Research and Development of Metrological Assurance Elements for Leeb Hardness Measurements

This article is devoted to contemporary topics of ensuring the uniformity of Leeb hardness measurements. The analysis of the physical principles of the Leeb hardness test is carried out, and the influence of the measuring transducer parameters on the measurement results is investigated. A four-level structure of the calibration hierarchy for the Leeb hardness scales is proposed, which ensures metrological traceability of hardness scales from the calibration reference machines (CRMs) to measuring instruments. A list of requirements for the 2nd grade CRM and the 2nd grade Leeb reference test blocks are formulated in accordance with the proposed calibration hierarchy draft and their values are calculated. A prototype was developed and a model of the 2nd grade Leeb hardness CRM and a set of Leeb reference test blocks were manufactured, as well as the compliance of their metrological characteristics with the requirements of the proposed calibration hierarchy draft and international standards was confirmed. The results of this work allow us to ensure the uniformity and reliability of the Leeb hardness measurements.

Analysis of the influence of surface roughness of various types of wood on the results of their hardness measured by the Leeb method

Determining the hardness in the Leeb scale consists in measuring the velocity of the impact mass before and after hitting the sample. The result is the speed of the impactor shall after the rebound divided by the speed before the rebound (multiplied by 1000). The measured hardness ranges from 0 to 1000 and is largely dependent on the Young's modulus of elasticity. The article presents the Leeb hardness measurement tests of six various species of wood. The samples were machining before testing in such a way that there were places with different surface roughness on its surface. The research showed the differentiation of the hardness test results for the same tree species depending on the roughness of the surface

A pilot study investigating the rapid estimation of intact dry density of chalk using low impact energy hardness measurements taken with an Equotip Leeb hardness tester

Intact dry density (IDD) is a key parameter for characterising the rock mass behaviour of chalk and is often the main classification property reported for engineering design. The role of IDD in coastal chalk settings has been discussed in literature as an important rock control for coastal cliff recession behaviour. This study demonstrates a tool that can reliably estimate the IDD of chalk samples. Originally developed for testing sheet steel materials, the Equotip has been shown to be adaptable for geological applications and the results of this study show that the Equotip can be used to derive a surface hardness value of dry chalk samples that has a positive correlation with IDD. Furthermore, the results show that the device is sensitive to the anisotropy of chalk and that testing undertaken in the diametral orientation give more accurate correlations. The results of this study also show that the Equotip is sensitive to environmental setting and the effects of weathering, giving a separate correlation for samples collected along the Sussex coastline to those obtained inland. A statistical assessment of the results shows that a characteristic hardness within an acceptable margin of error can be achieved from an optimal number of single impacts.

Metrological researches of national primary standard machine for Leeb hardness scales

The paper describes the study of metrological characteristics of the National primary standard machine for Leeb hardness scales. The data on the contribution of various values to the extended uncertainty of hardness measurements are presented.

National primary standard machine of Shore D hardness scale for metals and Leeb hardness scales

The article presents the results of studies to improve the National primary standard machine for hardness of metals on the shore D scale GET 161-2001, which were performed in FSUE “VNIIFTRI” from 2016 to 2018 in accordance with the technical task of Rosstandart.The improvement was carried out in order to ensure the uniformity of hardness measurements on the Leeb scales. The created new parts of the primary standard machine, which are settings for reproducing hardness numbers on the Leeb scales, are considered. Metrological characteristics of the upgraded and adopted National primary standard machine (GET 161-2019) were investigated, the budget of measurement uncertainty was calculated for reproducing hardness numbers on the Leeb scales.