BRITISH STANDARD BS 4816:1972

Incorporating
Amendment No. 1

Method for

The determination of
the puncture resistance
of board

Confirmed
December 2011
BS 4816:1972
This British Standard, having
been approved by the Paper
Industry Standards Committee,
was published under the
authority of the Executive
Board on
21 July 1972
© BSI 07-1999
The following BSI references
relate to the work on this
standard:
Committee reference PAC/11
Draft for comment 71/50609
ISBN 0 580 07305 X
The following is a list of members of the Paper Industry Standards Committee,
who have had the preparation of this British Standard under consideration:
Chairman: Mr. H. R. Hutley Mr. F. E. Ashman
Vice-Chairman: Mr. A. C. Vincent H.M. Stationery Office
Mr. Gilbert A. Smith Mr. S. Bailey
British Federation of Master Printers National Association of Paper
Mr. R.W.H. Bray, A.F.C. Merchants
Mr. E. E. Capon Dr. N. K. Bridge
Mr. J. Harding Research Association for the Paper and
British Paper and Board Makers’ Board, Printing and Packaging
Association (Incorporated) Industries (PIRA)
Mr. J. Leather Dr. J. F. Heggie
British Railways Board Royal Institute of Public Health and
Mr. K. Timberlake Hygiene
Coated Paper and Board Makers’ Mr. R. L. Ballard
Association Mr. J. F. A. Rankin
Mr. C. Sumner Dr. M. N. Strachan
Mr. A.D. P. Tanner Mr. G. Thompson
Envelope Makers’ and Manufacturing Technical Section of the British Paper
Stationers’ Association and Board Makers’ Association
The following is a list of members of the Technical Committee on Methods of
Test for paper, Board and Pulp, the Committee actually responsible for the
preparation of this British Standard:
Chairman: Mr. H. R. Hutley Research Association for the Paper and
Mr. George L. Fuchs Board, Printing and Packaging Industries
Mr. G. J. Strode (PIRA)
British Federation of Master Printers Mr. H. A. Idle
Mr. M. R. Hadfield Society of British Printing Ink
British Paper and Board Makers’ Manufacturers
Association (Incorporated) Mr. R. L. Ballard
Mr. E. C. Allison Mr. J. D. Batley
Mr. M. J. Ford Mr. R. A. Beveridge
British Wood Pulp Association Mr. F. A. Guttfield
Mr. E. D. Garner Mr. F. J. T. Harris
Chemical Industries Association Mr. I. F. Hendry
Mr. H. F. Church Mr. L. F. Hopkins
Electrical Research Association Mr. K. A. Hyam
Mr. D. Horton Mr. D. J. McConnell
Mr. G. R. Keay Mr. A. P. McDonald
Mr. C. Sumner Mr. E. W. Peacock
Envelope Makers’ and Manufacturing Mr. R. Peerless
Stationers’ Association Mr. J. F. A. Rankin
Mr. J. A. Moore Mr. J. R. Simmons
Fibreboard Packing Case Manufacturers’ Mr. M. N. Strachan
Association Technical Section of the British Paper and
Mr. W. J. R. Howell Board Makers’ Association
H.M. Stationery Office Mr. E. Mytum
Mr. J. W. More Textile Institute
Man-made Fibre Producers’ Committee Mr. P. Howarth
Mr. C. F. Finney University of Manchester
Ministry of Defence, Army Department Mr. W. D. L. Anderson
Mr. J. A. Simmons Technical Committee DPE/2, Punched
Post Office Cards, Dimensions and Properties
Mr. R. J. Hamer Mr. C. F. Finney
Mr. F. D. Munday Technical Committee DPE/3, Punched
Tape, Dimensions and Properties
Amendments issued since publication
Amd. No. Date Comments
4350 July 1983 Indicated by a sideline in the margin
 BS 4816:1972

Contents

Page
Foreword ii
1 Scope 1
2 Principle 1
3 Apparatus 1
4 Sampling and preparation of test pieces 3
5 Conditioning 3
6 Procedure 3
7 Test report 3
Figure 1 — Apparatus for puncture test 2

© BSI 07-1999 i
BS 4816:1972

Foreword

This standard makes reference to the following British Standard:

BS 131, Methods for notched bar tests.
BS 131-4, Calibration of pendulum impact testing machines for metals.
BS 3430, Sampling of paper and board for testing.
BS 3431, Conditioning of paper and board test samples.
This British Standard is one of a series relating to the testing of paper and board,
published under the authority of the Paper Industry Standards Committee.
The procedure described in this British Standard is under consideration by the
relevant committee of the International Organization for Standardization and it
seems likely that it will eventually be adopted as an international standard.
Several makes of instruments are used for the measurement of the puncture
resistance of board, differing only in minor details. The results obtained with
these different makes of instrument are similar but not necessarily identical.
Therefore, for purposes of comparisons it is essential to ensure that the same
make of instrument is used for all tests.
A British Standard does not purport to include all the necessary provisions of a
contract. Users of British Standards are responsible for their correct application.
Compliance with a British Standard does not of itself confer immunity
from legal obligations.

