EN12089 - Determining bending behavior of thermal insulation products

Thermal insulation products are used extensively in the building and construction sector. This European standard dictates the procedure and equipment required to find the flexural properties of insulating materials. These properties are important for discovering the ability of the material to withstand bending stresses, which can occur during transportation or in their final application. The standard allows for the testing of both full size products (Method A) and specialized test specimens (Method B). The required results are maximum bending force, stress, and deflection.  A 3300 or 5900 dual column frame is recommended for testing. 

• Performing a three point bending test according to the specifications of the standard
• Recording a the required amount of data points to capture the true maximum flexural strength
• Ensuring specimen alignment on the bend fixture

• Performing the tests according to the specifications of the standard - Instron engineers have designed a custom bend fixture in order to adhere to the strict geometric requirements of the bending fixture as stated in EN 12089.
• Recording the required amount of data points - Instron's Bluehill^® Universal testing software allows the user to adjust the data sampling rate of the software, up to 1 kHz in order to capture the most data points.  With the advanced perfomance option available on 5900 series frames, a data sampling rate of up to 2.5 kHz can be used.
• Ensuring specimen alignment - The bend fixture has an adjustable span for the lower anvils, as well as an included centering jig, in order to allow for proper alignment during testing.

It is important to review EN 12089:2013 in order to fully understand the test setup, procedure, and results requirements.