Material Testing and Analysis

State of the Art Testing and Analysis

As an advanced material development company, it’s critical to have state of the art tools available for testing and analysis. Two examples are the JEOM SEM and for dynamic material testing, REL uses Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) equipment, which is built in-house.

A typical project includes mechanical testing, like a 3 point bend or tensile testing as shown to the right.

A coated product could be sectioned and assessed to determine the uniformity and the material content along the coated surface, as shown below.

The JEOL JSM-820 scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a research grade tungsten source scanning electron microscope that is coupled with a digital imaging system and a Beryllium window energy dispersive x-ray spectrometer (EDS). It provides some convenient and unique ways to achieve the desired images with the optimized combination of the resolution, the image quality and the depth of field. The 4Pi microanalysis package associated with the system can be easily used to perform surface morphology and composition studies on a wide variety of organic and inorganic materials. Images can be recorded with digital imaging system with subsequent output to a high resolution photo printer or various picture formats. Imaging modes of JEOL JSM-820 include secondary electrons, backscattered electrons and X-rays.

Under ideal conditions, the resolution in secondary electron imaging mode is less than 5nm. Surface structures of a wide variety of materials include both morphology and composition.In addition to internal R&D, REL uses this equipment to solve customer problems. Recently, a customer was having problems with the durability of laser marking. REL was able to replicate the process and the environmental conditions, and make accurate before & after assessments using these lab tools. REL’s study led to a modified laser processing method that proved to be more durable.

Call REL today for material testing and metallurgical analysis needs.