Environmental Stress Cracking Apparatus – Ray-Ran

The Apparatus determines the susceptibility of ethylene plastics to stress-cracking when exposed to different environments such as soaps, wetting agents, oils, and detergents. When the material is under certain conditions of stress, these reagents can accelerate the cracking process which is one of the most common causes of unexpected brittle failure of polymers known. Designed in accordance with the ASTMD1693, the apparatus is extremely cost-effective and very simple to use. The test samples are subjected to a predetermined bending stress and then exposed to different environments such as soaps, wetting agents, detergents, and acids to see if they exhibit any mechanical defects by cracking.

The apparatus is supplied with electronic digital temperature control, temperature bath, and all tooling accessories. The integrated temperature bath fitted with a digital temperature controller, heater and thermometer accurately maintain the test temperature, usually 50°C or 100°C± 0.5°C. To ensure temperature stability within the bath, a stirrer motor system is fitted, and the built-in electronic timer monitors the duration of the test. The bath is fitted with a stainless-steel sample rack that holds up to 48 glass test tubes which are immersed in a heat transfer medium such as silicone oil. Rubber stoppers to seal the tubes and test sample specimen holders in either stainless steel or brass (optional) are also supplied for each tube. The specimen holder is designed to maintain a constant stress on the mid-section of the test samples with up to 10 specimens fitted into a specimen holder at one time. Tooling accessories include:

• Test Sample Cutter – 38 mm x 13 mm.
• Sample Nicking Jig – Used to make a controlled imperfection in the test sample.
• Sample Bending Clamp – Used to induce concentrated stress in the sample.
• Sample Transfer Tool – Used to move test samples from the bending clamp into the specimen holders.