Hardness is a physical property of materials that basically consists of the firm union of the molecules that make it up, thus preventing any other object or substance from splitting it, penetrating it, or compromising it. Hardness is used as a magnitude in various industrial areas where it is required to measure the bearing capacity or weight resistance of various materials for optimal use. An example of these industries are those that are responsible for manufacturing basic elements for the construction of a building or structure, metallurgy, carpentry, among others in which it is vital to know what their composition is, how they could be joined with other materials to create structures solid.
In the scientific field of industrial engineering, hardness is applied to various areas, mainly those that are responsible for the extraction and study of the components of the earth, specifically we refer to mineralogy and geology.
In mineralogy, a measurement scale of 1 to 10 is used, in which one is the easiest mineral to scratch and 10 the one that is impossible to break with another material than the same. The number 1 is talc, we know it in everyday life as a silky powder that in another presentation is just as grainy and easy to break and end its durability. This is followed by gypsum, calcite, fluorite, apatite, feldspar, quartz, corundum, finally diamond. This scale is used not only to define the hardness of these elements, but also to compare with other compounds of nature that are similar and these are assigned a rung between the scale.
