New heights for rubber characterization
by Andrea Incardona, Instron C.E.A.S.T. – Bridging the gap between simulation and experimental results can be accomplished with advanced instrumentation for rubber testing, including systems used for drop tower tensile impact testing.
The frustration of trusting in a weather app that forecasts a sunny day, only to be drenched with rain, is a feeling that most people have experienced. The same discrepancy occurs in rubber characterization: Without the right data inputs, outputs from modeling do not always live up to reality. The ways in which dynamic drop testing gives elastomer and rubber compound developers confidence in their prototypes’ viability are described in this article.
Computer aided engineering (CAE) simulations require high quality, well defined and extensive data to yield reliable results, especially when working with rubber compounds that exhibit highly non-linear and strain rate dependent behavior. A significant amount of early characterization work involves establishing basic properties, such as density, tensile strength and elongation at failure.