Lebanese University

Faculty of Engineering III

Mechanical Engineering department

Bend test
Welding final project

THIRD YEAR – SEMESTER VI

SPRING 2021-2022

Presented to: Dr. Mohamad KHAZEM

Done by: GROUP 4
Ahmad ALKHATEEB 5853
Lynn AWALA 5927
Rana SHEBLY 6003
Jawad Hamie NM100
Ali Hamieh NM101
 ABSTRACT:

Welding is a fabrication process that joins materials, usually metals or

thermoplastics, by using high heat to melt the parts together and allowing
them to cool, causing fusion. It is an essential component of many
industries such as the automotive industry, the construction industry, the
aviation industry, and more. Without this form of metal work, so many
things, including many buildings, gates, and fences, small kitchen
appliances, vehicles - and even space travel - would not exist. Due to its
importance, it is necessary to test the strength of the bending joint. Many
tests are used and one of these tests is the bend test that will be discussed
in this report.
Contents
1. Introduction:........................................................................................................................................4
2. Why use the bend test in welding:......................................................................................................4
3. Types of bend test:..............................................................................................................................4
3.1. 1-point bending test:...................................................................................................................4
3.2. 3-point bending test:...................................................................................................................6
3.3. 4-point bending test:...................................................................................................................6
4. Types of Destructive Testing Physical Weld:........................................................................................7
4.1. Guided Bend Test:.......................................................................................................................7
4.2. Free Bend Test:............................................................................................................................8
4.3. Back Bend Test:............................................................................................................................9
5. Conclusion:..........................................................................................................................................9
1. Introduction:
The bend test is a simple and inexpensive qualitative test that can be used to evaluate both the
ductility and soundness of a material. The bend test uses a coupon that is bent in three points
bending to a specified angle.

The outside of the bend is extensively plastically deformed so that any defects in, or
embrittlement of, the material will be revealed by the premature failure of the coupon.

A bend test produces tensile stress in the convex side of the specimen and compression stress in
the concave side. This creates an area of shear stress along the midline. To ensure that primary
failure comes from tensile or compression stress, the shear stress must be minimized by
controlling the span to depth ratio; the length of the outer span divided by the height (depth) of
the specimen.

2. Why use the bend test in welding?

Engineers often want to understand various aspects of material’s behavior, but a simple uniaxial
tension or compression test may not provide all necessary information. As the specimen bends
or flexes, it is subjected to a complex combination of forces including tension, compression, and
shear. For this reason, bend testing is commonly used to evaluate the reaction of materials to
realistic loading situations. Flexural test data can be particularly useful when a material is to be
used as a support structure. 

The bend test is a qualitative destructive test as we will not get any test result values
except whether the result is acceptable or not. The main objectives of the bend tests
are:
1) Check the weld soundness for welder/ operator performance qualification.
2) Check the weld joint ductility for welding procedure qualification (PQR).
3) Verify the material ductility when the test is performed for base metal only.

3. Types of bend test:

When testing materials using a bending test, a distinction is made between the 1-, 3- and 4-
point bending test, depending on the number of pressure points and the type of specimen
support.

3.1. 1-point bending test:

The bending test procedure when using the 1-point bending device is as follows: The specimen
is clamped at one end and its exposed side is loaded with the test punch. Following, the flexural
modulus is calculated. A flexural modulus or bending-elastic modulus is the ratio of the
maximum fiber stress to the maximum strain within the yield point.

The 1-point testing is the most used one due to the variety of choices in it, which are
detailed as follows and shown in sketch below:
1) Face bend: When the load is applied on the root side so that the weld face will
be in the tension.
2) Root Bend: Here load is applied on the face side so that the weld root will be in
the tension.
3) Side bend: The load is applied on any of the sides of the specimen cut transverse
to the welding direction.
4) Longitudinal Bend: The longitudinal bend also has two types:
a) face longitudinal
b) root longitudinal
It depends on the direction of the load applied similar to face and root bend as
shown in the below diagrams.

