BEP-RFP-16-0462_Attachment_G_-_Ref_Doc_-_STM300_001CrumpleTest.pdf

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STM 300.001 Crumple Test

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BUREAU OF ENGRAVING AND PRINTING

OFFICE OF MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY

ECF QUALITY ASSURANCE DIVISION

STANDARD TEST

METHOD

STM 300.001

Rev #7

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Title: Crumple Test Table cell intentional ly left blank

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EFFECTIVE DATE: July 2, 2014 SUPERSEDES: July 29, 2008 Page 1 of 6

MQ Manager

<SIGNED>

Prepared By: JE, DC

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I. PURPOSES

The purposes of the crumple test, which employs severe folding and creasing of a substrate sample, are to (1) evaluate the durability of substrates to resist physical fracture; (2) determine the ability of inks and security features to adhere to the currency substrate and retain function; (3) evaluate substrate stiffness retention; and

(4) evaluate the ability of proposed anti-counterfeiting devices, which may be adhered to or included in the paper, to withstand the stress of handling in circulation.

II. SCOPE

This test method covers crumple analysis, where rolled paper is crumpled under a fixed pressure; for all types of currency papers approved for BEP use, in-process printed sheets, and finished currency notes. These activities will involve testing and evaluating ink adhesion and overall structure durability of security ink images; and the method also involves testing and evaluating windowed thread adhesion and the durability of the images on the windowed thread for specimens containing windowed threads.

III. REFERENCES

A. Bureau of Engraving and Printing Standard Test Method STM 300.004, “Preparation of Unexamined and Examined Blank Engraved (UBE & EBE) Sheets and Federal Reserve Notes (FRN) for Durability Testing"

B. The crumple test developed by Carson and Shaw at the National Bureau of

Standards (NBS) circa 1940. (The original method is described in the Journal of Research of the National Bureau of Standards, Vol. 36, Research Paper RP1701, March 1946.)

C. Verification Log or networked database record of verification

D. Production Information and Test Results Form

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

STM 300.001 Crumple Test

E. TAPPI standard conditioning & testing atmospheres for paper, board, pulp hand sheets and related product (T 402)

IV. EQUIPMENT and MATERIALS

A. IGT Crumple Tester

The IGT Crumple tester is a commercially available tester that is a modification of the NBS test apparatus (currently known as NIST). It has been further modified and used by the BEP by extending the sample slot at the end of the roller tube and replacing the roller tube with one long enough to cover the prongs (tines).

The United States Vendor for the IGT crumple tester is:

IGT Testing Systems, Inc.

Arlington Center 543 West Golf Road Arlington Heights, IL 60005 Phone: 847-952-2448 Fax: 847-952-2449

B. NBS Driving Unit

An automated pressuring device developed by IGT Testing Systems to eliminate the variation in applied pressure.

C. Crumple Rating Scales and References (not applicable to windowed thread)

$1 Rating Scales (Face and Back)

Rating scales are comprised of digital pictures of $1.00 note specimens exhibiting various degrees of ink loss for 8X and 16X crumples. There is a rating scale for both the faces and backs. Each specimen of the rating scale has an assigned numerical value from 0 to 6, in which a rating of 0 represents the greatest ink loss and a rating of 6 represents minimal ink loss.

D. Powder free gloves

E. Aluminum template (about 6.7 cm x 6.7 cm)

F. Paper cutter

G. Preformatted sheets (for mounting of tested specimens)

H. Graduated probe {Micro-Ruler, 10 mm, with Handle (or Equivalent) from Ted

Pella, Inc.; P.O. Box 492477; Redding, CA 96049-2477; www.tedpella.com;

Product Number 13635}; Phone: (800) 237-3526 http://www.tedpella.com/

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

V. TEST CONDITIONS and PRECAUTIONS

A. TAPPI Standard Atmosphere Conditions shall be at 23.0 + 1.0˚C

(73.4 ± 1.8˚F) and 50.0 ± 2.0% relative humidity.

B. In all cases, specimens shall be handled only on areas within ¼" of any edge to prevent ink smearing in the area of interest. Use gloves when handling the specimen.

VI. PROCEDURES

A. Verification of Crumple Tester

1. Verify counterweight position of Crumple Tester before equipment is used for testing and make a record of verification (ref. C). Ensure that the verification will be performed in a conditioned environment as specified in Section V.

2. Place a 22.1 lb (10.02 kg) weight (tolerance of + 1 percent) on the piston and observe the movement of the counterweight. The weight and counterweight should be balanced such that the counterweight rises up slightly from the rest position but does not “peg” (move to the highest position).

3. If the counterweight does not rise, or rises too far, adjust the position of the counterweight as follows: remove the weight from the piston, and loosen the set screw that holds the counterweight in place, adjust the position of the counterweight and retighten the set screw to lock in place. Place the weight on the piston and observe the movement of the counterweight. Adjust in this manner until the counterweight moves to the appropriate position (slightly above the rest position) when the weight is applied to the piston. Note that when the weight is not on the piston, the piston should move freely when the counterweight is moved.

B. Sample Preparation

1. Prior to prepping, samples must be preconditioned under atmospheric conditions specified in Section V for a minimum of 24 hours

2. After preconditioning, prepare samples as outlined in reference (A). Note:

Samples not cut to the 6.7- X 6.7-cm template dimensions may bias the crumple results.

