Mechanical Testing

Scratch Testing

Scratch testing is often performed to determine the cohesive and adhesive properties of a material. The method involves a hard tip (often diamond) being drawn across the surface of a material with an applied variable load, forming a scratch. The method is commonly used as quality control of coatings but may also be used to estimate bulk materials resistance to abrasion/wear. After a scratch test, the crack is typically studied using Electron microscopy and/or Optical profilometry.

Typical applications:

• Quality control of coatings or bulk materials
• Determination of abrasive and adhesive properties