The charpy test determines?

The charpy test is used to determine amount of energy a material absorbs at fracture.

Explanation:

Charpy Impact test was developed by a French scientist to determine the amount of energy a material absorbs at fracture hence giving the toughness of the material. It is widely used in industrial applications since it is easy to perform and does not requires sophisticated equipment to perform.

The test is performed when a swinging pendulum of known weight is dropped from a known height and is made to strike the metal specimen which is notched. The notch in the sample affects the results of the test hence the notch should be standardized while performing the test. The qualitative results obtained can also be used to compare ductility of different materials.