The Zwick High Energy Drop Weight Testers 20 to 100 kJ are used for testing of metals and particularly applied for pipeline technics.
The transportation of petroleum, petroleum products or other substances in pipelines is one of the most efficient and safest ways of transportation, since pipeline engineering is placed at a very high safety standard which is constantly being further developed. In view of a continuously increasing pipeline network, material testing is becoming more and more important for the protection of people and environment.
The drop weight test as the testing procedure helps to evaluate the fractured surfaces of ferritic steels, e.g. the relative proportions of deformation and brittle fracture surfaces are diagnosed by visual determination. Ferritic steels are usually used for pipeline tubes or for sheet metals for the manufacturing of such tubes.
The “Recommended Practice“ issued by the “American Petroleum Institute“ (API) describes the testing procedure API-RP 5L3 in which the so-called large-drop impact testers are used. In this test, a specimen supported at both ends is smashed with a cold-press-fitted notch, while the impact effect is opposite the notch. Since the specimen thicknesses are very large according to the pipeline tubes, high impact energies of up to 100 000 Joule are necessary for smashing the specimen.
The Zwick High Energy Drop Weight Testers are particularly characterised by their sophisticated safety concept that does not allow any access to the test area while in test mode. Furthermore, for drop weight tests, high specimen rates are required, which Zwick has implemented with the pneumatic in-feed of the tool including the specimen to the test area. | 
