Specimen Setup for Lifetime Investigations of Rubber Materials in the Compression Range

Abstract

Fatigue of rubber in compression is of high interest for many industrial applications. In this contribution, new lifetime investigations of filled EPDM rubber are performed in the compression range. A new test rig with measuring device is applied, which enables high-precision compression tests up to 80% (engineering strain). Due to a special design of the specimen holder, a nearly homogeneous strain field can be achieved. As a result, new fatigue studies in the compression range (displacement- and force-controlled) can be conducted. In addition, it can be concluded that crack initiation and failure occur in the nearly homogeneous deformed measuring zone.

Keywords

• specimen setup
• lifetime investigations
• fatigue
• compression tests
• rubber materials