Introducing a novel sheet test specimen for biaxial stretching under uniaxial loading

This paper introduces a novel sheet test specimen that plastically deforms under biaxial stretching when subjected to uniaxial loading in conventional testing machines. The specimen was designed using finite element simulation and consists of a two-dimensional reticular structure with interconnected arms in the form of triangles that converge at the center and are connected to full-width sheets at the specimen's ends. Accumulation of damage at the center is ensured through spherical cups that are milled at opposite sheet surfaces. Experimental strain loading paths obtained by digital image correlation confirm the capability of the novel sheet test specimen to provide biaxial stretching strain paths. This is achieved under friction-independent conditions and without requiring complicated multiaxial setups and machines, provided appropriate values of the inner and outer angles of the interconnected arms are used.