This document describes the procedure for conducting a tensile test to determine the tensile splitting strength of a material according to BS 1881 standards. Specimens are placed between hardboard packing strips and steel loading pieces and loaded continuously in a testing machine until failure. The tensile splitting strength is calculated using the maximum load at failure, specimen dimensions, and material density.

1. 2.) Tensile Test
• Test known as tensile splitting strength
• Shall be confirm to BS 1881 Part 117
• The testing machine shall comply with BS 1881 : Part 115
• Use hardboard packing strips between the specimen and steel
loading pieces. Packing strips shall be of oil tempered grade
hardboard complying with BS 1142 and shall be used only once
(see figures 1 (a) and (b)).
• width: a = 15 ± 2 mm ;
• thickness: t = 4 ± 1 mm;
• length: greater than the length of the line of contact of the test
specimen.

2. • Steel loading pieces shall be auxiliary platens
incorporating steel strips with the following
dimensions (see figure 2 (c)):
width : a = 6 ± 1 mm for 150 mm size specimens,
4 ± 1 mm for 100 mm size specimens;
thickness: t = 4 ± 1 mm;
length: not less than the length of the line of contact
with the test specimen.

3. Procedure
• Place a steel loading piece between the platen of the machine and the
hardboard packing strip
• For cubic and prismatic specimens, it shall be a section of a cylinder, with
radius 75 mm (see figures 1 (a) and (b))
• Positioning of the test specimen (see figure 1). Place the test specimen in
the centring jig with packing strips and/or loading pieces carefully
positioned along the top and bottom of the plane of loading of the
specimen
• place the jig in the machine so that the specimen is located centrally.
• In the case of prismatic and cubic specimens, the load shall be applied on
the moulded faces in such a way that the fracture plane will cross the
trowelled surface (see figure 2).
• Ensure that the upper platen is parallel with the lower platen with
cylindrical specimens.
• Without shock, apply and increase the load continuously at a nominal rate
within the range 0.02 N/mm² .s) to 0.04 N/mm² .s).

4. • The tensile splitting strength in N/m² is given by the formula
where
• F is the maximum load (in N);
• I is the length of the specimen as shown in figure 2 (in mm);
• d is the cross-sectional dimension of the specimen as shown in figure 2
(in mm).
• P is density of concrete
• Express the tensile splitting strength to the nearest 0.05 N/mm².