Strain rate and temperature tests on AA6005-T6 using a Split-Hopkinson Tension Bar

This report presents a split-Hopkinson tension bar based on direct pre-tensioning of the input bar. This set-up provides a rather long stress wave with a short rise time, generating strain rates between 100 and 1500 s-1, depending on the pre-tension force. The bar, data acquisition system and response calculations are discussed in some detail. As an example of application, a test series on the aluminium alloy AA6005-T6 involving a standard servohydraulic machine in addition to the split-Hopkinson bar is presented. It turns out that the results obtained with these two devices are consistent, and that AA6005-T6 shows a positive strain rate sensitivity. The temperature testing is based on direct resistance heating of the specimen by passing current through it, and the temperature is measured with a probe. Although the set-up is simple, the errors are shown to be small, and test results on AA6005-T6 at temperatures from 100 to 300°C are presented. These results agree well with comparable results found in the literature.