TWI can offer full-scale four-point rotating bend testing services for our Industrial Members.
Also known as a flexural test, bending tests measure a material’s resistance to bending forces, allowing for the assessment of properties including bending fatigue, flexural strength, modulus, and stress-strain behaviour.
The developed test procedures can be undertaken using a range of different setups, including three-point and four-point bending, and can be used for both small and large-scale fatigue testing of a wide range of materials, including metals, plastics, composites and ceramics.
Typically performed on a universal testing machine with a three-point or four-point bend test fixture, the three or four-point flexural tests can be used to assess everything from the most brittle materials to high-strength metal specimens.
Bend testing can be either free-form or guided and is frequently used as a quality control test for butt-welded joints. When guided, the test piece is bent around a former of a specified diameter. Guided tests are specified in the welding procedure and welder qualification specifications, such as ASME IX, ISO 9606 and ISO 15614 Part 1.