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

C. Crumple Test Procedure

Except for when testing windowed thread, this procedure allows for the option of running crumple for both 8x and 16x times on two samples of the same specimen, if desired. It is recommended that under routine conditions a sample will be run first at 16x times and if it fails, a second run at 8x times will be performed. Further testing at the supervisor’s discretion may be run as required. For the NXG100 denomination the windowed thread shall be tested on 2 notes; one note shall be crumpled 2X times and the second note shall be crumpled 4X times.

1. Place the fork into the sheath by pulling the knob

2. Insert the test specimen through the slot into the sheath and center between the two legs of the fork

3. Roll the specimen into a cylinder by rotating the knob

4. Move the fork with the rolled specimen out of the sheath by pushing the knob

5. Take the rolled specimen from the fork

6. Take the tube with the cap from the apparatus

7. Insert the rolled specimen into the tube

8. Close the cap

9. Be sure that there is a piston with the flat side up in the tube

10. Place the tube with the rolled specimen into the tube over the piston (NOTE: The flat side of the piston is in contact with the rolled specimen.)

11. Use the NBS Driving Unit to press the cap until the weight is lifted (just above the rest position). Note: use of the driving unit is preferred to the manual method.

12. Release pressure and open the cap

13. Press the tube downwards, the specimen will be pushed out of the tube by the piston

14. Remove the crumpled specimen from the tube

15. Straighten the specimen to insert it back into the rolling device by smoothing over a round edge without rubbing the surface of interest

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

16. For crumple tests other than for the windowed thread, repeat steps 1 through 15 on the 1X crumple with the same specimen 15 times for a 16X crumple. Rotate the specimen 90after each 1X crumple. For the windowed thread test, one note is crumpled 2X and the second note is crumpled 4X times; these two notes are used for the evaluation of the thread only.

17. Mount the flattened specimens on preformatted sheet or an 8½’’ x 11’’ sheet of plain paper if desirable for annotative display and/or storage

18. For tests other than on the windowed thread, repeat steps 1 through 17 with a second specimen from the same sample for a total of 8 times for a 8X crumple if the specimen fails the 16X crumple (see Section VII)

VII. EVALUATION OF NON-WINDOWED THREAD SPECIMENS

A. Visually compare each crumpled specimen to the appropriate rating scale or reference for evaluation. NOTE: Specimens shall only be evaluated within the central area, not in the outer ¼" of the specimen where the ink may have been smeared during handling.

1. Evaluation of Face and Back

Use the $1 face and back rating scale for the evaluation of intaglio ink features for all paper Types. Visually compare the crumpled specimen to the rating scale and determine the closest match. For the 8X crumple test specimen use the 8X crumple rating scale and for the 16X crumple test specimen use the 16X crumple rating scale. The specimen is assigned a numerical value from 0 to 6 based on its match to the rating scale. Calculate the rating in accordance with Section VIII. Record the results of the evaluation.

Acceptance Criterion: The minimum acceptable crumple rating for either the green or black ink is 4.0.

2. Evaluation of Special Features

Particular features (i.e., IMP, OVI, offset, etc.) may require methods of evaluation or standards other than those specifically cited above. The acceptance criteria are cited on the Production Information and Test Results form.

B. Complete the rating of the 16X crumple test specimens and the 8x crumple test specimens if performed

C. Record the corresponding rating (0 to 6) for both the face and back

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

VIII. EVALUATION OF WINDOWED THREAD SPECIMEN

After the windowed thread in the paper is crumpled 2x times, the images on the thread shall be recognizable, and images designed to exhibit movement shall still exhibit movement. After the windowed thread in the paper is crumpled at 4x times, the exposed portion of the thread shall remain bonded to the surface of the paper such that when a ruled probe is run along the entire length of each side of the exposed portions of the thread, there shall be no more than 3 millimeters of the thread in the cross direction not adhered to the surface of the paper at any point along the length of the exposed portions of the thread. Record the thread adhesion and the movement of the images on the thread as pass or fail.

IX. CALCULATIONS BASED ON THE CRUMPLE RATING SCALES

If evaluating the 16x crumple specimen only, the Sample Average Crumple Rating = [16X (rating)].

If evaluating both the 8x and 16x crumple specimens, the Sample Average

Crumple Rating = [8 X (rating) + 16 X (rating)] 2.

The sample average crumple rating is calculated separately for the Face and Back.

X. REPORTING OF RESULTS

A. Record the individual crumple ratings and the average for each sample tested for the non-windowed thread specimens and the pass/fail results for the windowed thread specimen in the logbook/raw data sheets

B. Record whether the non-windowed thread specimens met the acceptable quality requirement for ink loss, adhesion, physical fracture, the stress of circulation, etc. (see Section VII for acceptance requirement)

C. Report windowed thread adhesion and the movement of the images as a pass or a fail

Note: A passing score allows up to 3 mm of the windowed thread to peel from the paper. If movement in all of the images on the windowed thread are quenched or if the windowed thread peels more than 3 mm from the paper, then the overall score is a fail.

Notify OQ in writing, in the event of a sample set of production materials having any failed results.

Information in printed paper copies of this document and any document referred to herein is valid only for 24 hours of the print date.

Rev. # Purpose of Rev. Eff. Date 1 Introduction of Type IV currency paper 3/10/03

2 Change STM number to remove date suffix 1/11/05

3 Update procedure with new references and make 16x crumples the standard 9/30/05

4 Update for BEP realignment 5/2/07

5 To insert procedures for testing windowed thread 5/2/08

6 To correct verification procedures to equal that in the OMT Calibration Schedule 7/29/08

Add NBS Driving Unit to equipment list and notification of OQ in the event of failed production material results

7/2/14

dtstamp: 08/27/2014 2:22 pm