Tensile Test Report

Purpose
To determine the ultimate tensile strength of the
material
To determine the ductility of the material
To determine the elasticity of the material

Equipment
Materials Testing Machine
This machine is used to test the tensile and compressive
properties of materials by applying a load to a specimen of
the material until it breaks.
Extensometer
This is a device used to measure the change in length of
an object. During a tensile test it is used to measure the
elongation of the material being tested and feeds this
information back to a computer.
Tensile Specimen (Test Piece)
This is a sample of the material being tested. It has two
shoulders and a gauge (section) in between. The
shoulders are large so they can be readily gripped,
whereas the gauge section has a smaller cross-section so
that the deformation and failure can occur in this area
Computer
The computer receives data from the testing machine and
extensometer and processes this in to a load/extension
graph.

Procedure
A sample of material (test piece) with known dimensions
such as length and cross sectional area is placed between
the grips of the testing machine, which clamp on to the
grip section at each end of the material. An extensometer
is also attatched to the test piece which is used to test the
elongation of the material. The machine is then switched
on and will apply a steadily increasing tensile force. During
this time the extensometer will measure the change in
length of the material and feed this information back to
the computer. The results of which are used to form a
graph showing the relationship between the load(force)
applied and extension of the material.

A tensile force being applied to a test piece

Results/Observations
From the resultant graph I was able to identify the
following:
Limit of proportionality
This is the limit at which the load is directly proportional to
the elongation of the material and thus obeys Hookes
Law. Past this limit the graph will no longer show a straight
line. For the brass test piece this occurred at around
7200N and is indicated on the graph.
Elastic Limit
The elastic limit is the highest load which a material can
withstand without permanent deformation occurring. From
this point on the material begins to react more plastically
to any increase in load. For the brass test piece this
occurred at around 7400N and is indicated on the graph.
Waisting
When the test continues beyond the elastic limit of the
material, waisting occurs. This is when the extension of

the material becomes localized as indicated by the image

below. This began to occur with the brass test piece when
its extension reached around 6.5mm and is indicated on
the graph.

Tensile Strength
The tensile strength is the maximum load that the
material can bear. After this is reached waisting will occur
and the load needed for the material to extend is
lessened. For the brass test piece the tensile strength was
around 8600N.
Fracture
This is the separation of the material. in to two pieces
when it has reached breaking stress. This occurred for the
brass test piece when it had reached an extension of
around 9.5mm and is indicated on the graph.

Ultimate Tensile Strength

This is calculated by dividing the maximum load the
material was able to sustain by the cross sectional area of
the test piece. The results of this are shown below:
Diameter of test piece = 5.05mm
Radius = Diameter/2 = 2.525mm
Cross Sectional Area = r
=x2.525
=20.03mm
Ultimate Tensile Strength = Max Load/Cross Sectional Area
= 8600/20.03
= 429.36 N/mm (2 d.p)