U.S. Issued Patent No. 6,112,589

FIELD OF THE INVENTION:

Versatile computer controlled system for performing tensile tests on fibers and fiber bundles.

DESCRIPTION:

Until recently, the commercially available equipment used to test individual fibers and fiber bundles left many researchers dissatisfied enough that they created their own in-house equipment. One of these in-house creations has been developed by researchers at the Pennsylvania State University. The Environmental Tensometer^TM is a coordinated, computer-controlled system capable of performing tensile tests (creep, constant strain rate, or variable spectrum loading) on single-fiber refractory fibers, fiber bundles and minicomposites under a wide range of temperatures, pressures, and atmospheric gas conditions. When commercialized, this innovative technology will advance these test procedures well beyond their present stage, resulting in more dependable, high-quality test data on fibers and composites.

The Environmental Tensometer^TM is an integrated system comprised of six major components:

1. A fiber or bundle testing mechanism for applying and controlling the tensile load and measuring the strain;

2. A furnace chamber for controlling the temperature at which the material is tested (up to 1500 °C);

3. A vacuum system for creating low pressure or vacuum conditions in the furnace test chamber;

4. A mass-flow control unit capable of regulating the concentrations of several gases, for example: argon, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and oxygen selected for the test atmosphere;

5. A structural support frame and table with shock-isolating mounts; and

6. A computer data acquisition and control unit.