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Tensile Test

The document outlines an experiment conducted to test the tensile strength of rubber bands of different lengths, detailing the experimental setup and the observed breaking loads of 545g and 1170g for 11 cm and 7.6 cm rubber bands, respectively. It discusses the suitability of the setup for other materials, the repeatability and accuracy of results, and sources of error encountered during the experiment. Modifications were made to improve the setup, and a safety factor of 10-12 is suggested due to the elastic nature of rubber.

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58 views6 pages

Tensile Test

The document outlines an experiment conducted to test the tensile strength of rubber bands of different lengths, detailing the experimental setup and the observed breaking loads of 545g and 1170g for 11 cm and 7.6 cm rubber bands, respectively. It discusses the suitability of the setup for other materials, the repeatability and accuracy of results, and sources of error encountered during the experiment. Modifications were made to improve the setup, and a safety factor of 10-12 is suggested due to the elastic nature of rubber.

Uploaded by

ed23b009
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Homework 2 - Tensile Strength

Material Used for testing: Rubber band


The experiment was performed on two different rubber band strings of different lengths

Experimental Setup:

Setup components:
-​ Hanger
-​ Paper clip
-​ Piece of folded paper
-​ 5mL container
-​ 1.5L plastic bottle (initially tried with a 500mL bottle but it turned out to be
inadequate for loading)
-​ Rubber bands( for the tensile test as well as for the clamping setup)

●​ The rubber band is clamped using a paper clip, secured shut by 2-3 rubber
bands. The rubber band is padded by thick folds of paper, and taped.
●​ On the other end, the rubber band is attached to a water bottle via another
rubber band that is secured to the bottle neck
●​ The weight loading was done using water, assuming a density of 1g/mL, in steps
of 30-40g for most part, using a tiny empty perfume bottle of 5mL volume

Experiment 1
Rubber Band strip of length 11 cm was used
(measured when a preload of about 12-15g was applied, a plastic bottle of 1.5L
capacity)

Observed Breaking Load- 545 g

Below is the data of the tensile test


Experiment 2
Rubber Band strip of length 7.6 cm was used
(measured when a preload of about 12-15g was applied, a plastic bottle of 1.5L
capacity)

Observed Breaking Load- 1170 g

Below is the data of the tensile test

Breaking Point:
The location of the breaking point depends on the material sample
The rubber bands are not perfectly uniform and may have some tiny deformations or
fractures along the length
In both the experiments the rubber band broke on such points

Suitability of setup for other materials:


The setup may not be directly suitable for testing materials which are in the form of
strips, without modification to the loading setup, but can directly be used for materials
that are in the form of threads.
Also, the materials must yield within a small weight load, under 2 kgs.

Dimensions of the material:


For the tensile test, a material of longer length would be easier to test when it comes to
a homemade setup such as this, as the loading required would be lesser compared to a
short rubber band length.

Repeatability and Accuracy of the Result:


The force vs displacement curves obtained resemble a typical force-displacement curve
for rubber or elastomeric materials, which exhibit non-linear elastic behavior.
Initially, there's a linear region where force increases with displacement. As
displacement increases, the slope becomes steeper, which is consistent with rubber
material behavior that becomes stiffer as it is stretched further

Referencing one example in literature

https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-stress-strain-curve-of-the-rubber-material_fig5_
318870826
The results seems to be repeatable, but it would also depend on the sample being
tested- how consistent the cross section is, if there are breaks, and whether the
material has already undergone prior loading and unloading cycles
More experiments would have to be performed to determine repeatability of the result

Sources of Error in this existing setup and minimizing of errors


●​ Slipping of the material at the clamped end
-​ Initially the rubber band slipped out from the clamped end at high loads.
So I modified the clamping setup slightly by adding extra rubber bands to
secure the clamp shut and taped the end of the band to the padding.
●​ Slipping of the rubber band at the loading end
-​ In a few attempts the rubber band at the loading end was not well secured
to the material. So i modified the knots and taped this end too, which
helped prevent the load from falling
●​ Elongation of the rubber band attached to the bottle neck
-​ The rubber band at the bottle neck to which the rubber band strip was
attached was itself showing high elongation at high loads, preventing
elongation of the actual test material, so I reduced the length available for
elongation by creating extra loops and using a different kind of knot. This
did not entirely solve the error, but mitigated it for most part
●​ Bending of the hanger (where the clamp is attached) at higher loads
-​ I secured the beam of the hanger to the hook of the hanger via a few
threads, which reduced the bending.

Safety Factor:
Considering the highly elastic nature of rubber, and that it is prone to developing
fractures more easily over sustained loads, I would feel confident with a safety factor of
about 10 -12 to stand under such a structure.

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