Overview
EN ISO 5470-2:2021 - titled "Rubber- or plastics-coated fabrics - Determination of abrasion resistance - Part 2: Martindale abrader (ISO 5470-2:2021)" - is a CEN-adopted international standard that specifies laboratory methods for assessing abrasion resistance of the coated face(s) of rubber- or plastics-coated fabrics. The standard defines two separate Martindale-based procedures for wet and dry abrasion testing and replaces the 2003 edition.
Key topics
- Scope: Applies only to the coated surface(s) of coated fabrics; it does not cover uncoated textile surfaces (see ISO 12947 series for uncoated textiles).
- Two test methods:
- Method 1: Specimens clamped in circular holders and abraded under constant pressure; variant for wet abradant.
- Method 2: Specimen placed on the abradant table and the abradant moves relative to the sample.
- Martindale motion: Relative movement produces a Lissajous figure (area (60 ± 1) mm × (60 ± 1) mm). Machine speed and cycle definitions are specified (e.g., ~48 ± 4 rev/min and 16 revolutions per Lissajous cycle).
- Specimen and fixture details: Exposed flat specimen area, clamping ring dimensions, and parallelism tolerances are prescribed (e.g., exposed area (645 ± 5) mm²). Means to maintain a constant contact pressure (nominal mass ~795 ± 5 g producing 12 ± 0.2 kPa) are defined.
- Reference abradants: Either a wool abradant fabric (as per ISO 12947-1) or silicon carbide cloth (specified grade P180 and backing strength). Tests using different abradants are not directly comparable.
- Auxiliary requirements: Conditioning (ISO 2231), flat weightpieces (2 ± 0.2 kPa), specimen cutting tools and counting of abrasion cycles.
- Outputs: Test stopped after a set number of cycles or when a specified degree of abrasion is reached; results include cycles to failure or damage assessment and required test-report information.
Applications
- Quality control and product development for rubber- or plastics-coated fabrics used in upholstery, protective clothing, inflatable products, tarpaulins, automotive interiors, and industrial membranes.
- Acceptance testing by manufacturers, independent test laboratories, specifiers and procurement teams to compare wear performance of coated fabrics.
- Useful for material selection, benchmarking, failure analysis and lifetime prediction under simulated wet/dry abrasion conditions.
Related standards
- ISO 12947 series - Martindale method for uncoated textiles
- ISO 2231 - Standard atmospheres for conditioning and testing
- ISO 2286-1 - Roll characteristics for rubber- or plastics-coated fabrics
EN ISO 5470-2:2021 is essential for anyone needing standardized, reproducible measurement of abrasion resistance of coated fabrics using the Martindale abrader.