title: An in situ tensile tester for studying electrochemical repassivation behavior: fabrication and challenges.
abstract: An in situ tensile rig is proposed, which allows performing electrochemical (repassivation) experiments during dynamic mechanical testing of wires. Utilizing the basic components of a conventional tensile tester, a custom-made minitensile rig was designed and fabricated. The maximal force that can be measured by the force sensor is 80 N, with a sensitivity of 0.5 mV/V. The maximum travel range of the crosshead induced by the motor is 10 mm with a minimum step size of 0.5 nm. The functionality of the tensile test rig was validated by investigating Cu and shape memory NiTi wires. Wires of lengths between 40 and 50 mm with varying gauge lengths can be tested. An interface between wire and electrochemical setup (noncontact) with a smart arrangement of electrodes facilitated the electrochemical measurements during tensile loading. Preliminary results on the repassivation behavior of Al wire are reported.
authors.affiliation: Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH, Max-Planck-Str. 1, D-40237 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Lakshman
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Neelakantan
authors.forename: Bernd
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schönberger
authors.forename: Gunther
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Eggeler
authors.forename: Achim Walter
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Hassel
mesh_terms: D000535:Aluminum; D003300:Copper; D004548:Elasticity; D004559:Electric Wiring; D055664:Electrochemical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004566:Electrodes; D004867:Equipment Design; D008422:Materials Testing / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D009532:Nickel; D010087:Oxides; D012984:Software; D014025:Titanium; D014584:User-Computer Interface
chemical_list: D010087:Oxides; D003300:Copper; D009532:Nickel; D000535:Aluminum; D014025:Titanium