Materials · Materials Characterization
Metallography: Polish, Etch, and Examine Metals
Intermediate 3 weeks 15-20 hours
Grind, polish, and etch metal samples to a mirror finish, then photograph their grain structure under a microscope and measure grain size.
Major
Materials
Focus area
Materials Characterization
Total hours
15-20 hours
What you'll need
- wet dry sandpaper assortment 240 to 3000 grit
- metal polishing compound
- USB digital microscope 1000x
- copper brass and steel sample pieces
- glass plate for polishing
- nitrile gloves and safety glasses
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Steps
- Cut small flat samples of copper, brass, and steel.
- Grind each sample through the sandpaper grits from coarse to fine.
- Polish to a mirror finish with the polishing compound.
- Etch the samples under supervision using an etchant your instructor approves.
- Photograph grain structure and measure grain size with the line intercept method.
- Compare microstructures and document them for your portfolio.
What to photograph for your portfolio
- Polished mirror finish
- grain structure photos
- before and after etching
- grain size measurement
Resume bullet starters
Copy one, then swap in your own numbers.
Prepared [X] metal samples to a mirror finish using standard metallographic grinding and polishing
Measured average grain size of [X] and compared microstructure across copper, brass, and steel
Quantified results with [insert your result, such as hardness change, strength, efficiency, or error vs published values] and summarized findings in a technical report
Skills you'll show off
Metallographysample preparationmicroscopygrain size analysistechnical documentation