Determination of Tensile Properties of Hemp-Fiber Bundle by Using Tensile Testing Equipment with Raspberry Pi

Abstract:

Tensile strength of some natural fibers such as hemp is higher than that of steel. To determine tensile properties of hemp fiber, a fiber or bundle is tensile tested with universal testing machine that is controlled by personal computer. This paper presents a small tensile testing equipment that is controlled by Raspberry Pi (RPi), a credit-card-sized single-board computer. General Purpose Input Output (GPIO) pins on RPi were used for controlling the machine crosshead and receiving the tensile load that apply to a hemp bundle. A stepper motor was used to drive the crosshead. Tensile load was measured by using a load measurement system included load-cell, instrument amplifier, and analog-to-digital converter. The applied load and extension were real-time displayed and continuously recorded throughout the test. Testing hemp-fiber bundles with the proposed equipment found that their tensile strength and Youngs modulus were 446.75±184.36 MPa and 18.23±8.26 GPa, respectively. These results were in good agreement with the properties founded in other publications. Test results also found that hemp-fiber bundle with smaller diameter showed higher tensile strength than that of larger one.

• Periodical: Advanced Materials Research (Volumes 931-932)
• Pages: 1308-1312
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.931-932.1308
• Online since: May 2014
• Authors: Paiboon Limpitipanich*, Anucha Promwungkwa
• Keywords: Hemp Fiber, Load Measurement System, Raspberry Pi, Tensile Properties, Tensile Testing Equipment

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