ASTM materials and coatings · Lesson 1 of 4

ASTM materials and coatings: principles and terminology

How an ASTM designation is built, what its year and suffix tell you, how a specification differs from a practice and a test method, and why a flashing reference must name the standard and its edition.

You will be able to: Read an ASTM designation (letter, number, year, suffix and metric companion), name the six main types of ASTM document, and say what this module will and will not reproduce from a standard.

12 min · 10 slides · 10 questions

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Slide 1 of 10

The letter says the subject

An ASTM designation starts with a letter that says what the standard covers.

The letter A marks ferrous metals and products.

The letter B marks nonferrous metals and products.

C is cementitious, ceramic, concrete and masonry; D miscellaneous materials; E miscellaneous subjects; F end-use materials.

The letter G marks corrosion, deterioration, weathering and durability.

Sources

Form and Style for ASTM Standards (designation letters, year suffixes, combined standards, references) - ASTM International

Glossary

Designation: The code ASTM gives a standard: a letter for the subject, a sequence number, and a hyphen followed by the last two digits of the year, such as A653/A653M-25a.
Combined standard: An ASTM standard that holds inch-pound and SI units in one document, each regarded separately as standard, written with an M on the end, as in A653/A653M.
Specification (ASTM): A statement of the requirements a material, product, system or service must meet; ASTM adds that it identifies the test methods that check each requirement.
Test method (ASTM): A fixed procedure that yields a test result.
Practice (ASTM): Instructions for carrying out an operation; unlike a test method, it gives no test result.