Materials 

What is ‘Tensile Testing’?

The ‘tensile’ properties of a material describe its most basic mechanical behaviour – how much does a material stretch when it is pulled and how much of the stretching is permanent? ‘Tensile Testing’ is the process of measuring a material’s tensile properties. 

Why are tensile properties important?

Understanding of tensile properties is vital for any application that uses materials structurally, i.e. to withstand or apply force. The range of uses this covers is enormous. Strong and stiff structures are used in vehicles (cycles, cars, trains, aeroplanes, spacecraft), bridges and buildings, sports equipment and bio-implants (e.g. hip joint replacements). Flexible materials are also used in many of these applications. Thin but robust materials are used in touchscreens. Hard materials are used in machines and robots that process and shape other materials and as durable coatings that improve the performance and lifetime of aerospace and bio-implant components. Elastic materials can be stretched enormously before any permanent change is made and are used in springs and high performance fabrics. And it’s not just how a component is used – many manufacturing processes involve changing a component’s shape or response to applied forces, e.g. extrusion to make tubes, beams and bottles; drawing to make springs or wires; or forging and rolling to shape and harden metals.

To select a sample:

• Click the lower jaw to go to the sample view.
• Open the calliper jaws, drag a sample of choice between the jaw and fully close the jaws around it. In this LITE version you can only select one of the samples)
• Use the Vernier scale to measure the sample width.
• Click the sample held in the callipers to use it in the tensile testing machine
• Or open the callipers, return the sample to its original position and choose another sample. (Only available in the full version)

To set the strain increment:

• Click the Set button (display starts to flash)
• Use the keypad and the Del button to enter the desired Step value
• Click the Set button again (display stops flashing)

To apply strain to samples:

• Set the strain increment value as described above.
• Click the up arrow to increase the applied strain by the Step increment value.
• Click the down arrow to decrease the applied strain by the Step increment value.
• Measure (and record) the applied load (force) using the needles on the Load dial.
• Turn off the strain control unit and click on the lower sample holder to select a new sample.

These instructions can be downloaded below.

Download the file below for the full instructions, including background, relevance, operating instructions and questions.

Structural materials are required to withstand a variety of applied loads in use. Understanding how these materials respond to the applied loads is vital for informed materials selection. Here we investigate how materials behave under tensile loading (loads applied along the length of a material to cause stretching).

The Tensile Test experiment allows a number of mechanical tests to be performed on materials, including:

• Determination of full stress-strain curve to fracture, using either ‘engineering’ or ‘true’ value
• Observation of elastic behaviour and calculation of Young’s modulus
• Observation of the onset of plastic behaviour and permanent deformation
• Calculation of moduli of resilience and toughness
• Calculation of strain energy in a system
• Calculation of work done in deforming a sample

The Tensile Testing experiment can be used for a wide range of investigations.

This downloadable pdf below contains a range of example short and long questions.

We have also provided a spreadsheet file to allow you to enter your SAMPLE WIDTH, STRAIN and APPLIED LOAD data and obtain stress-strain plots. (HINT: to investigate the general form of stress-strain curves with younger students, use a default sample width of, say, 7 mm)

Watch the video and download the file below to learn about the scientific background of Tensile Tests

What is ‘Tensile Testing’?

The ‘tensile’ properties of a material describe its most basic mechanical behaviour – how much does a material stretch when it is pulled and how much of the stretching is permanent? ‘Tensile Testing’ is the process of measuring a material’s tensile properties.

Why are tensile properties important?

Understanding of tensile properties is vital for any application that uses materials structurally, i.e. to withstand or apply force. The range of uses this covers is enormous. Strong and stiff structures are used in vehicles (cycles, cars, trains, aeroplanes, spacecraft), bridges and buildings, sports equipment and bio-implants (e.g. hip joint replacements). Flexible materials are also used in many of these applications. Thin but robust materials are used in touchscreens. Hard materials are used in machines and robots that process and shape other materials and as durable coatings that improve the performance and lifetime of aerospace and bio-implant components. Elastic materials can be stretched enormously before any permanent change is made and are used in springs and high performance fabrics. And it’s not just how a component is used – many manufacturing processes involve changing a component’s shape or response to applied forces, e.g. extrusion to make tubes, beams and bottles; drawing to make springs or wires; or forging and rolling to shape and harden metals.

Download the quick guide using the link below (requires log in) or follow these instructions:

To select a sample:

• Click the lower jaw to go to the sample view.
• Open the calliper jaws, drag a sample of choice between the jaw and fully close the jaws around it.
• Use the Vernier scale to measure the sample width.
• Click the sample held in the callipers to use it in the tensile testing machine
• Or open the callipers, return the sample to its original position and choose another sample.

To set the strain increment:

• Click the Set button (display starts to flash)
• Use the keypad and the Del button to enter the desired Step value
• Click the Set button again (display stops flashing)

To apply strain to samples:

• Set the strain increment value as described above.
• Click the up arrow to increase the applied strain by the Step increment value.
• Click the down arrow to decrease the applied strain by the Step increment value.
• Measure (and record) the applied load (force) using the needles on the Load dial.
• Turn off the strain control unit and click on the lower sample holder to select a new sample.

Download the file below to see the full operating instructions (requires log in).

Structural materials are required to withstand a variety of applied loads in use. Understanding how these materials respond to the applied loads is vital for informed materials selection. Here we investigate how materials behave under tensile loading (loads applied along the length of a material to cause stretching).

The Tensile Test experiment allows a number of mechanical tests to be performed on materials, including:

• Determination of full stress-strain curve to fracture, using either ‘engineering’ or ‘true’ value
• Observation of elastic behaviour and calculation of Young’s modulus
• Observation of the onset of plastic behaviour and permanent deformation
• Calculation of moduli of resilience and toughness
• Calculation of strain energy in a system
• Calculation of work done in deforming a sample

The Tensile Testing experiment can be used for a wide range of investigations.

This downloadable pdf below contains a range of example short and long questions (requires log in).

We have also provided a spreadsheet file (requires log in) to allow you to enter your SAMPLE WIDTH, STRAIN and APPLIED LOAD data and obtain stress-strain plots. (HINT: to investigate the general form of stress-strain curves with younger students, use a default sample width of, say, 7 mm)

Watch the video above and download the file below (requires log in) to learn about the scientific background of Tensile Tests