Teaching Equipment
Carleton Lab has recently created a designated student experimental teaching area within the lab. These experimental learning stations are equipped with state-of-the-art testing equipment that can be operated by the students. The use of designated teaching equipment allows the students to experience experiments more closely than through traditional demonstrations as performed on the major testing equipment, which can only be operated by trained lab staff.
Due to the nature and scale of the materials in the field of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, the lab operates a mix of dedicated student test equipment and full-scale testing machines, as used in material testing and standards laboratories. This gives students both a chance to perform hands-on experimentation as well as an understanding of full-scale testing through interactive demonstrations.
STUDENT EQUIPMENT
Soldering Stations
Carleton Laboratory has five new soldering stations that are used for both instruction and research. Students learn how to make low-voltage electrical connections by soldering contacts onto strain gages and breadboards. The stations are also used in the manufacture of various test apparatuses and setups.
Elastoplastic Torsion Machine
The elastoplastic torsion machine allows students to test different material specimens in torsion, both in the elastic and plastic range. An angle meter and torsional load cell with digital readout make both the operation and data acquisition straightforward.
Torsion-Fatigue Machine
The torsion-fatigue machine allows students to test different material specimens in high cycle fatigue. An automatic cycle counter makes data collection a breeze. The machine is also significantly quieter than many older commercial models, making it ideal for use in a teaching environment.
Creep Testing Machine
The creep testing machine allows students to investigate the creep and thermal expansion properties of various materials. A digital micrometer and standard thermometer provide ease of data collection.
Hydraulic Benches
The hydraulic benches and laminar flow table allow students to perform various fluid mechanics experiments in a controlled, easily reproducible manner. The experiments range from laminar flow, weir flow, hydrostatic pressure, orifice discharge, Bernoulli’s theorem, etc. The hydraulic benches are fully self-contained and operate on a recirculating water supply, allowing students to perform the experiments without significant water waste.
Tinius Olsen Impact Tester
The Tinius Olsen impact tester allows students to experience the behavior of materials under highly dynamic (impact) loading. The impact hammer allows students to understand the effects metallurgic properties, stress concentrations due to geometric constraints, and temperature on the impact resistance of metals.
Three Point Bending Frame
The three point bending frame allows students to investigate the behavior of different materials under bending force. The importance of both tension and compression strength of materials is underlined by use of unreinforced and reinforced plaster beams. A compression force data is provided through a load cell with a digital display.
FULL-SCALE EQUIPMENT
- Baldwin 200k Universal Tester
- Baldwin 20k Universal Tester
- Instron 30k Universal Tester
- Hydraulic 2 ton Shake Table
- Wilson/Rockwell Hardness Tester
DATA ACQUIsITION SYSTEMS
The laboratory maintains a full suite of modular PC-interfaced data acquisition systems at all major testing machines. These PC-integrated DAQ systems allow data to be acquired, displayed graphically, and post-processed in the NI LabView Developer’s Suite at each workstation. This technology permits students to truly experience the experiments in a live fashion without having to write down test results by hand during the test and, above all, provides them with a rich and precise data set of the test.
MACHINE SHOP
The Carleton Laboratory Machine Shop is open to students performing in-depth experimental research with faculty of the department of Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics or are members of the AISC Steel Bridge Team. The use of the machine shop can give students an incredibly valuable insight into the world of machining. However, due to the inherent dangers of metal machining, proper training and supervision of student activities by laboratory staff is absolutely pivotal.