At ADMET, we first diagnose your testing application fully before recommending a product. When you work with ADMET, you work with sales professionals from engineering backgrounds that will help you find a solution to your testing needs.
When diagnosing your testing application, there are four main areas that we focus on:
Specimen Material
A broad range of materials including but not limited to adhesives, plastics, concrete, medical devices, metals, textiles, and wood can be tested with universal testing machines. The type of material as well as the dimensions of the sample play important roles in determining the right equipment for your needs.
Automated Testing Based on Material Type
ADMET machines come with features designed to simplify testing specifically for material types. For example, our systems can automatically average the peel strength data over a specified distance and report adhesive strength per unit width of adhesive. Grips and fixtures are also designed for specific peel and shear strength tests including the 90 degree peel fixture and the climbing drum peel fixture.
For concrete, ADMET offers indicators designed for streamlined concrete testing by including pre-defined settings in accordance with ASTM/AASHTO test methods, auto-test-reset modes, and bar graph load rate displays that are used to verify stress and load rates throughout testing.
ADMET’s foam testing product line includes the eXpert 5603F foam testing system and the eXpert 5900F fatigue testing system. ASTM D3574 Indentation Force Deflection (IFD) and ISO 2439 test procedures as well as the memory foam recovery time, Cornell Mattress and Squirmin’ Herman tests can all be performed with our foam testing product line.
The biomedical industry is another field where the road to success involves technical testing tailored for specific materials and products. ADMET offers a wide range of single and dual actuator systems to meet industry needs for testing tissue or materials like bioabsorbables, stents, and sutures. Static and dynamic testing systems that meet medical device regulatory guidelines are used to determine the mechanical properties of various implants and bone screws, the durability of external fixation devices, the strength of luer connectors, the flexibility of catheters, the adhesive properties of bandages, or the plunger forces of syringes.
In addition to standard universal testing systems, ADMET offers miniature test systems that sit atop a microscope stage and fit inside perfusion bioreactors. eXpert 4000 MicroTesters are suited for use in research of specimens in low force and small displacement ranges that can also be difficult to hold.
Material Type & Dimensions for Grip & Accessory Selection
ADMET grips and fixtures are first categorized by the force capacity. The maximum force capacity of the grip usually matches the capacity of the testing machine. For tensile testing, there are a variety of grip types available including manual vise, wedge, pneumatic, hydraulic, and more specialized fixtures like rope and thread, webbing, pinching and self-tightening grips. Further information on choosing the right type of tensile grips can be found in the link below:
What kind of tensile grips should I buy?
Each grip accommodates certain specimen dimensions based on the opening size of its jaws. Furthermore, some grips come with additional opening specifications. For example, GV-5T 5kN vise grips come with three different opening specifications: 24 mm (0.94 in), 50 mm (1.97 in), and 100 mm (3.94 in).
Manual vise grips from left to right: GV-5T, GV-5T-S100, and GV-5T-S50
It is important to consider the dimensions of the specimen when selecting a grip. The principle of operation of webbing grips involves wrapping the samples around the drum roll, thus a minimum sample length is tested in addition to the maximum possible sample width and thickness.
Beyond tensile testing, compression testing with compression platens and bend or flexural testing with bend fixtures also involve diagnosing the specimen material specifications to avoid an incompatible platen or fixture.
ADMET sales engineers will ask for the specimen specifications when selecting additional accessories including extensometers and other displacement transducers. The gauge length and the total travel range (based on elongation or deflection of the specimen) will help us recommend the right displacement transducer for your needs. ADMET’s Axial Extensometer Guide includes further information on available gauge length and travel range options for the standard EX-3542 axial extensometer.
Axial Extensometer Guide
Test Type
ADMET universal testing machines are able to perform a variety of testing including tension, compression, bend, torsion, and peel testing.
Universal testing machine series include:
- eXpert 1600 Servohydraulic Testing Machines
- eXpert 2600 Dual Column Testing Machines
- eXpert 4000 MicroTester
- eXpert 5000 Modular Testing Machines
- eXpert 7600 Single Column Testing Machines
We also offer machines capable of torsion, axial-torsion, planar biaxial, and fatigue testing.
Biaxial testing machines include the eXpert 8600 axial torsion testing machines that are often used for testing a wide range of materials and devices like screws in torsion, medical implant and body fusion devices, luer taper fittings and planar biaxial testing systems where each axis can be programmed for independent or coordinated motion.
