Dart-drop test, impact resistance testing

We test the impact resistance of polymer plaques using the configuration shown in Fig. 8.8. We subject circular injection molded plaques to the shock of a falling weight with a hemispherical impacter. This test is also known as the Dart Drop Test . Samples can fail in a brittle or a ductile manner. Brittle samples often shatter. Ductile samples can split or a small disk may be punched out of their center. This test provides results that are analogous to those obtained from un-notched impact beam testing. 

Polymers which yield extensively under stress exhibit nonlinear stress-strain behavior. This invalidates the application of linear elastic fracture mechanics. It is usually assumed that the LEFM approach can be used if the size of the plastic zone is small compared to the dimensions of the object. Alternative concepts have been proposed for rating the fracture resistance of tougher polymers, like polyolelins, but empirical pendulum impact or dart drop tests are deeply entrenched forjudging such behavior. 

The falling weight or dart drop test method simulates actual day-to-day abuse and can be carried out either on standard laboratory specimens or on the articles themselves. Failure may occur in various ways ranging from brittle to ductile failure (Figure 14). Particular care must be taken to avoid the brittle failure by proper selection of grade. At temperatures below -20 °C, elastomer-modified PP is more impact resistant than PP copolymer and homopolymer. 

There are other types of impact tests for shock loading where energy is required to cause complete failure is reported. Each has their specific behaviors that can be related to specific product performance requirements. Tests include ball burst, ball or falling dart using different weights and heights, bag drop, bullet-type instantaneous impact, Charpy, dart drop, Mullen burst, tear resistance, and tub (2). 

Impact Resistance of Plastic Film by the Free-Falling Dart Method. Primary Film Test Method ASTM D1709 Additional Test Method ISO 7765-1. A weighted dart is dropped from a standard height onto a taut sample. Depending upon the expected impact strength of the test sample, either method A or method B is chosen. The method defines the dart size and the drop height for the dart. Test method A specifies a dart with a 38 mm diameter dropped from 0.66 m. Test method B specifies a dart with a 51 mm diameter dropped from 1.5 m. 

A free-falling dart method for polyethylene films is described in ASTM D1709. Unlike low-speed uniaxial tensile tests, the pendulum impact test measures the resistance of film to impact puncture, simulating high-speed end use application. Dart drop measures the energy lost by a moderate velocity blunt impact passing through... 

Driers Drop-Weight Test n (falling-weight test) Any test of impact resistance in which known weights are dropped once or repeatedly on the test specimen. Examples are ASTM D 4272 (plastic films), D 3029, D 4226, and D 4495 (rigid PVC sheet and parts), and F 736, Section 15, (polycarbonate sheet). Also see Free-Falling-Dart Test. 

Impact Resistance n (1) Ability of a coating to resist a sudden blow. Ability to resist deformation from impact. (2) The relative durability of plastics article to fracture under stresses applied at high speeds. A widely used ASTM impact test, www.astm.org, employs the Izod pendulum striker swung from a fixed height to strike a specimen in the form of a notched bar mounted vertically as a cantilever beam. The Charpy tester, an alternative in D 256, uses a specimen in the form of a horizontal beam supported at both ends. ASTM lists some several different impact tests for plastics and plastics products. See also Brittleness Temperature, Drop-Weight Test, Free-Falling-Dart Test, and... 

Tables 4—6 Ust ASTM methods used for the characterization of PB and PMP. A number of specialized methods were developed for testing particular articles manufactured from polyolefins several of these determine the performance of PB and PMP film, including the measurement of the film s dart impact strength and tear strength. Dart impact strength is measured by dropping a heavy dart with a round tip on a stretched film. Tear resistance, which reflects the film s resistance to tear propagation, is measured with the Ehnendorf tear tester. Two values for the tear strength are usually reported, one in the machine dkection of the film and the other in the transverse dkection. Pipes manufactured from PB are tested by pressurizing them internally with water the time-to-burst failure is determined at various temperatures (46). The standard test method for haze and luminous transmittance (ASTM D1003) is used for the measurement of PMP optical characteristics.

---