Shear Testing Fixtures
Overview
Shear Fixtures are used to create shear stress on a sample in order to induce a rupture. Most shear fixtures are specially designed for specific testing procedures. Rigid materials are tested to failure in the shear mode when the layers of material are laterally shifted in relation to each other. UGC carries one of the largest collections of ASTM specific shear grips and fixtures.
Types of Composite Materials
Shear Testing is most commonly performed on polymer composites used in the Aerospace industry. Many composite materials are layered, which is also known as a sandwich construction. The different layers of material allow for different material strength characteristics. For instance, carbon fiber filaments are often layered together with a high-strength adhesive in order to create a flexible material with high tensile strength. The composite layers can be arranged in different orientations in order to achieve different performance.
