4.1 The flexural fatigue test provides information on the
ability of rigid plastics to resist the development of cracks or
general mechanical deterioration of the material as a result of
a relatively large number of cycles of constant amplitude of
force.
4.2 This test method is useful to determine the effect of
variations in material, stress, and environmental conditions on
the ability of a material to resist deterioration resulting from
repeated stress. It may also be used to provide data for use as
a guide to design and selection of materials for service under
conditions of repeated stress.
4.3 The results are suitable for direct application in design
only when all design factors including magnitude and mode of
stress, size and shape of part, ambient and part temperature,
heat transfer conditions, cyclic frequency, and environmental
conditions are comparable to the test conditions.
4.4 The results obtained from testing machines other than
the type described here may not agree due to differences in
specimen size and geometry, testing machine speeds, heat
transfer, material fabrication, etc.
4.5 The type of machine covered in this test method is
suitable for determining the fatigue strength for a range of
mean stress in flexure. However, for plastic materials, which
creep and stress relax, the effect of a mean stress other than
zero is to cause relaxation so that the stress cycle tends to
approach the condition of complete reversal of stress.
4.6 Tests of thin sheet yield results which vary with the
thickness of the sheet (Note 1). Because of this fact the
thickness of the sheet shall be specified when reporting results
of tests of thin sheet; and all comparisons of different materials,
or selection of materials on the basis of fatigue strength, shall
be made from results of tests of standard specimens or tests in
which the same thickness of sheet is used for all materials.