Dynamic indentation hardness of typical materials

A dynamic indentation hardness measuring system was established successfully by loading a single compressive pulse on the diamond Vickers indenter and examining the dynamic indentation size and dynamic load value. The dynamic hardness of several typical materials such as 2A12 aluminum alloy, 45steel, AZ31 magnesium alloy and AD95 alumina was tested with such dynamic hardness testing system. The results show that the dynamic hardness is higher than static hardness of all the materials used in the current investigation, i.e., the materials have a higher deformation resistance during dynamic indentation. For metallic materials, the increment of hardness under dynamic conditions is strongly dependent on the crystal structure, and can reflect the ability of strain rate strengthening of materials. For the ceramic, AD95 alumina, the greater increase of dynamic hardness can be attributed to the inertial confinement around the indentation, which consequently inhibits the nucleation and growth of cracks. The dynamic hardness can efficiently characterize the dynamic mechanical properties of materials.