Flexural strength tests of ceramics
Extremely low ductility of ceramic
materials does not allow measuring their mechanical properties by conventional tensile test, which is
widely used for metals. Brittle Materials, including ceramics, are tested by Flexure
Test (Transverse Beam Test, Bending Test). There are two standard Flexure
Test methods:
3-point Flexure Test
4-point Flexure Test
flexural strength—a measure of the ultimate strength of a specified
beam in bending.
3-point
Flexure Test
In
this test a specimen with round, rectangular or flat cross-section is placed on
two parallel supporting pins. The loading force is applied in the middle by
means loading pin. The supporting and loading pins are mounted in a way,
allowing their free rotation about:
- axis
parallel to the pin axis;
- axis
parallel to the specimen axis.
This
configuration provides uniform loading of the specimen and prevents friction
between the specimen and the supporting pins.