Title: The Tensile test

Objective:
• To become familiar with tensile testing system
• To learn how to develop stress-strain curve from load-displacement curve
for materials
• To learn how to extract important material properties from these curve
such as engineering stress, strain, yield stress, percentage of
elongation…etc

Introduction:
In order to compare and select materials for various applications, one must
have access to the important properties of that material i.e. material constant.
One of the most often used tests performed to determine a number of
important mechanical properties of material is tensile test. This test is
conducted to specimens that have uniform horizontal cross section in the
Universal Testing Machine that can show the load applied for any elongation
that is obtained from the gauge length
Based on the load and displacement obtained from the experiment, we can
get:
(a) Engineering tensile stress,
ε = F/Ao (N/mm²)
(b) Strain,
ε = L1 – Lo / Lo
(c) Yield stress,
σy = Yield load / initial cross-sectional area (N / mm²)
(d) Ultimate tensile stress,
σm = Maximum load / initial cross-sectional area (N / mm²)
(e) Elongation percentage,
%EL = (L1 – Lo / Lo) × 100 (%)
(f) Reduction percentage in area
(%) = (Ao– A1 / Ao) × 100

Where:
F = Load (N)
Ao = Initial horizontal cross- sectional area, (mm²)
A1 = Final horizontal cross- sectional area, (mm²)
Lo = Initial gauge length, (mm)
L1 = Final gauge length, (mm)

Yield load and maximum load can be obtained from the load-displacement
curve produced from each experiment is
(1) Mild Steel
Fy = Yield load, (N)
Fm = Maximum load, (N)
Fp = Load at break, (N)

Load (N)

Fm

Fp
Fy

Displacement (mm)
 (2) For aluminium alloys or specimen that does not have certain yield load, it
can be obtained with “offset strain 0.2 % method” and known as ‘pruf
stress’.
Fm = Maximum load (N)
Fp = Load at break (N)
F0.2% = pruf stress

Load (N)

Fm

Fp

F0.2%

Displacement (mm)

Specimen:
• Mild Steel
• Aluminiun Alloy
Apparatus:
Universal testing Machine
Procedure:
(a) The diameter and gauge length for all the specimen provided is taken
(b) The specimen is installed inside the testing machine and load is added
little by little until the specimen break, Value of the load applied and
elongation is recorded
 (c) The diameter and the gauge length of the specimen at the fractured part is
once again measured and recorded
(d) The it fracture for both specimen is observed
Result:
Diameter of the specimen
Specimen Reading / mm (i) (ii) (iii) Average
Aluminium Initial diameter 9.70 9.80 9.80 9.77
alloy Final diameter 6.80 6.80 6.80 6.80
Diameter difference 9.77 – 6.80 = 2.97
Initial diameter 9.80 9.90 9.90 9.87
Mild Steel
Final diameter 6.50 6.40 6.60 6.50
Diameter difference 9.87 - 6.50 = 3.37

Specimen gauge length:

Reading/ mm
Specimen Final length Difference
Initial length
1 2 3 Average

Aluminium alloy 50.00 61.10 61.50 61.10 61.23 11.23

Mild steel 50.00 71.70 68.00 73.70 71.00 21.00

Calculation:
Aluminium alloy
Initial cross-sectional area, Ao = π(d²/4)
= π (9.77²/4)
= 74.97mm²
Final cross-sectional area, A = π(d²/4)
= π (6.80²/4)
= 36.32mm²
Based on the computer calculated data;
Title: Mechanical properties of plastic

Objective: To obtain yield tensile stress (σy), breaking stress (σb) and elongation
(ε) for plastic.
(i)PE (Polyethelene),
(ii)ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene)

Introduction: Refer to the figure to obtain:

 Figure
F
F

Lo L

F F

(1) Tensile stress

σ = F/A
σ = stress- tensile (N/m²)
F = force (N)
A = area (m²)
(2) Elongation
ε = (L-Lo/Lo) × 100%
ε = elongation
Lo = initial length
L = final length
(3) Stress- elongation curve
i.e. polyethelene ( PE)
 σy σb

Stress
(MN/m)

Elongation %

σy = yield stress
σb = breaking stress
Procedure:
(a)The dimension of the plastic specimen given is measured
(b) Change the shape until the specimen breaks
(c) Elongation and the load is obtained to calculate tensile stress

Result and Discussion:

(1) PE (polyethelyne)
Lo= 50 mm

Initial
Reading/m Final Initial Final Final
thickness(to
m length(L1) width(wo) width (w1) thickness(t1)
)
1 211.0 12.85 5.25 3.30 1.10
2 210.0 12.85 6.40 3.30 1.10
3 210.0 12.85 5.25 3.30 1.10
Average 210.3 12.85 5.63 3.30 1.10

(2) ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene)

 Lo = 50 mm

Initial
Reading/m Final Initial Final Final
thickness(to
m length(L1) width(wo) width (w1) thickness(t1)
)
1 50.0 13.15 13.15 3.30 3.30
2 50.0 13.10 13.10 3.25 3.25
3 50.0 13.15 13.15 3.25 3.25
Average 50.0 13.13 13.13 3.27 3.27
Calculation:
PE: Ao = wo× to
= 12.85×3.30
= 42.405mm²
ABS: Ao = wo× to
= 13.13×3.27
= 42.935mm²

For PE plastic:
Maximum load (based on computer data), F = 807 N
Yield stress, σy= F/Ao
= 807/ 42.405
= 19.03 N/mm²

Breaking load (based on computer data), F = 51 N

Breaking stress, σb = F/Ao
= 51/ 42.405
= 1.12 N/mm²

L1 − L0
Elongation, ε = x 100%
L0

= [(210.3 – 50.0)/50.0] × 100%

= 320.6%
For ABS plastic:
Maximum load (based on computer data), F = 1689 N
Yield stress, σy= F/Ao
= 1689/ 42.935
= 39.34 N/mm²

Breaking load ( based on computer data), F = 1630

Breaking stress, σb = F/Ao
= 1630/ 42.935
= 37.96 N/mm²

Elongation, ε = L1 − L0 x 100%
L0

= [(50.0 – 50.0)/50.0] × 100%

= 0.00%
Conclusion:
PE plastic is more ductile compared to ABS plastic. The difference in property of
PE plastic is because it can absorb more energy compare to ABS plastic. PE
plastic has larger area under the curve thus it shows that it can absorb more
energy. Furthermore, the higher value of elongation percentage,ε for PE plastic
compare to ABS plastic suggests that PE plastic is more elastic than ABS plastic.