This test method covers the determination of the measurement of electrical resistance or conductance of materials that are generally categorized as moderately conductive and are neither good electrical insulators nor good conductors.Formerly under the jurisdiction of Committee D09 on Electrical and Electronic Insulating Materials, this practice was withdrawn in January 2013 in accordance with section 10.5.3.1 of the Regulations Governing ASTM Technical Committees, which requires that standards shall be updated by the end of the eighth year since the last approval date.

This test method is useful for the comparison of materials, as a quality control test, and may be used for specification purposes.

This test method is useful in the selection and use of materials in wires, cables, bushings, high-voltage rotating machinery, and other electrical apparatus in which shielding or the distribution of voltage stress may be of value.

Commercially available “moderately conductive” materials frequently are comprised of both conductive and resistive components (that is, cellulose fibers with colloidal carbon black particles attached to portions of the surfaces of those fibers, or discrete conductive particles adhered to the surfaces of electrical insulating polymers). Such commercially available materials are often manufactured in a manner that may result in anisotropy with respect to electrical conduction. Hence, the significance of tests using this test method may depend upon the orientation of the specimen tested to the electric field and the relationship between this orientation and the orientation of the material in the electrical apparatus which uses these materials.

1.1 This test method covers the determination of the measurement of electrical resistance or conductance of materials that are generally categorized as moderately conductive and are neither good electrical insulators nor good conductors.

1.2 Test measurements of electrical resistance (or conductance) and specimen geometry data are used to compute an electrical resistivity for the material.

1.3 This test method applies to all materials that exhibit volume resistivity in the range of 1 to 10⁷ -cm or surface resistivity in the range of 10³ to 10⁷ (per square).

1.4 This test method is designed for measurements at standard conditions of 23C and 50 % relative humidity, but its principles of operation can be applied to specimens measured at lower or higher temperatures and relative humidities.

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. Specific precautionary statements are given in .