Assessing single point fracture
Sometimes you quite simply want to measure the force to break something in the middle. Many products exist in a solid bar form and as such their snap strength – or force to break – is of interest. Another single point fracture device is the Crisp Fracture Support Rig which is used to measure the fracturability of snack foods and potato crisps (known in some countries as chips) by means of a penetration test. It allows quick location and alignment of the sample over a circular support. A spherical probe then moved down onto the sample up to the point of fracture. Normally a batch of 12 crisps is individually tested and the averages of the 12 maximum peak force and distance at break/fracture values are calculated to give a measure of fracturability.
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