Metals Testing Solutions Brochure
Metals Testing Solutions
Sheet
Sheet metal products are used in a multitude of areas, from automobiles to domestic appliances, electrical transformers, food packaging, and construction. Today's sheet metal products are much improved over those developed in the past. They offer better control of mechanical properties; surface finish, dimensions, and other quality features that meet the growing need for highly-engineered end use applications. To meet varied end user requirements, sheet products are metallurgically designed to provide specific attributes such as high formability, deep drawability, high strength, and high dent resistance. Sheet metal products are commonly available in thicknesses ranging from approximately 0.2 mm (0.008 in) to 6 mm (0.24 in).
Tension
The Challenge
Tension testing of sheet metal products is performed to validate proof or upper/ lower strengths, tensile strength, yield point elongation, elongation at the maximum force, and elongation at fracture. In addition, sheet metal for pressing is usually tested to determine the hardening coefficient (n - value) and the plastic strain ratio (r - value) at one or more regions of the stress-strain curve. Sheet metal production demands high test throughput along with very consistent results. The equipment used for testing must provide both ease-of-use and high repeatability. The software used to control the testing must maintain accurate control to achieve consistent testing speeds, and must incorporate sophisticated algorithms to determine test results from a wide variety of stress/ strain curves.
Our Solution
Instron provides a full range of closed-loop machines and fully automated (robotic) tensile testing systems for sheet metal products. Instron's testing machines cover a range of load capacities, including table-mounted machines with maximum capacities of 50 kN (11,200 lbf) and floor-mounted machines with capacities from 50 kN (11,200 lbf) to 3000 kN (600,000 lbf). The ability of all systems to measure force very accurately over a wide measurement range
means that a range of product can be tested without changing the load cell. Semiautomatic and automatic devices are available for measuring specimen dimensions and automatically transferring those dimensions to the software. These automated systems reduce the variability in operator measuring techniques, increasing reliability and repeatability of test results.
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The non-contacting AVE measures axial strain and transverse on a sheet metal specimen.
Instron also offers a number of gripping solutions, from simple but effective manual wedge grips, to fully-automatic pneumatic/ hydraulic wedge grips or side action hydraulic grips. The Instron5500 and 5800 series controllers incorporate a powerful feature called Specimen Protect - ideal for thin specimens that can easily be damaged during gripping. Specimen Protect monitors the force on the specimen during gripping and controls the machine so that excessive force cannot be applied to the specimen.
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Instron's model 2716 wedge action grips secure the specimen while 2630 axial and 2640 transverse extensometer measure strain in order to calculate the r-value.
Instron offers a range of extensometers, from manual clip-on devices - gauge lengths from 10 mm to 200 mm(0.39 in to 7.87 in) to automatic contacting extensometers and non-contact video extensometers. Models capable of measuring both axial and transverse strain (for computing r-values) are available. Metals manufacturers achieve ASTM, EN, ISO, and JIS standards compliance and the highest possible testing throughput with Instron software that incorporates intelligent control and sophisticated algorithms to determine pertinent test results. For high volume sheet metal testing, Instron's TestMaster automation systems provide a cost-effective, efficient, highly accurate, and repeatable solution. These fully-integrated systems perform specimen identification, dimension measurement, specimen handling, tensile testing, data collection, and results presentation. TestMaster systems are capable of unattended operation and can incorporate other measurements such as hardness and surface roughness.
To remove the potential for excessive tension or compression forces during initial grip loading, Specimen Protect can be activated to aviod damaging a thin or delicate specimen.
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Typical stress/ strain curve using the Advanced Video Extensometer (AVE).
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Instron's TestMaster automation system.
Sheet
Sheet
Impact/ High Strain Rate
The Challenge
Crashworthiness is a key part of the design of a modern automobile. Under crash conditions, structural materials are subject to very high rates of strain. Many material properties, including those of the steel or aluminum used in the automobile body, are strain-rate sensitive. Consequently, quasi-static stress-strain data may not produce accurate predictions of behavior at high strain rates, and the use of such data in the analysis and design of dynamically loaded structures can lead to cautious overweight designs or premature structural failure.
