“PARTS AND FUNCTIONS OF UNIVERSAL TESTING MACHINE”

CE53

GROUP 7

ARENDAIN, JONNA MARIE E.

BALAN, ROEL KHENORY R.
BARRO, RIZA MAE A.
COLIMA, RALPH IAN S.
Universal Testing Machine (UTM)

A universal testing machine is also known as a universal tester, materials

testing machine or materials test frame. It is used to test the tensile
stress and compressive strength of materials. It is named after the fact that it
can perform many standard tensile and compression tests on materials,
components, and structures.

TENSIONAL TESTING CAN BE:

Tensile test

Tensile test is also known as tension testing, is a fundamental materials

science testing which a sample is subjected to a controlled tension until
failure. The 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 types of forces. Properties that are directly measured are ultimate
tensile strength, maximum elongation, and reduction in area.

Tear test

Tear strength is the tensile force required to rupture a pre-split woven

fabric sample under controlled conditions.

Peel test

A peel test is performed between two substrates bonded together with

an adhesive. Thw substrates may be both flexible or one may be flexible while
the other is rigid. The adhesive itself will generally take form of a thin layer
between the two substrates such as the adhesive located on the underside
of a piece of tape that has placed against a steel plate. The force is
measures up to 1000 times per second during the test and the average of all
of the force readings are reported as the “average peel force”.

COMPRESSIONAL TESTING CAN BE:

Compressive test

Compressive test is the exact opposite of a tensile test. This is where

you compress an object between two level plates until a certain load or
distance has been reached or the product breaks. The typical
measurements are the maximum force sustained before breakage
(compressive force), or load at displacement (i.e. 55 pounds at 1”
compression), or displacement at load (i.e. 0.28” of compression at 20
pounds of force).

Bending test

Bend testing determines the ductility or the strength of a material over

a given radius. Following the bend, the samples is inspected for cracks on the
outer surface. Bend testing provides insight into the modulus of elasticity and
the bending strength of a material. It measures behavior of materials
subjected to simple beam loading and it is also called flex or flexural testing.

Two types of bending test:

 3-point flex -the area of uniform stress is quite small and concentrated
under the center loading point.

-most common for polymers

 4-point flex –the area of uniform stress exists between the inner span
loading points (typically half the outer span length).

1. Flexural strength – measures the maximum force that a material will

withstand before it breaks or yields.
2. Flexural modulus – measures the slope of a strain/stress curve and is an
indication of a materials stiffness.
3. Yield point – the point where the material essentially gives up or the
point where the force will not continue to increase and will then start to
decrease or break.

A universal testing machine can be mechanical or hydraulic.

Servo-hydraulic:

It has tensile structure mounted on an oil which is used to drive the

tensile structure up and down, and the oil feeding rate to oil cylinder is
controlled by the servo valve.

Electromechanical:

it has two screws and a moveable crossbeam, the crossbeam could

move up and down to achieve tensional and compressional test, a servo
motor is controlled by a servo drive to drive the crossbeam up and down.

COMPONENTS

Load Frame – usually consisting of two strong supports for the machine.
Some small machines have a single support.

Load Cell - A force transducer or other means of measuring the load is

required. Periodic calibration is usually required by governing regulations
or quality system. Converts force into electrical signal.

Cross Head - A movable cross head is controlled to move up or down

usually at a constant speed. Sometimes called constant rate of
extension (CRE) machine. Some machines can program the crosshead
speed or conduct cyclical testing, testing at constant force, testing at
constant deformation, etc. Electromechanical, servo-hydraulic, linear
drive, and resonance drive are used.

Means of measuring extension or deformation

Many tests require a measure of the response of the test specimen to the
movement of the cross head. Extensometers are sometimes used.

Output device

A means of providing the test result is needed. Some older machines have
dial or digital displays and chart recorders. Many newer machines have a
computer interface for analysis and printing.

Conditioning

Many tests require controlled conditioning (temperature, humidity, pressure,

etc.). The machine can be in a controlled room or a special environmental
chamber can be placed around the test specimen for the test.

Test fixtures, specimen holding jaws, and related sample making equipment
are called for in many test methods.
The machine consists of two main parts, called:

1. Loading unit
2. Control unit

Loading unit

In this unit actual loading of the specimen takes place. It consists of

three cross heads namely upper head, middle head and lower head. Using
appropriate cross heads tensile, compressive, shear, bending load with the
help of different attachment can be applied.

Loading unit of a UTM consist of:

Upper cross head - To clamp testing specimen from top

Lower cross head - To clamp testing specimen from below

Table - to place the specimen, used for compression test

CONTROL PANEL

The control panel contains the control devices, the load measuring unit
and the hydraulic power unit.
Control devices

These include the electric control devices, the load indicating devices
and the hydraulic control devices.

The Electric Control Devices are in the form of four switches set on the left side
of the panel face. The upper and lower push switches are for moving the
lower cross-head up and down respectively. The remaining two are the ON
and OFF switches for the hydraulic pump.

The Load indicating Devices -consist of a range inflating dial placed behind a
load indicating dial. The former move and sets itself to the range selected
when the range adjusting knob is turned. The load .on the specimen at any
stage is indicated by the load pointer which moves over the load indicating
dial and harries forward with it a dummy.

The Hydraulic Control Devices are a pair of control valves set on the table or
the control panel. The right control valve is the inlet valve. It is a pressure
compensated flow control valve and has a built-in overload relief valve. If this

valve is in the closed position, while the hydraulic system is on, oil flows back
into the sump. Opening of the valve now, cause the oil to flow into the main
cylinder in a continuous non-pulsating manner. The left control valve is the
return valve. If this valve is in the closed position, the oil pumped into the main
cylinder causes the main piston to move up. The specimen resists this,
movement, as soon as it gets loaded up. Oil pressure inside the main cylinder
(and elsewhere in the line) then starts growing up until either the specimen
breaks or the load reaches the maximum value of the range selected. A slow
opening of this valve now causes the oil to drain back into the sump and the
main piston to descent.

