Failure Investigations

   

Overview

The Institute has long-time experience in failure analysis and material investigation of metallic components from industrial clients, mainly mechanical engineering and automotive suppliers.

Available investigation methods:

• Scanning electron microscop, SEM, evaluation of fracture surfaces,
  • determination of failure origins and mechanisms and microstructural characterization
• Energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, EDX, to identify impurities, precipitations, inclusions and foreign particles.
• Light-optical metallographic characterization of materials
  • purity, microstructure, thermal treatment, coatings
• Image analysis on light-optical and SEM images
  • determination of phase fractions, porosities, density gradients in sinter materials, size and shape of microstructural features
• Micro-hardness measurement, for example to determine the case-hardening depth
• Evaluation of corrosive attacks using SEM and metallography
• Mechanical testing
  • tensile properties, hardness, impact energy, axial bending, torsion and rolling contact fatigue
• Spectroscopic analysis of material compositions
• Analysis of phase formation and residual stresses by X-ray diffraction
• Determination of macro-residual stresses by sectioning
• Ultrasonic measurement of elastic properties
• Surface roughness measurement
• Contourographic measurement, for example of radii and surface profiles