Figure 3-1 1-point test types

3.2. 3-point bending test:
The 3-point bending test bears this name because there are three pressure points in this test
setup: Two supports and a centrally loaded test punch. The specimen lies crosswise on the
supports and protrudes at the sides. The 3-point bending test is the most frequently performed
bending test. However, it has the disadvantage that in addition to the compressive and tensile
forces exerted, transverse forces are also effective in the material. Because of this disadvantage,
the 4-point bending test was developed at that time.

3.3. 4-point bending test:

In the 4-point bending test, the checking fixture differs from the 3-point bending test only in its
test punch. Instead of the single punch applying force in the center, a double punch is used.
There is a constant bending moment in the area between the two upper pressure points.
Transverse forces do not occur in this area. The graphical representation of the bending
moment in the 4-point bending test shows a trapezoid.
4. Types of Destructive Testing Physical Weld:
Mainly the bending test on welded materials are destructive, rare to find nondestructive test
since there is no advantages using it.

So, we will be discussing the Destructive tests and its types, which all have the same point and it
is the tensile and bending tests as the test specimens are loaded until they give out, to gain the desired
information.

4.1. Guided Bend Test:

These guided bend tests are used to determine the quality of the weld metal at the root and
face of the welded joint. They also judge the fusion and degree of penetration to the base metal
along with the efficiency of the weld. The testing of this type can be done in a jig. The required
specimens for testing are machined from the already welded plates, the thickness of these
specimens should be within the capacity of our jig for bending. The specimen for testing is
placed upon the supports of the die that is the lower part of the jig. The hydraulic jack’s plunger
forced the specimen into it and assured the shape of the die seen.

Figure 4-2 Guided test

The requirement of this test is fulfilled by bending the specimens at 180 degrees and now
accepted as passable. No, any crack more than 3.2mm in any dimension should be visible on the
surface. Face bend tests are made in the jig while facing the weld in tension means outside of
the bend. Now the root bend test is made in the jig with the face of the weld in tension as on
the outside of the bend. The guided bend tests are shown in the figure.

4.2. Free Bend Test:

This physical weld free bend testing approach is designed to judge the ductility of the metal
deposited in a weld joint. The specimen for this testing is procured by machining from the
welded plate with the weld came across as shown at A, figure.

Time to round each corner of the specimen lengthwise in a radius not exceeding 1/10 of the
specimen’s thickness. Tool marks if any expected along the length of the specimen. Two scribed
lines are put down on the face 1.6mm in from the edge of the weld. Now measure the distance
between two lines in inches and record it as initial distance X. The test specimen ends are bent
through angles of approximately 30 degrees, these bends are about 1/3 of the length from each
end. The weld point is located centrally to ascertain that all bending occurs in the weld.

The test sample bent, in the beginning, is placed in a machine that is capable of exerting a big
compressive force and bent continually until a crack more than 1/16 inches in any dimension
seen on the face of the weld. In the condition of no crack, bending may be continued till the
sample 1/4 inches thick or under may be possible to test in a vise. The heavy plate is usually
tested in bending jigs or a press.

You may use power compression press or vise when doing the free bend test, it is better to
machine the upper as well as the lower plate of the bending devices to present surfaces parallel
to the ends of the test sample. This exercise will prevent the slipping and snapping of the
specimen out of the testing equipment when it is bending.

Figure 4- 3 Free bend test

 4.3. Back Bend Test:
This is a physical weld testing designed to ascertain the quality of the weld metal and the extent of
penetration into the root of Y of the butt joint after welding. The sample or specimen used for
testing is similar to the free bend test except they are bent with the root of the weld towards the
tension side, or outside. The tested specimens need to bend 90 degrees without breaking away. This
physical test is broadly replaced with a guided bend test.

5. Conclusion:
In addition to these situations, other factors that can cause bend specimens to fail include poorly
prepared bend specimens, and specimens bent to improper dimensions. Of course, specimens will
also fail due to poor weld quality. Unskilled welders and welds made with inappropriate WPSs are
expected to fail bend tests — and so they should. However, it is also important to know that skilled
welders and good WPSs can also fail bend tests due to faulty testing procedures. In such situations it
is the testing procedures that should be changed.