Our Solution
The Instron servohydraulic VHS high rate systems provides metals researchers with extensive capabilities for impact and high strain rate testing. The system incorporates a very high performance hydraulic actuator, up to 25 m (81 ft) per second and resonance-free frame with an advanced control system and profiler software to ensure a constant strain rate during the test. Patented Fastjaw grips are utilized to only grip the specimen once the actuator has reached the correct velocity for the test. Testing forces are measured using high-stiffness piezoelectric load cells and a high-speed data collection system that records the entire stress-strain curve at rates up to 5 MHz. These features allow metals researchers to evaluate their materials at a level of detail never before possible.
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VHS high rate test system with 50 kN (11 kip) 20 m/s (65 ft) performance.
Ductility
The Challenge
The standard method of measuring the ductility of sheet involves biaxial stretching of a constrained test specimen by simulating a deep drawing operation. The test requires a standard steel ball punch to be forced into a constrained piece of sheet material until the cup formed from the metal sample fractures.
Our Solution
Instron provides a ball punch fixture for this test which meets the requirements of international ductility standards such as ISO 8490 and ASTM E 643. The fixture can be used for evaluating steel, copper, and alloy sheet materials from 0.2 mm (0.008 in) to 2 mm (0.08 in) in thickness. The fixture includes a lower die holder assembly for clamping the sheet between the dies provided and an upper ball punch mandrel. The fixture can be utilized on a variety of Instron testing systems using standard pin and clevis-style adapters. An installation bushing ensures correct axial alignment.
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Erichsen cupping fixture.
Hardness
The Challenge
As large lengths of sheet metal are moved through the rolling process, a number of hardness tests are often required at various points across the material. This type of hardness test is normally performed using one of the light-load Rockwell scales. Due to the thin nature of sheet metal, a hardness test frequently requires use of superficial Rockwell scales (such as HR15N and HR15T).
Our Solution
In many applications, a small coupon is cut from a roll of sheet metal and tested on a benchtop tester located near the production line. Portable testers are also used to test the sheet while it is still on the rolling line. Instron offers various mobile and portable hardness testers to meet these requirements.
Testing very thin samples of sheet metal, such as the tin plate used for cans, on Rockwell scales will cause special problems since sheet thickness can frequently be less than the minimums required by ASTM standards. In these cases, a special anvil and a slower force application rate are necessary to allow the hardness testing system to provide the comparable test results critical for maintaining quality.
Instron C-frame mobile hardness testers utilize a clamping mechanism which holds the tester to the work piece; and calibrated, preloaded spring mechanisms to apply the minor and major loads. The Wilson Instruments model M-51 is ideal for testing stacked sheets in areas where clearance is limited.
A benchtop hardness test for sheet metal is best conducted using a closed-loop system in order to test at lighter loads and slower speeds. The application rate and dwell time of the test force can be set by the user. Closed-loop testing, in its purest form, is a revolutionary technology that utilizes motor/ encoder control and a load cell or force transducer to apply and regulate the load. The Wilson Instruments Rockwell 2000 series is a closed-loop control system with a load cell and high resolution optical encoder that constantly monitors (at 500 Hz) and adjusts the applied force to produce highly accurate and repeatable results. By integrating closed-loop technology, Wilson Instruments hardness testers are able to accurately control both the lighter loads and slower speeds required when testing sheet. The diamond spot anvil, an optional accessory for the Wilson Rockwell 2000 series, is recommended for supporting thin, soft sheet metal. The center of the anvil has a flat polished diamond surface. As the sample deforms under the test load, the hard smooth surface of the diamond controls the effect of any friction between the anvil and the thin sheet metal, allowing the user to obtain repeatable and comparable test results.
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Wilson Rockwell 2000 series tester performing hardness test on sheet.
Creep and Stress-Rupture
Sheet manufacturers or end-user companies need to determine how their products will perform when subjected to constant loads at both ambient and elevated temperatures. These tests are typically conducted for an extended time in accordance with standards such as ASTM E 139 and ASTM E 292. For more information on Instron's creep and stress-rupture testing solutions see page 41.
Fatigue
Sheet metal manufacturers or end-user companies often need to determine how their products will perform when subjected to in-service loading conditions, high cycle and low cycle fatigue, fracture mechanics, high strain rate and thermo-mechanic fatigue. These tests are typically ASTM E 647 for fatigue crack growth and ASTM 1820 for fracture toughness. For more information on Instron's fatigue testing solutions see page 41.
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+1000 C (+1832 F) furnace with +1000 C (+1832 F) hydraulically preloaded reserve stress pullrods for Low Cycle Fatigue (LCF) testing of aerospace materials.
Sheet
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