A tensile test, also known as a tension test, is one of the most fundamental and common types of mechanical testing. A tensile test applies tensile (pulling) force to a material and measures the specimen's response to the stress. By doing this, tensile tests determine how strong a material is and how much it can elongate. Tensile tests are typically conducted on electromechanical or universal testing instruments, are simple to perform, and are fully standardized.
Methods
One of the most important properties we can determine about a material is its ultimate tensile strength (UTS). This is the maximum stress that a specimen sustains during the test. The UTS may or may not equate to the specimen's strength at break, depending on whether the material is brittle, ductile, or exhibits properties of both. Sometimes a material may be ductile when tested in a lab, but, when placed in service and exposed to extreme cold temperatures, it may transition to brittle behavior.
Our experts conduct Tensile Testing according following standards:
Though there are many ASTM and ISO standards used for tensile testing, these are some of the most common:
- ASTM D638 - Tensile Testing of Plastics
- ISO 527-2 - Tensile Testing of Plastics
- ASTM D412 - Tensile Testing of Elastomers
- ISO 37 - Tensile Testing of Elastomers
- ASTM E8/E8M - Tensile Testing of Metallic Materials
- ISO 6892 - Tensile Testing of Metallic Materials