Texture Analysis in action: Universal Syringe Rig

The innovative UNIVERSAL SYRINGE RIG* (A/USR) effectively measures the aspiration and extraction forces of syringe pistons.

The extraction force quantifies how easily the injectable material is expressed during syringe depression and material discharge. This measured force impacts patient comfort during injection and affects how the material is received when deposited under the skin.

Let's get cracking - tips and tricks for successful fracturability testing

FRACTURABILITY is the tendency of a material to fracture, crumble, crack, shatter or fail upon the application of a relatively small amount of force or impact.

It is usually displayed by a product of high degree of hardness and low degree of cohesiveness and is commonly the textural property possessed by baked goods, snacks and generally 'dry' products. 

Fracturability encompasses crumbliness, crispiness, crunchiness and brittleness. A material is brittle if it is liable to fracture when subjected to stress. That is, it has little tendency to deform (or strain) before fracture and usually makes a snapping sound.

Assessing single point fracture

Sometimes you quite simply want to measure the force to break something in the middle.  Many products exist in a solid bar form and as such their snap strength – or force to break – is of interest.

A Three Point Bend test mimics the breaking of the product in half by supporting a bar with guides positioned a suitable distance apart and pushing down centrally with a curved blade from the top. A low force is indicative of a product which requires little effort by the consumer to break whilst the distance at the break point indicates the degree of flexibility, or conversely brittleness, that the product possesses.