Torsion Shear Test for Particleboard Adapted to a Universal Testing Machine

The internal torsion shear strengths of twenty-five comercial and laboratory particleboards were determined with a torsion apparatus designed, built, and adapted to a universal testing machine. The torsion values obtained by this relatively simple and rapid test correlate very well with the strength values obtained by the more expensive and time consuming internal bond test. The apparatus is designed for 1-inch-square samples and uses 8-point flush ground sockets. The load is applied through a 3.2-inch lever arm at a machine head speed of 1.2 inches per minute. Particleboard of all conventional thicknesses can be tested, and the torsional shear strength, although normally determined at the centerline of the board by means of aluminum spacers, can be evaluated at any predetermined level in the board. The advantages of this torsion shear apparatus over a torque wrench are that the load is applied at a constant rate and the failing load is permanently recorded on a chart.

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