The Load Measuring Unit in essence is a pendulum dynamometer unit. It has a

small cylinder in which a piston moves in phase with the main piston under
the same oil pressure. A simple pendulum connected with this small piston by
a pivot lever thus deflects in accordance with the load on the specimen and
the pivot ratio. This deflection is transmitted to the load pointer which
indicates the test load on the dial. The pivot lever has four fulcrum -knife-
edges, giving fo4ir ranges of test load, (viz. 0-100 kN; 0-250 kN; 0-500 kN and 0-
1000 kN). The required range can be selected by just turning a knob provided
for the purpose. The overall accuracy of the machine depends mainly on the
accuracy of the measuring unit.

The Hydraulic Power Unit consists of an oil pump driven by an electric motor
and a sump for the hydraulic oil. The pump is of the reciprocating type,
having a set of plungers which assures a continuous non-pulsating oil flow into
the main cylinder for a smooth application of the test load on the specimen.
Hydraulic lines of the unit are of a special design to enable them to perform
various functions.

USAGE

The specimen is placed in the machine between the grips and an

extensometer if required can automatically record the change in gauge
length during the test. If an extensometer is not fitted, the machine itself can
record the displacement between its cross heads on which the specimen is
held. However, this method not only records the change in length of the
specimen but also all other extending / elastic components of the testing
machine and its drive systems including any slipping of the specimen in the
grips

Once the machine is started it begins to apply an increasing load on

specimen. Throughout the tests the control system and its associated
software record the load and extension or compression of the specimen.

Machines range from very small table top systems to ones with over 53
MN (12 million lbf) capacity.

- to create the stress strain diagram.

- a pencil and straight edge or computer algorithm can be
used to calculate yield strength, Young's Modulus, tensile
strength or total elongation.

Other tests UTM can perform:

1. Tensile Tests 4. Pull-Out Tests

2. Adhesion Tests 5. Creep Tests
3. Cycle tests with momentary 6. Hysteresis Tests
stops

Test Traces: an ongoing test can be displayed as either:

1. Load/Displacement 2. Load/Position
 3. Load/Time 5. Displacement/Time
4. Position/Time

Digital Indicating Windows: the following are displayed:

1. Maximum Load (peak hold)

2. Current Load (during a test)
3. Cross head Position
4. Displacement (from the start of a test)

Universal Testing Machine can be used and applied to perform tests on the
following samples:

1. Rope 8. Slings
2. Steel Rope 9. Cable
3. Winches 10. Nylon Rope
4. Steel Wire 11. Links
5. Electrical Wire 12. Chain
6. Webbing 13. Steel Chain
7. Spring

A mechanical force load may be applied using five different methods.

1. Tension load is applied axially on the test specimen in stretching
manner
2. Compression is a force that occurs when a load is applied axially on
the specimen in squeezing manner
3. Shear is the application of two equal and
parallel forces on an object from opposite
direction. Shearing occurs when a force causes
a material to separate along a plane parallel to
the load. Pure shear is impossible to set-up in a
test without interference from other types of
stresses in the devices that grip the test
specimen.
4. Torsion is the application of twisting force
on an object. This causes internal shear, which
varies from zero at the center of the test
specimen to a maximum at the outside edge.
5. Flexure is the application of a force that
causes the bending of an object. Bending introduces tension on the
area being stretched and compression on the area squeezed.
 Selection of the test specimen is a key consideration because metals
often exhibit anisotropy. This means mechanical properties vary in direction.

Ex. Longitudinal test specimen is stronger because

it is taken from the direction where the steel is
rolled. Longitudinal and transverse test specimens
taken from cold-rolled plate material exhibit
different mechanical properties.

A fillet is used on the tensile test specimen to

minimize stress concentrations, and the gauge
marks are always an equal distance from the center of the length of the
reduced section.

A variety of tensile test specimen ends are used to ensure secure and
uniform gripping by the test machine.

Tensile test specimens may be round

or rectangular, depending on the stock
from which they are obtained.
Ex. rectangular test specimens are obtained
from plate or sheet, and round test specimens
are taken from forgings or cast test bars.

After the tensile test is completed, the broken test specimen is removed
from the testing machine and fitted together. The new increased gauge
length and the reduced diameter at the narrowest point are measured.
These measurements allow the percent elongation and percent reduction in
area to be calculated.

The tensile test procedure is conducted by

fixing the test specimen firmly into the grips of the
testing machine. An extensometer, a device for
measuring the extension or elongation of the test
specimen, is fitted to the specimen across its gauge
length. An axial load is applied and the test
specimen is stretched. As the test specimen is
stretched, a load extension (stress-strain) curve is
plotted. the extensometer is removed before the
test specimen breaks. The tensile test procedure is
described in ASTM E8, tensile testing of metallic materials.

An extensometer measures the extension of elongation of the tensile test

specimen.
 The shape of the load
extension curve varies according
to the material, but tends to show
common load and extension
limits. The proportional limit is the
maximum stress at which stress is
directly proportional to the strain.
Beyond this point stress is no
longer proportional to strain. Up to the elastic limit, the tensile test specimen
will return to its original length if the load is removed. The elastic limit is the
maximum stress to which the material is subjected without any permanent
strain remaining after stress is completely removed. Beyond this point, strain is
permanent, or plastic.

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING UTM: