6. Mechanical performance of steels. Practical significance

The mechanical properties of steels are measured by means of various tests (tensile, impact fracture, fracture mechanics, fatigue, etc.) which provide information on the levels reached by the characteristics of :

• static resistance ;

• ductility ;

• shock resistance (resilience) ;

• tenacity ;

• endurance.

Without dwelling on test methods, we will focus in this section on the practical significance of the results obtained, and conclude with a few remarks on the simple hardness test.