Investigating the effect of miniaturization on the microtensile properties of brass (CuZn30)

As everyday equipment becomes smaller and smaller, it is of increasing importance that the manufacturing processes used for metals are capable of producing parts of appropriate sizes. Currently, manufacturing processes assume macromaterial properties can be applied for microscale production, but is this a valid assumption? This paper investigates the accuracy of applying macroscale tensile properties in microscale applications. In order to test the soundness of this supposition, tensile tests were performed on both macroscale and microscale brass specimens, and the resulting calculated material properties, strain hardening exponent (n) and strength coefficient (K), were compared. Specimens were heat treated to various temperatures before tensile tests were performed, and the strength coefficient and strain hardening exponents of micro and macro tensile specimens were compared. Additionally, it is investigated whether average grain size correlates to material properties. The results showed that in general it is not accurate to apply macroscale tensile properties to microscale applications. However, at mesocale grain sizes, (12-20 microns), the strain hardening exponent values were similar for both macro and microscale specimens. Copyright © 2011 by ASME.