Diamond is characterized by its hardness.
Hardness is the quality of hard . The term comes from the Latin duritĭa. For example: "The hardness of this mattress is quite annoying," "Leather pants have a very particular hardness that makes them somewhat uncomfortable."
Hardness is also a callus or tumor that can appear in different parts of the body: "My elbows have all kinds of hardness even though I try to rub them when I shower" , "I have detected a hardness on my leg that worries me" , "When performing the Body examination should not show any hardness .
In the same way, we must not forget that there is what is known as a hard belly . This is an expression that is used in the field of biology to refer to the difficulty that a being has in carrying out what would be fecal evacuation.
Hardness in geology
For geology , hardness is the resistance that a mineral offers when scratched by another. It is, therefore, a mechanical property of minerals. Hardness is also spoken of with respect to the penetrability of a surface to refer to the possibility of making marks with a point.
In this sense we have to make it clear that throughout history various classifications of minerals have been established and fundamentally based on the aforementioned hardness. Hence we find, for example, the well-known Rosiwal scale , which receives its name from the Austrian geologist after whom it is named: August Karl Rosiwal .
In the period between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, he undertook the creation of that which is based on absolute values and which determines that talc is found in hardness level 1 , gypsum in 2 , and gypsum in 3. calcite...The maximum degree of hardness, 10 , falls on the diamond.
Knowing the hardness of a material helps to know its resistance.
The Mohs scale
Likewise, another of the most relevant scales in this sense is the Mohs scale , created in 1825 by the German Friedich Mohs and which is based on a list of ten minerals that are ordered from lowest to highest hardness.
With it, it is also made clear that each of them can be scratched by minerals that have a number equal to or greater than its own, while it can scratch those that are one point lower.
Hardness in penetration tests
The metalworking industry uses a durometer to measure hardness during penetration testing. These tests consist of the use of different types of tips and the application of various loads to analyze the marks made. From these tests, different scales are established.
Determining the hardness of a steel , for example, allows establishing the correlation between hardness and mechanical resistance. There are several machines that allow these measurements to be carried out and that are of great importance in industrial activity.
Finally, in a symbolic or metaphorical sense, the notion of toughness is used to refer to something difficult or complex : "The rally is a very tough test for the competitors," "The toughness of the challenge is undeniable."