Lab: Hardness Testing Report.

Name: KAVENESH A/L GUNASEGARAN (015619)

QHT1
Charpy Test samples: Effect of carbon content and heat treatment.
Material & Treatment

HV20

Normalised 0.1% carbon

steel
Normalised 0.4% carbon
steel
Quenched 0.4% carbon
steel
Quenched and tempered
0.4% carbon steel

175
126
224
182

Table 1
Jominy Test bars: Effect of cooling rates.
Vickers Hardness results
Jominy end
quench test
piece
Fe- 0.4C

HV20 as a function of distance from the quenched end

5mm

20mm

40mm

60mm

80mm

476

541

502

415

563

345

357

310

353

325

(No.3)
Fe- 0.4C- 1.0Cr1.5Ni- 0.3Mo
(No.14)
Table 2

Rolled Al samples: Effects of cold working and heat treatement.

Material & Treatment

HV5

As received aluminium
alloy
10% Cold rolled aluminium
alloy
20% Cold rolled aluminium
alloy
40% Cold rolled aluminium
alloy
60% Cold rolled aluminium
alloy
75% Cold rolled aluminium
alloy
Annealed aluminium alloy

49
50.5
52.5
53.5
63.5
61.0
132.5

Table 3

QHT2
By referring to Table 1, it can be said that hardness of carbon steel decreases as the
percentage of carbon content increases. From Table 1, the harness number for
Normalised 0.1% carbon steel is 175, while the hardness number of Normalised
0.4% carbon steel is only 126. Thus, this shows that the hardness of carbon steel is
inversely proportional to percentage of carbon content. However, for Quenched
0.4% carbon steel, it poses a much greater hardness number, that is 224, compare
to Normalised 0.4% carbon steel. Therefore, it can be said that quenching increases
the hardness of carbon steel. Lastly, for Quenched and Tempered 0.4% carbon steel,
the hardness number is only 182 which is slightly lower than Quenched 0.4% carbon
steel. This proves that tempering the quenched material will cause decrease in
hardness.

QHT3

Vickers Hardness Number againts Distance

600
500
400
no.3

Vickers Hardness Value (kgf mm^-2)

Polynomial (no.3)

300

no.14
Polynomial (no.14)

200
100
0

20

40

60

80 100

Distance (mm)

Figure 1
Based on figure 1, for Fe-0.4C, it can be observed that there is an increase in Vickers
hardness value. As the distance increases, there is a decrease in the hardness and it
followed by an increase at the end. On the other hand, for the Fe-0.4C -1.0Cr -1.5Ni
-0.3Mo, the occurrence is quite similar to Fe-0.4C, except there is slight decrease in
hardness as the distance passes 80mm. From the graph plotted, it may seem that
Fe-0.4C has a higher Vickers hardness value than Fe-0.4C -1.0Cr -1.5Ni -0.3Mo and
the hardness increases as distance increases. However, based on the data
collected, it can be said that the result is invalid due to various types of error. In
actual fact, the hardness of both materials should decrease gradually as distance
from the quenched end gets further. This is mainly because the part of the bar that
is quenched is forced to undergo fast cooling. In other words, as the bars undergo
fast cooling, the carbon compound within the bar cannot diffuse fast enough. As a
result, the carbon compound gets trapped in structure and this causes the structure
within the bar to be distorted. This makes it very difficult for dislocation to occur and
indirectly increases the hardness of the bar. Thus, as distance from the quenched
end increases, the rate of cooling decreases. Therefore, a slower rate of cooling will
enable the proper crystallization to occur. This makes the opposite to be softer and

have lower hardness. So, the graph supposed to consist decreasing hardness with
increasing distance from the quenched end.
Besides that, Fe-0.4C -1.0Cr -1.5Ni -0.3Mo is supposed to have a higher hardness
compare to Fe-0.4C. This is mainly because the Fe-0.4C -1.0Cr -1.5Ni -0.3Mo consist
of different composition of material compare to Fe-0.4C. The Fe-0.4C -1.0Cr -1.5Ni
-0.3Mo consist of Iron, 0.4% Carbon, 1.5% Nickle, 1% Chromium, 0.3% Molybdenum
while Fe-0.4C only consist of 0.4% Carbon and Iron. The higher the composition of
foreign element in a mixture, the harder the misalignment of atomic layer, which
results in higher value of hardness.

QHT4
By referring to Table 3, it can be clearly seen that as the percentage cold work
increases, the hardness number of alumunium alloy also increases. This occurs
because cold work is a process of strengthening of metal by plastic deformation at
room temperature. Thus, as the percentage of cold work increases, this causes
dislocation of atoms to occur within the crystal structure of the material, causing
the hardness number to increase. However, annealing is a process used to reduce
the effects of cold work by heating at very high temperature. As aluminium is
undergoing annealing, the percentage cold work decreases. Thus, the hardness also
supposed to decrease. However, due to various error, the experimental result for
Annealed aluminium alloy may vary.

QHT5
Material &
Treatment
As received
aluminium
alloy
10% Cold
rolled
aluminium
alloy
20% Cold
rolled
aluminium
alloy
40% Cold
rolled
aluminium
alloy

HV5
(kgf/m

HV
(kg/m

m2 )

m2 )

t
to

ln T

ln f

49

2403.5

1.0

801.2

undefine
d

6.69

50.5

2477.0

0.90

0.1054

825.7

-2.25

6.72

52.5

2575.2

0.80

0.2231

858.4

-1.50

6.76

53.5

2624.2

0.60

0.5108

874.7

-0.672

6.77

60% Cold
rolled
aluminium
alloy
75% Cold
rolled
aluminium
alloy

63.5

3114.7

0.40

0.9163

1038.2

-0.087

6.95

61.0

2992.1

0.25

1.3863

997.4

0.327

6.91

Table 4

Equation 1:
Where;

f = o

f = True flow stress

Equation 2:

= True strain

H v =3 f

Where;

Flow stress

Equation 8:
Where;

T =ln

t
to

T = True rolling strain

H v = Vickers Hardness Value

Flow stress againts Rolling strain

(logarithmic scale)
7
6.95
6.9

f(x) = 0.09x + 6.89

true stress

6.85

Linear (true stress)

6.8

Flow stress (MPa)

6.75
6.7
6.65
-2.5

-2

-1.5

-1

-0.5

6.6

0.5

true strain

Figure 2

From Equation 1,

f = o

Can be rearranged into,

Log

= log

+ n log

which is very similar to

Therefore, it can be said that gradient =

Y= mX + c

Based on the equation of straight line obtained in figure 2, the gradient of the line is
0.0856. The gradient of the equation is n. Therefore, it can be concluded that the
value of n is 0.0856.