Observing Material Strength at High Temperatures on the UMT

Enhanced efficiency of engines and gas turbines can be ensured with operation at higher temperatures. Materials that maintain their strength at high-temperatures are required for certain applications, in addition to corrosion resistance and/or wear-resistance. These applications include steam turbines, hot working of metals, petrochemical processing, and catalytic processing to eliminate harmful greenhouse gases. Therefore, it is vital to compare materials under high-temperature working conditions.

Why Hot Hardness?

The answer to this question is simple: a hardness test can be easily carried out in a fast and economical manner. Despite the fact that tensile testing is the conventional method used to assess strengths of materials at higher temperatures, these tests require specially designed equipment and specialized samples. On the contrary, carrying out a hardness test enables strength-based comparisons of materials using simplified sample shapes such as rods or flats.

The UMT has different types of indenters including a wide range of force sensors, and can carry out a wide range of material comparison and screening tests under temperatures ranging from room temperature to 1000°C (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Hardness and wear testing can be conducted on the same sample. Shown: UMT 1000°C rotary chamber.

Figure 2. Comparison of hardness measured at elevated temperatures for three different alloys using the HBB test method.

The tests can be conducted on a variety of materials such as plastics, soft metals, and super-alloys. Users can also carry out higher temperature wear tests on the same samples (Figure 2).

This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by Bruker Nano Surfaces.

For more information on this source, please visit Bruker Nano Surfaces.