A Hydraulic Test Facility for Timber Structures

A new structural test unit at Purdue University consists of a structural floor slab, steel holding brackets, and a hydraulic system for applying load forces to full-scale specimens. Wall reactions are provided by steel brackets adjustable along tee slots for any span up to 40 feet. Load is applied by double acting hydraulic cylinders which are fastened to the floor by adjustable brackets. A hand pump unit can supply working pressures up to 1500 psi to either side of the cylinders to generate pushing or pulling forces up to 4000 psi per cylinder. Details of the slab layout are given. Advantages include immediate detection of specimen failure, uniform loading, simplified instrumentation, multiple load direction, repeated loads at short intervals, space economy, and safety.

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