Tensile Testing

Tensile testing is the most fundamental mechanical test for determining the strength and ductility of metallic materials. By pulling a prepared specimen to failure under controlled conditions, the test measures yield strength, ultimate tensile strength (UTS), elongation and reduction of area - the key mechanical properties specified in material standards, design codes and welding procedure qualifications.

QMS Asset Integrity performs tensile testing at our mechanical testing laboratory for parent material certification, weld procedure qualification (transverse and all-weld-metal tensile tests), production quality control and failure investigation.

Our testing covers a wide range of ferrous and non-ferrous materials, with specimen preparation and testing performed in accordance with ASTM E8/E8M, AS 1391, ISO 6892 and the requirements of applicable fabrication codes including ASME IX, AS 3992, AS/NZS 1554 and AWS D1.1.

A machined specimen of specified gauge length and cross-sectional area is gripped in the jaws of a universal testing machine and subjected to a controlled uniaxial tensile load until failure. The machine records the applied force and the resulting extension throughout the test.

From the resulting stress-strain data, the following properties are determined: yield strength (the stress at which permanent deformation begins), ultimate tensile strength (the maximum stress sustained), elongation (the percentage increase in gauge length at fracture) and reduction of area (the percentage decrease in cross-sectional area at the fracture point).

Specimen types include standard round bar (proportional and non-proportional), flat plate specimens, and transverse weld specimens with the weld located at the centre of the gauge length.