Dynamic Tensile Testing of Soft Materials

Determination of dynamic tensile response of soft materials has been a challenge because of experimental difficulties. Split Hopkinson tension bar (SHTB) is a commonly used device for the characterization of high-rate tensile behavior of engineering materials. However, when the specimen is soft, it is challenging to design the necessary grips, to measure the weak transmitted signals, and for the specimen to achieve dynamic stress equilibrium. In this work, we modified the SHTB on the loading pulse, the equilibrium-monitoring system, and the specimen geometry. The results obtained using this modified device to characterize a soft rubber indicate that the specimen deforms under dynamic stress equilibrium at a nearly constant strain rate. Axial and radial inertia effects commonly encountered in dynamic characterization of soft materials are also minimized.