Summary of pages
This document comprises a front cover, an inside front cover, pages i and ii,
pages 1 to 4, an inside back cover and a back cover.
This standard has been updated (see copyright date) and may have had
amendments incorporated. This will be indicated in the amendment table on the
inside front cover.

ii © BSI 07-1999

1 Scope
This British Standard specifies the apparatus and
test procedure for determining the puncture
resistance of board. It applies to all types of heavy
boards, including corrugated fibreboard, and
especially those used in the manufacture of packing
cases.
NOTE The titles of the British Standards referred to in this
standard are listed on page ii.
2 Principle
Test pieces from a representative sample of board
are subjected to puncture by a triangular pyramid
puncture head attached to a pendulum.
The energy required to force the puncture head
completely through the test piece, i.e. to make the
initial puncture and to tear and bend open the
board, is measured.
3 Apparatus
The following apparatus is required.
3.1 Puncture tester. This is an instrument that
produces an impact by means of a pendulum. The
bed plate of the frame of the instrument shall be
firmly attached to a strong base to prevent energy
losses. The instrument shall be accurately levelled,
and shall not vibrate during the test.
NOTE The instrument should be so designed that the energy
contained in the pendulum in each of the measuring ranges
corresponds to the respective scale. It is not easy to calibrate the
instruments used for this test; where calibration is necessary,
reference may be made to BS 131-4, which gives a method of
determining the initial potential energy.
3.2 Pendulum and puncture head (see Figure 1). The
pendulum shall be fitted with an arm, having the
shape of a 90° circular arc, to which the puncture
head is attached. Both pendulum and arm shall be
strong enough to minimize deformation and
vibration when the test is carried out.
The puncture head shall be a right angle triangular
metallic pyramid, 25 ± 0.7 mm high, with edges
between sides honed to any radius between 1.0 mm
and 1.6 mm.
One of the edges of the base of the pyramid shall be
parallel to the axis of rotation of the pendulum, and
the opposite corner of the base shall point towards
the axis of rotation.
The axis of symmetry through the effective point of
the puncture head shall be vertical when it is
half-way through the horizontal plane through the
axis of the pendulum1).
1) Toallow the use of existing instruments, a tolerance of ± 12.5 mm is acceptable on the distance between the mid point and the
horizontal plane.
2)
To permit the use of certain existing types of instrument the lower plate may have a centrally positioned circular aperture with
a diameter of up to 100 mm.
© BSI 07-1999
BS 4816:1972
At release point the pendulum shall be in the
horizontal position, which is determined by
measuring through an angle of 90° from the
pendulum with its centre of gravity at rest.
3.3 Measuring ranges. The use of interchangeable
weights that can be attached to the pendulum
provides several ranges of energy.
The range selected shall be such that the test result
will be between 20 % and 80 % of the maximum
value of the corresponding scale.
3.4 Release mechanism. A safety catch shall be
provided to prevent accidental release of the
pendulum. The release mechanism shall not impart
any acceleration or deceleration to the pendulum.
3.5 Collar (see Figure 1). The neck of the puncture
head shall be fitted with a close fitting collar
designed so as to slip off its seating and to keep open
the aperture in the test piece after the puncture
head has passed through. This is to prevent the
board from springing back on the arm and braking
the pendulum, thus altering the test result.
The loss of energy due to friction when the collar is
forced off its seating shall be measurable and shall
not exceed 0.25 J. This loss of energy shall be
compensated for in the reported test results.
3.6 Clamping device. To hold the test piece, two
horizontal clamping plates shall be provided, the
upper plate being fixed. The lower face of the upper
clamping plate — which contacts the test piece —
shall be on the horizontal plane through the axis of
the pendulum, or up to 7 mm above it.
Both clamping plates shall be sufficiently rigid to
withstand the clamping forces employed, without
deformation.
The effective clamping dimensions of the clamping
plates shall be not less than 175 mm × 175 mm.
The upper clamping plate shall have an opening in
the centre in the form of an equilateral triangle with
sides 100 ± 2 mm in length. The aperture in the
lower plate should preferably be identical and
coincident with that in the upper plate; however, a
centrally positioned circular aperture, with a
diameter of 90 ± 2 mm may be used2).
1
BS 4816:1972

