(ASTM: West Conshohocken, PA) — A recent revision to the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) international standard ASTM E384-10e1—“Standard Test Method for Knoop and Vickers Hardness of Materials,” expands the range of its coverage. The standard is under the jurisdiction of subcommittee E04.05 on microindentation hardness testing, part of ASTM international committee E04 on metallography.

The revision incorporates ASTM E92-82(2003)e2—“Standard Test Method for Vickers Hardness of Metallic Materials,” into ASTM E384. The ASTM E92 standard is under the jurisdiction of ASTM international committee E28 on mechanical testing.

According to Edward Tobolski, chairman of both committee E28 and subcommittee E04.05, in the past, hardness testers normally were designed to perform either micro (E384) or macro (E92) hardness tests. The main difference between the two is the test forces that are used; micro is one kilogram and lower, and macro is one kilogram and higher. However, newer testing equipment frequently has the capability of covering both force ranges.

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