Breaking strength is more commonly known as tensile strength. It is defined as the point at which certain materials deform or break under a given load. The point at which the material reaches breaking strength is described as necking.
Tear strength testing uses tensile forces, usually administered by a specially calibrated machine, to test the strength of a material.
Choke occurs when a material is pushed to its breaking point or tensile strength. As the material is pushed towards the edge, the cross section begins to shrink significantly. In the world of mechanics, breaking strength is simply described as the opposite of compressive strength.
The breaking or tensile strength of a given material is identified through tensile tests. During the procedure, information about the stress of the material is recorded when different amounts of stress are applied. The readings are plotted and the point on the curve that is reached before the material begins to strain indicates the ultimate breaking strength or ultimate tensile strength of the material. The numbers reported by such tests indicate the maximum load a material can withstand before it breaks or becomes irreparable.
Ultimate tensile strength is usually noted by looking at the force a material can withstand per unit area. The most common forms of measurement used to arrive at the tensile strength of materials are the pounds of force it can withstand per square inch or the kilogram/pound it can take per square inch. These measurements equal 1,000 pounds or 453.59 kilograms per square inch. For convenience, the most commonly used measurement is the kilo/pound per square inch, also known as KSI.
Breaking strength measurements are most often calculated for brittle materials. Materials considered brittle include alloys, composites, ceramics, plastics, and wood. Tensile strength would be important for these materials because they are materials that can easily deform or break. Although tensile strength can also be used for materials considered ductile, this is rarely the case as such materials tend to be less susceptible to breakage and it is less important to know the force that will damage them.
The test to calculate the breaking strength of a given piece of material is quite simplistic in nature. A sample of the material is taken and placed in a machine that holds the material. The machine then gradually applies force and begins a pulling motion; this pulling motion continues until the material deforms beyond repair or until the piece of material breaks. The point before irreparable breakage or deformity becomes recorded information as the breaking strength of that particular type of material.