WHAT IS THE DEFINITION OF HARDNESS TESTING?

The application of hardness testing enables you to evaluate a material’s properties, such as strength,
ductility and wear resistance, and so helps you determine whether a material or material treatment is
suitable for the purpose you require. 

The definition of hardness testing is ‘a test to determine the resistance a material exhibits to permanent
deformation by penetration of another harder material.’ However, hardness is not a fundamental
property of a material. Therefore, when drawing conclusions of a hardness test, you should always
evaluate the quantitative value in relation to: 

 The given load on the indenter

 A specific loading time profile and a specific load duration
 A specific indenter geometry

HOW DO HARDNESS TESTS WORK?

A hardness test is typically performed by pressing a specifically dimensioned and loaded object
(indenter) into the surface of the material you are testing. The hardness is determined by measuring the
depth of indenter penetration or by measuring the size of the impression left by an indenter.

 Hardness tests that measure the depth of indenter penetration include: Rockwell, Instrumented
Indentation Testing, and Ball Indentation Hardness
 Hardness tests that measure the size of the impression left by the indenter include: Vickers,
Knoop, and Brinell

SELECTING THE BEST HARDNESS TEST METHOD

How to select the test method
The hardness test you choose should be determined by the microstructure – e.g. the homogeneity – of
the material you are testing, as well as the type of material, the size of the part and its condition. 

In all hardness tests, the material under the indent should be representative of the whole microstructure
(unless you attempting to ascertain the different constituents in the microstructure). Therefore, if a
microstructure is very coarse and heterogeneous, you need a larger impression than for a homogeneous
material. 

There are four main hardness tests, each with their own set of benefits and requirements. There are
different standards for these tests, which explain the procedures and application of the hardness test in
detail. 

When selecting a hardness test method, important considerations include: 

 The type of material to be hardness tested

 Whether compliance with a standard is required
  The approximate hardness of the material
 The homogeneity/heterogeneity of the material
 The size of the part
 Whether mounting is necessary
 The number of samples to be tested
 The required accuracy of the result

THE FOUR MOST COMMON INDENTATION HARDNESS

TESTS

The Rockwell hardness test

Rockwell is a fast hardness test method developed for production control, with a direct readout, mainly
used for metallic materials. The Rockwell hardness (HR) is calculated by measuring the depth of an indent
after an indenter has been forced into the specimen material at a given load. 

 Generally used for larger sample geometries

 A ‘quick test’ mainly used for metallic materials
 Can be used for advanced tests, such as the Jominy (end quench) test (HRC)

READ MORE ABOUT THE ROCKWELL HARDNESS TEST

The Vickers hardness test

Vickers is a hardness test for all solid materials, including metallic materials. The Vickers Hardness (HV)
is calculated by measuring the diagonal lengths of an indent in the sample material left by introducing a
diamond pyramid indenter with a given load. The diagonals of the indent are measured optically in order
to determine the hardness, using a table or formula.

 Used for hardness testing of all solid materials, including metallic materials
 Suitable for a wide range of applications
 Includes a sub-group of hardness testing of welds

READ MORE ABOUT THE VICKERS HARDNESS TEST

The Knoop hardness test

Knoop (HK) is an alternative to the Vickers test in the micro hardness testing range. It is mainly used to
overcome cracking in brittle materials, as well as to facilitate the hardness testing of thin layers. The
indenter is an asymmetrical pyramidal diamond, and the indent is measured by optically measuring the
long diagonal.
  Used for hard and brittle materials, such as ceramics
 Suitable for small elongated areas, such as coatings

READ MORE ABOUT THE KNOOP HARDNESS TEST

The Brinell hardness test

The Brinell hardness test is used for hardness testing larger samples in materials with a coarse or
inhomogeneous grain structure. The Brinell hardness test (HBW) indentation leaves a relatively large
impression, using a tungsten carbide ball. The size of the indent is read optically. 

 Used for materials with a coarse or inhomogeneous grain structure

 Used for larger samples
 Suitable for forgings and castings where the structural elements are large

READ MORE ABOUT THE BRINELL HARDNESS TEST

HOW TO ENSURE ACCURACY AND REPEATABILITY IN

HARDNESS TESTING
The correct application of hardness testing requires careful preparation and execution. However, once
you have the basics in place, most hardness tests offer good accuracy and repeatability.
Factors that influence hardness testing
A number of factors influence hardness tests results. As a general rule, the lower the load you use in the
hardness test, the more factors that need to be controlled to ensure an accurate conclusion of the
hardness test. 

Here are a few of the most important factors to consider to ensure an accurate conclusion from a
hardness test.