The eXpert 9000 series consist of a line of vertical and horizontal torsion systems at different capacities that are used to determine torque properties. All torsion testers feature unlimited rotation in both directions.
eXpert 9000 models available and their specifications
Fatigue testing often requires careful diagnosis of the customer application. ADMET offers electromechanical fatigue, hydraulic fatigue, and torsional fatigue systems. These systems can be modified based on the customer needs.
Controllers and Indicators based on Test Type
ADMET offers a variety of controller and indicator options. Our experience diagnosing customer applications has taught us that no two testing challenges are exactly the same. For example, not all applications require a software component. ADMET’s Pi indicators, DFG Concrete Indicator, Gauge Buster 2 Indicator, and the eP2 indicator and controller feature a touch panel to set up tests and view results. Concrete indicators show the load rate as a bar graph to ensure fixed rates are attained throughout testing. For customers looking to print results or analyze them in Excel, optional software packages are offered.
Conversely, MTESTQuattro is a PC-based application program capable of performing all types of tests including tension, compression, creep, fatigue, friction, flexure, relaxation, peel, shear and tear tests.
Quick tip
Each ADMET fatigue tester comes with one of the two closed-loop controller options configured for fatigue testing. MTESTQuattro can be programmed to generate sine, square and triangular waveforms. Users can manually adjust control gains and end point values on the fly or activate amplitude control so that the controller automatically adjusts the end point values to ensure that the desired dynamic fatigue targets are met.
The DC1x controller is compatible with all ADMET servo-hydraulic and electro-mechanical dynamic test systems and can also be retrofitted onto a wide variety of testing systems from other manufacturers. It provides basic sine, square, and triangle waveforms. Amplitude control is a standard compensation program that tracks the feedback signal and automatically adjusts amplitude and setpoint control values until the desired peak and valley levels are achieved. It is ideal for cyclic tests under load control where test system or specimen characteristics vary over time. During test, users can view peak/valley levels and number of cycles completed.
Testing Standard
Equipment Designed per & Preloaded with Standard Test Methods
Testing standards often play an important role when selecting testing equipment as most standards include sections with the recommended or required apparatus and fixturing. Standards also specify the details of the test such as preloads, speeds, and the distance between grips.
All ADMET systems feature servo controlled constant-rate-of-extension travel and meet or exceed ASTM E4, the standard practice for force verification of testing machines that is required in order to perform many ASTM and ISO specifications.
In addition, ADMET’s constant-rate-of-extension (CRE) and constant-rate-of-loading (CRL) machines meet or exceed ASTM D76 which covers the operating characteristics of tensile testing machines for the determination of the force and elongation properties of textile materials.
ADMET software is preloaded with common test methods such as ASTM D790 (flexural strength of plastics), ASTM D638 (tensile strength of plastics), ASTM D412 (tensile strength of elastomers), and ASTM D882 (tensile strength of films).
ASTM F543 for medical bone screw testing is a test standard that includes multiple test procedures:
- A1 – Vertical Torsion
- A2 – Insertion/Removal Torsion
- A3 – Pullout Strength
- A4 – Axial compression load force of self-tapping bone screws.
eXpert 8600 Axial-Torsion Testing Systems equipped with MTESTQuattro come pre-programmed for specific test procedures including ASTM F543 test procedures:
We offer a line of grips & fixtures that are designed per the dimensions given in ASTM, ISO, or DIN standards.
Capacity
ADMET Sales Engineers will ask the maximum force required for your testing before recommending a specific product as our product lines are divided by capacity.
Note: Our load calculator can be used to determine the amount of force required to test your samples.
eXpert 7600, single-column universal testing machines, are offered in three force capacities: 1kN (225lbf), 2.5kN (500lbf), and 5kN (1,000lbf). Different configurations for each force capacity can be found in the specifications table below.
eXpert 7600 model specifications
eXpert 2600 dual-column electromechanical universal testing systems come in either the table top or floor standing configuration. Table top model force capacities range from 250N (50lbf) to 50kN (11,250lbf). Floor standing models can go up to 400kN (90,000lbf).
eXpert 2600 model specifications
Higher force capacities are available with eXpert 1000 servohydraulic frames. eXpert 1600 Series frames perform static tension, compression, and bend tests. eXpert 1900 Series dynamic testers are used for fatigue testing.
eXpert 1000 models and their specifications
For a list of ADMET equipment categorized by force capacity, click here.
For further information on all ADMET testing systems, see our Universal Testing Machines page.
Conclusion
The four categories discussed above play an important role in determining the right equipment for your testing needs. This will also affect the pricing of the required equipment. Instead of pushing our customers to one standard solution, we will ask the details of your testing and the expected outcome in order to find the right solution that will meet your needs.
