Mechanical properties of stainless steel by using high temperature microhardness tester

In the aeronautical field, materials are used in severe environmental conditions (temperature, atmosphere), particularly for engine applications. In order to qualify new alloys compositions, ONERA is developing micromechanical characterization means to carry out indentation tests from room temperature up to 700 °C under conditions close to operating conditions. This method presents the interest of performing tests faster than classical mechanical tests like tensile or bending tests under severe conditions and with small amounts of materials. In order to carry out screening tests, a 316L stainless steel is studied and the evolution of hot Vickers hardness properties and yield stress versus temperature are presented. By increasing the applied load from 0.1 to 20 N, we show that we can neglect surface microstructural changes or possible contamination of the sample surface by oxidation. We show that from 0.5 N, the hardness measurement is independent of load on 316L stainless steel. By using Tabor’s law to express the mechanical resistance, we show that the hardness decreases by 50% when the test temperature goes from 20 to 700 °C, which is close to the supplier’s values. A discussion on the use of indentation to determine mechanical resistance and the limitations of this technique is presented. In perspective, these measurements could be carried out at 1000 °C and on many different materials such as layers, coatings, composite materials, brazing cords or additive manufacturing materials.