A trapezoid is marked on the specimen, a short slit is cut on one edge, and the two non-parallel sides are clamped so the fabric tears progressively along the slit. The result shows how well a fabric resists a tear spreading from a puncture or snag during placement. It is one of the survivability properties in highway geotextile specs.
Heard on the job
Trapezoid tear on the woven is fine in MD, but CD is sitting right on the minimum.
Also heard as
- trap tear
- trapezoidal tear
Related terms
Survivability
A geosynthetic's ability to make it through shipping, placement and compaction without being damaged.
Grab tensile
Index tensile test on geotextiles in which a 100 mm wide specimen is gripped by 25 mm jaws in its middle.
AASHTO M 288
US highway specification for geotextiles that sets required properties by application and survivability class.