 External factors such as light, dirt, vibrations, temperature, and humidity should be controlled
 The tester and stage should be secured on a solid horizontal table, and the sample should be
clamped or held in a holder or anvil
 The indenter should be perpendicular to the tested surface
 Illumination settings should be constant during the test when using Vickers, Knoop, or Brinell
 The tester should be recalibrated/verified every time you change the indenter or objective lens
SURFACE PREPARATION REQUIREMENTS FOR HARDNESS
TESTING
Before hardness testing of metallic materials or other materials, you must prepare the surface. The
required surface condition depends on the type of test and load used. In general, the quality of surface
preparation has a direct effect on the hardness test result, so you should consider the trade-off between
surface quality and test result variation before deciding on an inferior surface preparation.

Macro hardness testing 

A ground surface is usually sufficient, and sometimes no preparation is required. 

Micro hardness testing

Due to the lower loads used during hardness testing, micro hardness testing requires a polished or
electropolished surface. It is important that the borders/corners of an optically evaluated impression are
clearly visible. This can be performed mechanically, chemically, or electrochemically. It is important
that heating or cold working does not change the surface properties of the specimen.

Deformations
Cutting and grinding may introduce deformations. These must be removed by polishing down to 6.0,
3.0, or 1.0 μm, depending on the hardness test load.

For small loads (less than 300 gf1) the surface needs to be completely free of deformations, and the
specimens require oxide or electrolytic polishing to obtain a completely damage-free surface. You
should also take into account that soft and/or ductile materials (i.e. for HV less than 120-150) are more
sensitive when it comes to introducing preparation artefacts.

In the table below, you can see the surface preparation requirements for the different hardness tests.
DEFINITION OF HARDNESS TESTING LOADS
Officially, hardness testing loads are expressed in Newton (N). However, historically, loads were
expressed in kilogram-force (kgf), gram-force (gf), or pond (p). The correlation between kgf, kp, and N
is: 1.0 kgf = 1,000 gf = 1.0 kp = 9.81 N. 

 The term micro hardness testing is usually used when indentation loads are below or equal to 1
kgf
 The term macro hardness testing is used when loads are higher than 1 kgf

If standards permit, use the highest possible load/force for largest indent to ensure the most accurate
results. 

The loads used by each of the four methods for hardness testing of metallic materials* comply with the
different ISO and ASTM standards. 
 INDENT SPACING
During hardness testing, the indentation will deform the surrounding material and alter its properties. In
order to avoid misinterpretations of the perceived hardness, the standards prescribe a certain distance
between multiple indentations. 

Examples of indent spacing in the Vickers hardness test for metallic materials 

 For steel, copper, and copper alloys: Spacing between indents must be at least three diagonal
widths
 For lead, zinc, aluminum, and tin: Spacing between indents must be at least six diagonal widths

TROUBLESHOOTING FOR HARDNESS TESTS

Problem
It can be difficult to obtain plane-parallel surfaces during preparation for the hardness test. Also,
the indenter should be perpendicular to the test surface. For the Vickers hardness test, the measured
diagonals should not deviate more than 5.0% from each other. For the Knoop hardness test, the two
halves of the long diagonals must not differ by more than 10.0% from each other.

SHOW MORE  
If the surface finish of a specimen is too rough, it might be hard to evaluate the corners of an indent,
especially if automatic equipment is used. Scratches from preparation may cause a misreading of the
indent size when using automatic hardness testing.
SHOW MORE  
If the specimen is not properly cleaned after mechanical preparation and you perform an optical
reading of the hardness test, an automatic reading might result in a misinterpretation of the corners
of the indent.
SHOW MORE  
For a heavily etched sample, it might be difficult to evaluate the corners of an indent, which may
lead to a less accurate conclusion of the hardness test.
SHOW MORE  
The hardness appears greater than expected.
SHOW MORE  

A FULL RANGE OF HARDNESS TESTING MACHINES

HARDNESS TESTING IS KEY IN MOST QUALITY CONTROL PROCEDURES. THAT’S WHY
WE PROVIDE A COMPLETE RANGE OF HARDNESS TESTING EQUIPMENT AND
ACCESSORIES FOR EVERY NEED, FROM SMALL LAB APPLICATIONS TO HEAVY-DUTY
HARDNESS TESTING IN PRODUCTION.

CHECK OUT OUR RANGE OF HARDNESS TESTING EQUIPMENT TO ENSURE YOUR

EQUIPMENT IS UP TO THE TASK.

SEE OUR HARDNESS TESTING EQUIPMENT

DELVE DEEPER INTO HARDNESS TESTING

If you would like to know more about the hardness testing methods for metallic and other
materials, including a full definition of hardness testing, the different applications of hardness
tests and how to prepare for hardness tests, download our resources.

SEE OUR HARDNESS TESTING APPLICATION NOTE

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