ISO 178 – Flexural Properties of Plastics

1. Scope
2. Summary
3. Significance and Use
4. Safety check
5. Apparatus
6. Procedure
7. Calculation
8. Report
9. Question

ISO 178 - Determination of flexural properties

1. Scope
This method determining the flexural properties of rigid and semi-rigid plastics under defined conditions.
- Flexural strength.
Flexural behavior - Flexural modulus (tangent, chord & secant modulus)
(Under specific conditions) - Stress/strain relationship

 Method ASTM D790 ISO 178

l – specimen length 127 ± 2.0 mm 80 ± 2.0 mm
b – specimen width 12.7 ± 0.2 mm 10 ± 0.2 mm
h – specimen thickness 6.4 ± 0.2 mm 4 ± 0.2 mm
L – distance of spans 64 ± 1 mm 64 ± 1 mm
Test speed 2 mm/min 2 mm/min
R1: Radius of Loading edge 5 mm 5 mm
R2: Radius of Supports 5 mm 5 mm
2. Method Summary
The test specimen, supported as a beam, is deflected at a constant rate at the
midspan until the specimen fractures or until the deformation reaches some
predetermined value. During this procedure, the force applied to the test
specimen is measured.

Flexural Stress (σf) – The maximum stress in the outer surface of the test
specimen occurs at the midpoint. σf = 3PL/2bd2 Flexural Stress

Flexural Strength (σfM) – Maximum flexural stress sustained by the test specimen
during a bending test.

Flexural Strain (ɛf) – Nominal fractional change in the length of an element of the
outer surface of the test specimen at midspan, where the maximum strain occurs. σfM
εf = 6Dd/L2
δf2
Flexural Modulus (Ef) – (linear slope at 0.05-0.25% strain) in unit Mpa
Ef = (σf2 - σf1)/(εf2 - εf1) Flexural Modulus
δ f1
Significant & Use
- For quality control and specification purposes.
- For engineering design purposes with linear stress/strain behavior.
- To ensure compliance with international and industry standards. 0.05% 0.25%
εf1 εf2
3. Safety Check
4. Apparatus
R1 = 5,0 ± 0,1 mm

R2 = 2,0 ± 0,2 mm for specimen thickness ≤ 3 mm

R2 = 5,0 ± 0,2 mm for specimen thickness ≤ 3 mm

Other Apparatus

Dial gage Slide calipers

5. Specimen Preparation
Injection Molding

Conditioning
(23±2 oC, 50±5% Rh, 48 hr)

Dimension
measurement

Each sample  5 specimens

Meet spec

Measurement

ASTM D790 127±2.0 x 12.7±0.2 x 6.4±0.2 mm

ISO 178 80±2.0 x 10±0.2 x 4±0.2 mm
6. Test Procedure

Set up equipment testing conditions

Width, b nearest 0.1 mm

Measure width & thickness Thickness, h nearest 0.01mm
Calculate mean thickness

Measure: Length of Span: L nearest 1mm

Adjust speech of test: V: 2 mm/min

Place specimen &

Load Force at Midspan

Starting
7. Calculation
3FL
1. Flexural stress: δf =
2bh2

6sh
2. Flexural strain: εf =
L2

δf2 – δf1
3. Flexural modulus: Ef =
εf2 – εf1

Where:
ẟf is the flexural-stress parameter in question
F is the applied force, in newton
L is the span, in mm
b is the width, in mm of the specimen;
h is the thickness, in mm of the specimen
S is one of the deflections, in mm.
εfi is the corresponding flexural strain. εf 1 = 0.005 εf2 = 0.025
8. Report
Calculate the stresses and the modulus to three significant figures.
Calculate the deflections to two significant figures.

The test report shall include the following information:

1. A reference to this International Standard;
2. All the information necessary for identification of the material tested, including type, source, manufacturer's code-number, form and
previous history where these are known;
3. For sheets, the thickness of the sheet and, if applicable, the directions of the major axes of the specimens in relation to some feature of
the sheet;
4. The shape and dimensions of the test specimens;
5. The preparation method of test specimens;
6. The test conditions and conditioning procedures, if applicable;
7. The number of specimens tested;
8. The nominal span used;
9. The test speed;
10. The test machine accuracy.
11. The surface on which the force was applied;
12. The individual test results, if required;
13. The mean values of the individual results;
14. The standard deviations and the 95% confidence intervals of these mean values, if required;
15. The date of the test.
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