The load dependence of the micro-hardness of the blast furnace slag

Deposits of old blast-furnace slag are an environmental problem. The slag’s hardness is an important for calculation of the energy cost for crushing and grinding process. Due to its porosity, measurement of the (macro) hardness is. To adapt the dimensions of the indentations to the character of the slag, it is necessary to apply loads in the range of micro-hardness. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the influence of load on the micro-hardness - the Indentation Size Effect (ISE) using Meyer’s, Hays-Kendall and PSR methods. ISE for all samples is “normal”, the slag’s basicity affects micro-hardness and ISE.