Inter-laboratory comparison of biaxial tests for architectural textiles

Abstract

Architectural fabrics are used in high-profile tensile structures worldwide, and the accurate determination of fabric material properties is vital to achieve safe, efficient designs. There are currently limited standards for biaxial testing of fabrics used in building structures. The ability to carry out repeatable tests in multiple locations is vital for the validation and implementation of the forthcoming Eurocode 10, which will include requirements for the design of fabric structures. This paper describes the comparison of two biaxial test machines using finite element analysis of the cruciform test specimens and discusses the difficulties inherent in comparison of test results. It is found that exact replication of test protocols on two different machines is difficult to achieve, and a method is developed to facilitate a meaningful comparison of test data where the timing and/or stress levels differ between tests. Guidelines are provided to assist in future comparative testing.