Research On Tensile Testing of Materials

RESEARCH ON TENSILE TESTING OF MATERIALS
University of Lagos, Akoka

Tensile Testing of Materials (Mild Steel)
Dukor Kenechi Franklin
Mechanical Engineering
120404036
Author Note
The research on tensile testing of materials was performed on the June 13 2014 by
Dukor Kenechi Franklin and other members of Group 6. The research was carried
out at the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi, Lagos. Nigeria.
This research project wouldnt be a success without the help of the tensile testing
manager, Engineer Ojo.
Phone number(s): +2348031157806, +2348084717793.
E-mail: kennydukor@gmail.com, 120404036@students.unilag.edu.ng
Dukor Kenechi Franklin, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 120404036, kennydukor@gmail.com, Group 6.

1

TABLE OF CONTENT
Abstract
Nomenclature
Introduction
Literature Review
Research Design
12
Industrial Application of Tensile Testing
18
Conclusion
23
Acknowledgment
24
Reference
24

2

I.
Abstract
The research was performed to study the tensile strength of materials. The material used for the test was mild steel.
The material was subjected to tensile force. Due to the increasing tensile load, the specimen is continuously
stretched until rupture occurred on the material.
Graph and values were obtained from the test and compared with standard value of young modulus, Yield strength,
etc and it was discovered that the mild steel material obeys Hookes law of elasticity

3

II.
Nomenclature
(Nomenclature entries should have the units identified)
engineering stress
engineering strain
external axial tensile load
original cross-sectional area of the specimen
original length of the specimen
final length of the specimen

4

III.
Introduction
Tensile testing, also known as tension testing, is a fundamental material science test in which a sample is
subjected to a controlled tension until failure.
These results from the test are commonly used to select a material for an application, for quality control, and to
predict how a material will react under other type of forces.
Properties are that are directly measured via a tensile test are ultimate tensile strength, maximum elongation and
reduction in area.
From these measurements the following properties can also be determined. Youngs modulus, Poissons ratio,
yield strength and strain hardening characteristics
Uniaxial tensile testing is the most commonly used for obtaining the mechanical characteristics of isotropic
materials. For anisotropic materials such as composite materials and textiles, biaxial tensile testing is required
Typical applications of tensile testing are highlighted in the following sections on:
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
Aerospace Industry
Automotive Industry
Beverage Industry
Construction Industry
Electrical and Electronics Industry
Medical Device Industry
Packaging Industry
Paper and Board Industry
IV.
Literature Review
A. TENSILE TESTING

5

Uniaxial tensile test is known as a basic and universal engineering test to achieve material parameters such as
ultimate strength, yield strength, % elongation, % area of reduction and Young's modulus. These important
parameters obtained from the standard tensile testing are useful for the selection of engineering materials for any
applications required.
The tensile testing is carried out by applying longitudinal or axial load at a specific extension rate to a standard
tensile specimen with known dimensions (gauge length and cross sectional area perpendicular to the load direction)
till failure. The applied tensile load and extension are recorded during the test for the calculation of stress and strain.
A range of universal standards provided by Professional societies such as American Society of Testing and Materials
(ASTM), British standard, JIS standard and DIN standard provides testing are selected based on preferential uses.
Each standard may contain a variety of test standards suitable for different materials, dimensions and fabrication
history. For instance, ASTM E8: is a standard test method for tension testing of metallic materials and ASTM B557
is standard test methods of tension testing wrought and cast aluminum and magnesium alloy products.
B. STANDARDS IN TENSILE TESTING

6
Figure 1: Standard tensile specimens

A standard specimen is prepared in a round or a square section along the gauge length as shown in figures 1 a)
and b) respectively, depending on the standard used. Both ends of the specimens should have sufficient length and a
surface condition such that they are firmly gripped during testing.
Type specimen
Sheet (L / A)
Rod (L / D)
United State (ASTM)

4.5
Great Britain
5.65
4.0
5.0
Germany
11.3
10.0
Table 1: Dimensional relationships of tensile specimens used in different countries.

