Materials Analysis & Testing Laboratories

InnoTech Alberta has an entire lab with equipment dedicated to metallography. We have high precision saws with diamond blades to section hard materials and cut samples down to take a look at microstructure; mounting presses. The lab is also able to perform chemical and elector-chemical etching.

We can also perform automated, cold mount, and hand polishing services for items that will not fit into our automated processes. The lab specialized in polishing hard media such as tungsten carbide, diamond overlays, and chrome that very few labs will work with as it takes highly-skilled staff to conduct these services.

We have 4 types of microscopes in our lab. A Keyence 3S microscope with up to 5000x magnification that provides a high resolution to look at the microstructure for a sample. It can take 3D and 2D measurements and a high depth of field for an in-depth analysis.

The microscopy room has a digital microscope with a large depth of field and multiple lenses that can capture high resolution macrographs at up to 20x magnification. To produce macrographs on large samples and samples that can’t be mounted, we have handheld microscopes for more flexibility. Our staff also have access to stereoscopes used to check the microstructure of samples during polishing stages.

The true showcase of our microscopy capabilities is our scanning electron microscope. It has extremely high resolution so our staff can study nano particles and analyze fractures on the surface of a sample.

We have the capability and equipment to conduct several hardness tests:

• Rockwell hardness testing: Testing the indentations left by a force or load on metals
• Knoop hardness testing: A microhardness test usually performed on coatings and overlays
• Vickers hardness testing: A microhardness test using lighter loads with a diamond indenter