Investigation of Sample-size Influence on Tensile Test Results at Different Strain Rates

The paper deals with the determination of dynamic mechanical properties of steel sheets by the miniature testing technique. Several materials were investigated, namely S235, S355 and 1.4301. The newly developed micro-tensile test (M-TT) allows local mechanical properties measurement which can be successfully used for example for weld heterogeneity determination. Furthermore, due to small size samples (tensile sample gauge section dimension of 0,5x1,5x3 mm), much higher strain rates can be attained using relatively slow loading velocities in comparison to standard dynamic tests resulting in high results consistency thanks to significant reduction of the oscillations which are typical for common high strain rate tests. The results obtained from M-TT and standard tensile tests were compared.