A Binary and Bricks publication
Constropedia
Material Testing

Tensile Strength of Concrete: Split Cylinder Test

Concrete carries compression well but little tension, so the split cylinder test measures the tensile strength that reinforcement is there to make up for.

Constropedia Editorial First published October 2021 · Updated September 2026 · 2 min read

Tensile Strength of concrete

It is the ability of concrete to resist tensile stress applied on it. Concrete is a good performer in terms of compression, but significantly weak in tension force. This is the reason reinforcement is provided to balance weakness of concrete in tensile strength. Split cylinder test can be used to find out the tensile strength of concrete. Tensile strength is around 10% – 12% of its compressive strength.

Mix design and curing in one app Concrete Calculator All in One has a mix design library to IS and ACI standards and a curing tracker with strength development.
Try the app

Factors Affecting Tensile Strength of concrete

  • Quality of raw material
  • W/C Ratio (water Cement Ratio)
  • Age of concrete
  • Mix design of concrete
  • Temperature
  • Humidity
  • Curing

Significance and Use

  • Splitting tensile strength is generally greater than direct tensile strength and lower than flexural strength.
  • Splitting tensile strength is used in the design of structural lightweight concrete members to evaluate the shear resistance provided by concrete and to determine the development length of reinforcement.

Apparatus

  • Testing Machine: It should be capable of applying the load at a rate of 1.2 MPa/min to 2.4 MPa/min.
Blue ELE compression testing machine with two kN dial gauges and a mesh safety door open
  • Tamping Rod: For Compaction of concrete. 16mm in diameter and 600mm in length.
Plain steel tamping rod with rounded ends on a white background
  • Concrete Mould: Cylindrical steel made.
Four hollow grey concrete cylinders with thick walls standing on posts in snow
  • Trowel: for concrete work.
Clip-art hand trowel with a grey pointed blade and brown wooden handle

Split Cylinder Test Procedure

Sample Preparation: Pour good-quality concrete into the mould. It should be cast in 3 layers. Compact concrete well using compaction rod. Keep the top surface of the concrete smooth.

Curing: Cure the concrete specimen well for 7-28 days as per requirement of the specimen.

Measure the dimensions of the specimen well. Note them down.

Keep the specimen in the testing machine and start applying the load. The loading rate must be between 1.2 MPa/min and 2.4 MPa/min.

Record the maximum applied load at which specimen fails.

Calculations

T = 2P / (π × L × D)

Where, T = splitting tensile strength [MPa], P = maximum applied load indicated by the testing machine [N], L = length [mm], and
D = diameter [mm]

Keep reading in Material Testing