{"id":4819,"date":"2026-07-11T09:14:58","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T01:14:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/bitumen-ductility-test-astm-d113\/"},"modified":"2026-07-11T09:20:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T01:20:00","slug":"bitumen-ductility-test-astm-d113","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/bitumen-ductility-test-astm-d113\/","title":{"rendered":"Bitumen Ductility Test (ASTM D113): Method &#038; Apparatus"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!-- nleeat --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-guide-meta\" style=\"border-left:4px solid #10243e;background:#f4f7fb;padding:12px 16px;margin:0 0 20px;font-size:14px;color:#3d4c60\">Written by the <strong>NL Scientific Engineering Team<\/strong> &middot; Reviewed by our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/certifications\/\">ISO\/IEC 17025 (SAMM 835) accredited<\/a> calibration laboratory &middot; Last updated <strong>11 July 2026<\/strong><\/div>\n<p>The <strong>ductility test<\/strong> measures how far a bitumen briquette stretches before breaking \u2014 an index of the binder&#8217;s cohesion and its ability to deform without cracking under traffic and thermal movement.<\/p>\n<h2>What the Test Measures<\/h2>\n<p>A moulded briquette with a 10&times;10 mm waist cross-section is pulled apart in a temperature-controlled water bath at 25 &deg;C and 5 cm\/min. The elongation at the moment the thread breaks, in centimetres, is the ductility.<\/p>\n<h2>Apparatus Required<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Ductilometer (ductility testing machine) with motorised carriage, 5 cm\/min &plusmn; 5% speed and measuring scale (most machines test three briquettes simultaneously)<\/li>\n<li>Brass briquette moulds with side pieces and base plate<\/li>\n<li>Water bath with temperature control 25 &plusmn; 0.1 &deg;C and salt\/glycerol density adjustment to keep the thread suspended<\/li>\n<li>Release agent, straightedge and trimming knife<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Test Procedure<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>Pour molten, sieved bitumen into assembled moulds; cool at room temperature 30&ndash;40 min, then in the 25 &deg;C bath 30 min; trim flush.<\/li>\n<li>Condition the assembled briquettes in the bath 85&ndash;95 min at 25 &deg;C.<\/li>\n<li>Remove side pieces, hook moulds to the fixed and moving pins, and pull at 5 cm\/min.<\/li>\n<li>Record elongation at rupture for each briquette; the thread must stay submerged 25&ndash;50 mm deep \u2014 adjust bath density if it floats or sinks.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2>Calculation &amp; Reporting<\/h2>\n<p>Report the mean of three briquettes to the nearest centimetre with test temperature and speed. If results scatter beyond the standard&#8217;s repeatability, repeat the set.<\/p>\n<h2>Acceptance Criteria<\/h2>\n<p>Paving specifications typically require minimum 75&ndash;100 cm at 25 &deg;C for 60\/70 and 80\/100 grades; many specs simply state &#8220;100+&#8221;. Oxidised or blown bitumens give much lower values by design.<\/p>\n<h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n<h3>What does low ductility indicate?<\/h3>\n<p>Age-hardened, overheated or wax-rich binder with poor cohesion \u2014 pavements built with it are prone to fatigue and low-temperature cracking. Cross-check with penetration and softening point before rejecting a batch.<\/p>\n<h3>Why must the briquette thread stay mid-depth in the bath?<\/h3>\n<p>Floating or sinking threads experience buoyancy forces that add or subtract tension, distorting the elongation. Adjust water density with salt (to raise) or alcohol\/glycerol mixtures per the standard.<\/p>\n<h2>Recommended Apparatus<\/h2>\n<p>NL Scientific manufactures the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/product\/advance-digital-ductilometer-apparatus-tensile-load-series\/\">Advance Digital Ductilometer Apparatus (TENSILE Load Series)<\/a> for this method. Browse the full <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/product-category\/bitumen-asphalt\/\">Bitumen &#038; Asphalt Testing Equipment<\/a> range or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/contact-us\/\">request a quotation<\/a> from our engineers.<\/p>\n<p><!-- nlfaq --><br \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\": \"https:\/\/schema.org\", \"@type\": \"FAQPage\", \"mainEntity\": [{\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"What does low ductility indicate?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"Age-hardened, overheated or wax-rich binder with poor cohesion \u2014 pavements built with it are prone to fatigue and low-temperature cracking. Cross-check with penetration and softening point before rejecting a batch.\"}}, {\"@type\": \"Question\", \"name\": \"Why must the briquette thread stay mid-depth in the bath?\", \"acceptedAnswer\": {\"@type\": \"Answer\", \"text\": \"Floating or sinking threads experience buoyancy forces that add or subtract tension, distorting the elongation. Adjust water density with salt (to raise) or alcohol\/glycerol mixtures per the standard.\"}}]}<\/script><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Written by the NL Scientific Engineering Team &middot; Reviewed by our ISO\/IEC 17025 (SAMM 835) accredited calibration laboratory &middot; Last updated 11 July 2026 The ductility test measures how far&hellip;<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3985,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[179,164],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bitumen-asphalt-testing","category-blog"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4819"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4840,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4819\/revisions\/4840"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlscientific.com\/en_ph\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}