The outer part (exocarp) of the husk is rather hard, and is firmly secured to the internal fibrous structure. An attempt has been made to find out the tearing force needed to detach the exocarp from the internal fibrous structure. This test was also carried out on the UTM. A hole was made on the bottom side of the husk and a piece of wire was drawn through (as in the case of the tensile test) to grip the husk by the bottom jaw. The exocarp of the husk was peeled-off manually and was tied to the top jaw. The bottom jaw moved downward at a constant rate and the load required to tear the husk was recorded.