This test provides tensile property data on extruded electrical wire insulation removed from the wire/cable specimen. Identifying the insulation’s tensile properties are useful to determine the ability to withstand mechanical stresses the wire/cable may experience in service conditions. Using a power driven tensile test machine, the insulation is stretched until breakage. At the end of the test, the average wire/cable insulation tensile strength and elongation is identified.
Depending on the particular needs of the client, it may be beneficial to perform comparison testing of tensile properties before and after the environmental or thermal exposure. The potential benefit of this is to determine the extent of insulation degradation due to the environmental exposure.