Figure 1 — Apparatus for puncture test

3.7 Clamping force. The force holding the test piece
between the clamping plates shall be at least 250 N
and not more than 1 000 N. If the instrument has no
device for measuring the clamping force, the force
applied shall in any case be sufficient to ensure that
the test piece does not slip when the test is carried
out.
3.8 Indication of the measured result. The test result
shall be indicated by a friction loaded pointer
operating over a dial on which the several scales,
corresponding to the energy ranges, are marked.
The scale divisions shall be calibrated in joules3).
The friction mounting of the pointer shall be just
sufficient to ensure smooth operation without
over-run.
3.9 Adjustment of the instrument. For all measuring
ranges the effective point of the puncture head shall
be within ± 5 mm of the horizontal plane through
the axis of rotation of the pendulum, when the
centre of gravity of the pendulum is at its lowest
point.
3.10 Instrument checks. No compensation for loss of
energy due to friction shall be made in the
calibration of the measuring scales.
Energy loss due to friction in the bearings of the
pendulum and air resistance shall not exceed 1 % of
the maximum scale reading.

3) Many existing instruments are calibrated in GE units or kgf cm:

1 GE unit = 0.0298 J
1 kgf cm = 0.098 J

2 © BSI 07-1999

To measure energy loss due to collar friction a
slip-off device shall be provided which catches the
collar when the pendulum is allowed to swing freely
from the release point.
Energy losses due to pointer friction shall be
determined by allowing the pendulum to make two
free swings from the release position. The first
swing shall carry the pointer close to the scale zero.
The second free swing, made without resetting the
pointer, shall carry the pointer nearer to the zero
reading. The difference between the two readings
will represent the energy loss due to pointer friction.
When making re-adjustments to the settings of the
measuring scales the following checks shall be
made.
3.10.1 Allow the pendulum to come to rest, with its
centre of gravity at the lowest point, then move the
pointer towards the maximum scale value. When
the drive pin just touches the pointer the latter
should indicate the maximum scale value. Carry out
an analogous check with the pendulum in the
horizontal position, 180° from the release point,
when the pointer should indicate zero.
4 Sampling and preparation of test
pieces
4.1 Sampling. Select samples in accordance with
the requirements of BS 3430.
4.2 Preparation of test pieces. Prepare test
pieces with minimum dimensions
of 175 mm × 175 mm from the sample selected in
accordance with the requirements of 4.1. These test
pieces shall be free from conversion machine marks,
irregularities, or damage. In no instance should the
puncture area be less than 60 mm from the edge of
the test piece or from any crease, score, or printed
area. If for some reason a printed area is used for the
test, then this shall be stated in the test report.
5 Conditioning
Condition the test pieces in accordance with the
requirements of BS 3431.
6 Procedure
Carry out the tests in the standard atmosphere
specified in 5.
Place the test piece between the clamping plates
and clamp it with a constant force. If the instrument
is equipped with a clamping force measuring device,
record the force.
Adjust the pendulum mass, using the
supplementary weights as necessary, to operate
over the energy range that will contain the expected
test result within 20 % and 80 % of its maximum
value.
© BSI 07-1999
BS 4816:1972
With the pendulum held by the release mechanism,
slide the collar over its seating on the neck of the
puncture head, and set the indicating pointer to the
maximum scale value.
Then operate the release mechanism so that the
puncture head completely pierces and passes
through the test piece. Read the amount of energy
used, representing the work in puncturing the test
piece and overcoming the friction in the instrument,
from the appropriate scale. Scale readings should be
to the nearest 0.1 J for measuring ranges up to 12 J
and to the nearest 0.2 J for measuring ranges
above 12 J.
Correct the test result for predetermined energy
losses caused by friction in the apparatus.
Unless otherwise agreed between the parties, make
ten replicate tests from each side of the material,
five tests from each side with the cross direction or
the flutes parallel with the axis of rotation of the
pendulum, and five tests from each side with the
cross direction or the flutes perpendicular to the
axis of rotation of the pendulum.
7 Test report
The test report shall refer to this British Standard
and shall include the following:
1) Date and place of testing.
2) Make and type of test instrument used.
3) Description and identification of the material
tested.
4) Number of replicate tests carried out.
5) Arithmetic means of all the replicate test
results in joules.
6) If required, separate arithmetic mean and
range of the results for each configuration, i.e. the
results of the tests made from each direction and
from each side.
7) Clamping force in newtons.
8) Details of any deviation from this testing
method.
9) Any other information which may assist in the
interpretation of the test results.
3
4 blank
 BS 4816:1972

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© BSI 07-1999
BS 4816:1972

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