fatigue Testing
The basic method of expressing engineering fatigue data is by means of the S-N curve that shows how the life of the specimen, expressed in number of cycles to failure (N) depends on the maximum applied stress (S).
A linear reduction in applied stress results in an exponential improvement in fatigue life.

Typical S-N (stress vs. load cycles) curve.

Fatigue Testing
Fatigue testing equipment is usually designed to induce cyclic loading and unloading to a known (peak) stress and measure the number of such cycles to failure of the specimen. Variants of the test include tensile, bending, and rotating.

Photograph Courtesy of IMR Test Labs

Fatigue Testing
Fatigue failures are a combination of crack initiation and crack growth (propagation).
Sophisticated design equations are available to predict component life under cyclic loading conditions. The fatigue strength is always less than the yield strength, and is often 30 to 50% of the tensile strength.

Racing engine valve fatigue failure due to valve flexing, pounding, stretching and thermal shock.

Photograph Courtesy of AA1Car Automotive Diagnostic Center

Fatigue Testing
Fatigue strength is significantly reduced by the introduction of a stress raiser (stress concentrator) such as a keyway, screw thread, fillet, press fit, or hole, many of which are present in most structural parts.
One of the best ways to minimize fatigue failures is to reduce as much as possible the number of stress raisers via careful design and proper heat treatment.

Creep and Stress-Rupture Testing

Creep and stress-rupture tests are used to evaluate the performance of materials for elevated-temperature service.
The creep test measures the dimensional changes that occur in a specimen during exposure to high temperature. The stress-rupture test measures the effect of temperature on the specimens long-time load-bearing characteristics.
Test stand used for creep and stress-rupture testing.

It is often critical to consider the effects of long-term exposure to service temperature on the life of a heattreated component.

Photograph Courtesy of the Slovak Academy of Sciences

Creep and Stress-Rupture Testing

Creep is high temperature progressive deformation at constant stress.
In creep testing the main goal is to determine the minimum creep rate in stage II.

Courtesy of esa

Stress rupture testing is similar to creep testing except that the stresses used are higher than in a creep test.
Stress rupture testing is always done until failure of the material.

Creep and Stress-Rupture Testing

Knowledge of how the strength varies with time at high (or low) temperature is key to a successful product application.
Since the mobility of atoms increases rapidly with temperature, diffusion-controlled processes can have a very significant effect on high-temperature mechanical properties.

Photograph Courtesy of EdLabQuip

Impact Testing
Toughness is a fundamental material property measuring the ability of a material to absorb energy and withstand shock up to fracture (i.e. absorb energy in the plastic range). The ability to withstand occasional stresses above the yield stress without fracturing is particularly desirable in certain applications, for example:
Freight car couplings Gears Chains Crane hooks.

Impact Testing
Toughness is the amount of energy per unit volume that a material can absorb before rupturing and is represented by the area under the (tensile) stress-strain curve.
In service, this loading often occurs in the form of (sudden) impact.

Photograph Courtesy of NDT Research Center

Impact Testing
Impact tests are designed to determine a toughness value, which indicates the susceptibility of a material to brittle fracture (tougher materials are less susceptible). Depending on the material, notched Charpy and Izod specimens are considered the standards for impact testing.
Test bars cut from actual castings or forgings can give actual part properties.

Photograph Courtesy of Century Metal Industries, Inc.

Impact Testing
The most common test machine for measuring toughness, or impact resistance, involves a swinging pendulum, with a test specimen positioned at the bottom of the pendulum swing.

Impact Testing
A specimen of a tough material requires considerable energy for failure, consuming much of the pendulums kinetic energy. Consequently, the pendulum will not swing very high after breaking the specimen. If the specimen has low toughness, then the pendulum will end its swing considerably higher after fracture Brittle fracture is catastrophic, and factors that contribute to it include:
Triaxial stress (such as exists at a notch or stress raiser) Low temperature service High strain rate and/or rapid rates of loading.

Residual Stress
Residual stresses are produced whenever a material undergoes a non-uniform plastic deformation.
In quenching (hardening), for example, a temperature differential between the rapidly cooling surface and the slower cooling core produces a mismatch of strain. The residual stress pattern that results is a combination of the thermal volume changes and those resulting from the transformation of austenite to martensite.

Residual stresses are responsible for warping and dimensional instability of heat treated parts.
They also can influence how a material reacts to externally applied stresses.

Statistical Methods
There are at least three reasons why a working knowledge of statistics is needed in mechanical testing.
Mechanical properties are structure-sensitive, so they frequently exhibit considerable variability or scatter. This makes statistical techniques useful, and often necessary, for determining the precision of the measurements and enabling valid conclusions to be drawn from test data. Statistical methods can assist in designing experiments to provide the maximum amount of information at minimum cost. Statistical methods (which are based on probability theory) can be used to help explain certain problems or phenomena such as the size effect in brittle fracture and fatigue.

Questions (and Answers)

?s
e-mail: dherring@heat-treat-doctor.com

Please submit your questions by: