ASTM D4255/D4255M-01 - 10.10.2001
 
1. Scope

1.1 This test method determines the in-plane shear properties of high-modulus fiber-reinforced composite materials by either of two procedures. In Procedure A, laminates clamped between two pairs of loading rails are tested. When loaded in tension the rails introduce shear forces in the specimen. In Procedure B, laminates clamped on opposite edges with a tensile or compressive load applied to a third pair of rails in the center are tested.

1.2 Application of this test method is limited to continuous-fiber or discontinuous-fiber-reinforced polymer matrix composites in the following material forms:

1.2.1 Laminates composed only of unidirectional fibrous laminae, with the fiber direction oriented either parallel or perpendicular to the fixture rails.

1.2.2 Laminates composed only of woven fabric filamentary laminae with the warp direction oriented either parallel or perpendicular to the fixture rails.

1.2.3 Laminates of balanced and symmetric construction, with the 0 direction oriented either parallel or perpendicular to the fixture rails.

1.2.4 Short-fiber-reinforced composites with a majority of the fibers being randomly distributed.

Note 1—Additional test methods for determining in-plane shear properties of polymer matrix composites may be found in Test Methods D 5379/D 5379M and D 5448/D 5448M, and Practice D 3518/D 3518M.

1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.

1.4 The values stated in either SI units or inch-pound units are to be regarded separately as standard. Within the text the inch-pounds units are shown in brackets. The values stated in each system are not exact equivalents; therefore, each system must be used independently of the other. Combining values from the two systems may result in nonconformance with the standard.

 
2. Referenced Documents

E456-13a(2022)e1

Standard Terminology Relating to Quality and Statistics (Includes all amendments and changes 4/16/2024).

E1471-92(1998)

Standard Guide for Identification of Fibers, Fillers, and Core Materials in Computerized Material Property Databases

D883-26b

Standard Terminology Relating to Plastics (Includes all amendments and changes 8/24/2026).

D2734-23

Standard Test Methods for Void Content of Reinforced Plastics

D7078/D7078M-20(2025)

Standard Test Method for Shear Properties of Composite Materials by V-Notched Rail Shear Method

E251-20a

Standard Test Methods for Performance Characteristics of Metallic Bonded Resistance Strain Gages (Includes all amendments and changes 8/7/2020).

D3878-26

Standard Terminology for Composite Materials

D5229/D5229M-20

Standard Test Method for Moisture Absorption Properties and Equilibrium Conditioning of Polymer Matrix Composite Materials

D5379/D5379M-19(2026)

Standard Test Method for Shear Properties of Composite Materials by the V-Notched Beam Method

D5448/D5448M-22

Standard Test Method for Inplane Shear Properties of Hoop Wound Polymer Matrix Composite Cylinders

E4-24

Standard Practices for Force Calibration and Verification of Testing Machines

D2584-25

Standard Test Method for Ignition Loss of Cured Reinforced Resins

E6-25

Standard Terminology Relating to Methods of Mechanical Testing

E111-17(2025)e1

Standard Test Method for Young’s Modulus, Tangent Modulus, and Chord Modulus (Includes all amendments and changes 12/11/2025).

E122-17(2022)

Standard Practice for Calculating Sample Size to Estimate, With Specified Precision, the Average for a Characteristic of a Lot or Process

E1309-00

Standard Guide for Identification of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer-Matrix Composite Materials in Databases

E1434-00

Standard Guide for Recording Mechanical Test Data of Fiber-Reinforced Composite Materials in Databases

E177-26a

Standard Practice for Use of the Terms Precision and Bias in ASTM Test Methods (Includes all amendments and changes 5/14/2026).

D3171-22

Standard Test Methods for Constituent Content of Composite Materials

D3518/D3518M-18(2025)

Standard Test Method for In-Plane Shear Response of Polymer Matrix Composite Materials by Tensile Test of a ±45° Laminate

E1237-20

Standard Guide for Installing Bonded Resistance Strain Gages

D792-20

Standard Test Methods for Density and Specific Gravity (Relative Density) of Plastics by Displacement