The initial gauge length L is standardized (in several countries) and varies with the diameter (D ) or the crosssectional area (A) of the specimen as listed in table 1. This is because if the gauge length is too long, the %
elongation might be underestimated in this case.
Any heat treatments should be applied on to the specimen prior to machining to produce the final specimen
readily for testing. This has been done to prevent surface oxide scales that might act as stress concentration which
might subsequently affect the final tensile properties due to premature failure.
There might be some exceptions, for examples, surface hardening or surface coating on the materials.
These processes should be employed after specimen machining in order to obtain the tensile properties results which
include the actual specimen surface conditions.
C. STRESS AND STRAIN RELATIONSHIP

7

When a specimen is subjected to an external tensile loading, the metal will undergo elastic and plastic
deformation. Initially, the metal will elastically deform giving a linear relationship of load and extension. These two
parameters are then used for the calculation of the engineering stress and engineering strain to give a relationship as
illustrated in figure 3 using equations 1 and 2 as follows
P
(1)
A
LL L
=
(2)
L
L
Where:
is the engineering stress
is the engineering strain
is the external axial tensile load
is the original cross-sectional area of the specimen
is the original length of the specimen
Lf
is the final length of the specimen
The unit of the engineering stress is Pascal (Pa) or N/m2 according to the SI Metric Unit whereas the unit of psi
(pound per square inch) can also be used.

8
Figure 3: Stress-strain relationship under uniaxial tensile loading

9
D. EXPLANTION OF TECHNICAL TERMS IN TENSILE TESTING

i. Elastic modulus (Young's modulus) (E): This is ratio of stress to strain below the elastic limit.
The engineering stress-strain relationship follows the Hook's Law and the slope of the curve indicates the
Young's modulus (E)
E= (3)
Young's modulus is of importance where deflection of materials is critical for the required engineering
applications. This is for examples: deflection in structural beams is considered to be crucial for the design in
engineering components or structures such as bridges, building, ships, etc.
The applications of tennis racket and golf club also require specific values of spring constants or Young's
modulus values.
ii. Yield strength, (y): This occurs when the tensile loading continues, yielding occurs at the beginning of plastic
deformation. The yield stress, y, can be obtained by dividing the load at yielding (P y) by the original crosssectional area of the specimen (Ao) as shown in equation 4.
y=
Py
( 4)
A
iii. Ultimate Tensile Strength, TS: Beyond yielding, continuous loading leads to an increase in the stress required to
permanently deform the specimen as shown in the engineering stress-strain curve. At this stage, the specimen
is strain hardened or work hardened. The degree of strain hardening depends on the nature of the deformed
materials, crystal structure and chemical composition, which affects the dislocation motion.

10

iv. Fracture Strength, f: After necking, plastic deformation is not uniform and the stress decreases accordingly until
fracture. The fracture strength ( fracture) can be calculated from the load at fracture divided by the original
cross-sectional area, Ao, as expressed in equation 5.
fracture=
Pfracture
(5)
A
v. Elongation: The strain at fracture expressed as a percentage; this is a measure of the ductility of the material.
vi. Modulus of resilience: The amount of energy (or work) stored per unit volume at the elastic limit.
vii. Modulus of toughness: The amount of energy stored per unit volume at fracture of the material; this is a measure
of the ductility of the material.
viii. Percent Area Reduction: Reduction in area at fracture in necking region with respect to original cross-section
area; this is a measure of the ductility of the material.
ix. Strain (engineering): the unit deformation of the material under load.

11
V.
Research Design
The Research Design is to Study the tensile strength of materials and to understand its importance
and application in industry today.
The industry where this research was carried out is Federal Institute of Industrial Research located
at, Oshodi, and Lagos, Nigeria (FIIRO). FIIRO is a well-known research institute in Nigeria which
aids to build and equip center for commercial production demonstration of developed technologies
e.g bio-technology unit, material research, technology transfer, development of Agro-based etc.
The research design was carried out on the following machines;
1.
Mild Steel

12
2.
Universal testing Machine

13
A The procedure carried out during this research was:

14

1. The engineer in charge of the machines Engineer Ojo introduced us to the Tensile testing
machine
2. After the introduction and discussion on the importance and application of Tensile testing,
we proceeded to perform a mini experiment on mild steel.
3. We started by fixing the mild steel material into the universal tensile testing machine.
Picture of apparatus with fixed mild before loading

4. We then subjected the mild steel material to tensile test until the material experienced
fracture.
15

5. We then printed the readings and graph generated by the Universal tensile testing machine.
6.
We studied the result obtained and drew some conclusions.
E. Picture of material after fracture
Picture of material after loading

F. Graph of stress against strain

16
Graph plotted for stress against strain
G. Results Obtained From the Test

17
VI.
Industrial Applications of Tensile Testing

18

Applications of Tensile Testing:
Tensile testing is used to guarantee the quality of components, materials and finished products within wide range
industries. Typical applications of tensile testing are highlighted in the following sections on:
i)
j)
k)
l)
m)
n)
o)
p)
q)
r)
s)
t)
Aerospace Industry
Automotive Industry
Beverage Industry
Electrical and Electronics Industry
Packaging Industry
Pharmaceuticals Industry
Plastics, Rubber and Elastomers Industry
Safety, Health, Fitness and Leisure Industry
Textiles Industry
Aerospace Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the aerospace industry include:
Peel tests on airframe composites

Shear and tensile strength testing of fasteners e.g. bolts, nuts and screws
Tensile & material strength testing of adhesive bonds, aircraft textiles and carpets, cables, hoses and tubing,
gaskets and o-rings, seat belts, welded and crimped joints, wiring looms and harnesses
H.
Automotive Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the automotive industry include:

19
Quality assessment through tensile testing of interior fittings including: airbags, carpets, dashboards,
electrical harness (incl. crimped terminals pull-off force), handles, laminated trim, mirrors, seals and
seatbelts and handbrake levers.

