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Year 8 - Design and technology

Testing working properties of materials

Material testing

Unit Summary

This unit will develop pupils' knowledge of the physical and working properties of materials. They will compare material properties through testing, with a focus on metals. The environmental and social impact of materials will also be introduced.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to test the working properties of materials.

Key Notes

  • Hardness is a material's ability to resist scratching and indentation.
  • Vickers and Brinell are industrial hardness tests.
  • The Vickers and Brinell tests measure hardness by pressing an indenter into the material and observing the mark left.
  • A hardness test can be simulated in a workshop using a centre punch and a hammer.
  • Hardness can be tested by scratching the surface of a material with a scribe.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • hardness: ability to resist scratching and indentation
  • indenter: a tool or object pressed into a material's surface during a hardness test
  • Vickers: an industrial hardness test that uses a diamond-shaped pyramid indenter
  • Brinell: an industrial hardness test that uses a steel or tungsten carbide ball indenter

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Hardness testing is destructive.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain the lesson in two key points.

Hardness is a material's ability to resist scratching and indentation. Vickers and Brinell are industrial hardness tests.

2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'hardness'

ability to resist scratching and indentation.

3. Correct this common mistake.

Mistake: Hardness testing is destructive. Correction: Although an indentation is left in the test piece, hardness testing is less destructive than many other working property tests, such as tensile testing.

More Lessons In This Unit

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