Using Small Punch Test for Estimating Tensile Strength

The Small Punch (SP) technique is a miniature test used for characterizing irradiated materials or when a testing material is available only in small quantities. In this work a finite element model is used to simulate the SP test of ferritic/martensitic Grade 91 and 15-15Ti austenitic stainless steel using two different specimen types and three different specimen thicknesses. beta(1) correlation factors, relating the maximum force and displacement at maximum force to the ultimate tensile strength are computed for all cases and the effect of the friction coefficient is studied. The friction increases the maximum force and to a lesser extent the displacement at maximum force, however the impact is limited and can only be observed in the last third section of the force-displacement curve. Furthermore, a significant increase in the friction results has an overall limited impact on the correlation and transfer factors.