Quality assessment through tensile testing of exteriors fittings including: bumper mouldings and trims, door
and window seals, emblems and number plates, mirrors and mud flaps
I. Beverage Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the beverage industry include:
J.
Peel strength of induction-sealed foils and labels

Tensile force required to open 'ring-pulls' on bevcans
Testing cork extraction force
Applications of tensile testing in the construction industry include:
Bond strength testing of adhesives, mastics, sealants and bonds between brick and foam layers
Tensile and material strength testing of geotextiles and safety support netting
K. Electrical and Electronics Industry

Applications of tensile testing in the electrical and electronics industry include:
L.
Connector withdrawal force

Pull-off forces of crimped, welded or soldered electrical contacts
Component-to-PCB pull-off force
PCB material tensile strength.
Applications of tensile testing in the medical device industry include:
Hypodermic needle-to-hub retention force

Tensile strength and elongation at break of medical tubing, bandages, dressings and tapes

20
M.
Joint strength of IV connector fittings

Suture-to-needle crimps pull out test
Tensile strength of suture material and knotting
Joint strength and material elongation of respiratory masks
Elongation and tensile strength of examination gloves
Mechanical strength of orthopedic implant components
Packaging Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the packaging industry include:
N.
Adhesive/peel testing of adhesive bonds, container seals and labels

Force associated with opening snap-caps, pop-caps and other push pull closures
Elongation of plastic packaging materials
Applications of tensile testing in the paper and board industry include:
O.
Openability of card and paper based packaging

Folding characteristics of boxes and cartons
Force to separate multi-part documents
Durability of documents
Pharmaceuticals Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the pharmaceuticals industry include:
P.
Pull off force of phial caps
Plastics, Rubber and Elastomers Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the plastics, rubber and elastomers industry include:
Joint strength of interlocking plastic components

Assessment of material tensile properties

21
Q.
Adhesion / peel testing of plastic labels, ID and credit cards
Safety, Health, Fitness and Leisure Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the safety, health, fitness and leisure industry include:
R.
Tensile testing of safety support netting

Ergonomic risk evaluations
Elastic properties of racquet strings
Textiles Industry
Applications of tensile testing in the textiles industry include:
'Pull-off' characteristics of buttons, stitched-on decorations, press studs, poppers, zip fasteners, hook-and-
loop fasteners
Strength testing of vulnerable seams

22
VII.
Conclusion
From experiment we performed, we noticed a gradually and slowly increasing tensile load applied on the mild
steel material through the tensile machine. Due to the increasing tensile load, the specimen is continuously stretched
until fracture occurred.
There was an increase in length of the mild steel material compared to it's original length. this increase in length
was used to calculate the stain in the material.
It was confirmed that the material obeys Hookes law. Slope of this line provides information on the Youngs
modulus of the material.
Also, when the values we obtained was compared with standard values similarities were noticed.

23
Acknowledgments
The research was carried out at the Federal Institute of Industrial Research (FIIRO), Oshodi,
Lagos. Nigeria.
This research project wouldnt be a success without the help of the tensile testing manager,
Engineer Ojo.
References
[1] Hashemi, S. Foundations of materials science and engineering, 2006, 4th edition, McGraw-Hill, ISBN 007-1256903.
[2] Norman E. Dowling, Mechanical Behavior of Materials, Prentice-Hall International, 1993.
[3] W.D. Callister, Fundamental of materials science and engineering/an interactive e. text, 2001, John Willey & Sons, Inc.,
New York, ISBN 0-471-39551-x
[4] Dieter, G.E., Mechanical metallurgy, 1988, SI metric edition, McGraw-Hill, ISBN 0-07-100406-8.
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[5] Czichos, Horst (2006). Springer Handbook of Material Measurement Method, Berlin:Springer. Pp. 303-304. ISBN 978-3540-20785-6
[6] WIKIPEDIA: http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tensile_testing

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RESEARCH ON TENSILE TESTING OF MATERIALS

University of Lagos, Akoka

Dukor Kenechi Franklin, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 120404036, kennydukor@gmail.com, Group 6.