ASTM D2261 Tearing Strength of Fabrics

Originally introduced in 1964, the latest version was released in 2013. It specifies the method for tear testing of fabrics by the tongue (single rip) procedure to measure the tearing strength of fabrics.

This test method applies to most fabrics, including those which are treated or untreated. In this test method, a cut is made in a rectangular specimen, which starts a tear. By cutting the material, two “tongues” are formed. One tongue is placed in the upper jaw and one tongue is placed in the lower jaw. As the test is run, the jaws move apart and the fabric tears along the pre-cut segment. The resulting data reflects the strength of the yarns, fiber bonds, and fiber interlocks, as well as their resistance to tearing.

When testing to this standard, it is important to consider data rate. To consistently and accurately measure the tear strength of your material, it is important to remember that the data sampling rate has to be high enough that the test peaks and troughs are captured.

The challenges of testing to this standard are:

• Rapid data capture rate
• Specimen preparation
• Reporting calculations in compliance with the standard

• Rapid data capture rate with Instron's 5900 controller allows data peaks and valleys to be captured accurately at up to 2,500 points per second
• Instron pneumatic side action grips with rubber faces are well-suited to gripping nearly all types of fabric specimens for this test while maintaining high throughput
• Instron Bluehill^® testing software has advanced pre-built methods available with pre-configured plastic specific calculations helping to ensure compliance

It is important to review ASTM D2261-13 in order to fully understand the test setup, procedure, and results requirements.