Advanced knowledge management in practical materialography - status quo and future concepts
Metallography, or materialography in general, requires not only theoretical knowledge, but also practical skills and a deep understanding of the complex interrelationships in the microscopic examination of materials. Metallographers have a wide range of skills that enable them to prepare samples precisely, carry out microscopic examinations and achieve meaningful results. Years of practical experience are often the key to successful and reproducible sample preparation and microstructure interpretation. These empirical values cannot be found in any textbooks and preparation routines are therefore often forgotten and may have to be worked out again elsewhere.
It has been 160 years since Henry Clifton Sorby published the first metallographic work on the microscopic microstructure of technical iron. Since then, there have been many pioneers worldwide who have decisively advanced the field of metallography. One of these pioneers is Günter Petzow, who has influenced and actively shaped the exchange of experience in metallography since the 1960s like no other, particularly in Germany. He is the founder of the journal “Practical Metallography", the technical committee “Materialography” of the German Materials Society (DGM) and the metallography conferences in Germany as well as the author of the standard work "Metallographic Etching". With that, he wanted to promote this practical exchange of experience and preserve metallographic knowledge. The scope of metallography has constantly expanded to new materials, wider scales and new techniques but the information available to metallographers has also improved. In the presentation, we will discuss the status quo of this practical knowledge management and ideas and concepts for the further developments using the example of the activities involving the DGM technical committee “Materialography”, the journal “Practical Metallography” and the new edition of Petzow’s etching book. The presentation will focus in particular on the combination of print formats and digital media.