Mechanical Properties of Metals

Stress and Strain

How do metals • Tension
• Compression
• Shear
respond to external • Torsion

loads? Elastic deformation

Plastic Deformation
• Yield Strength
• Tensile Strength
• Ductility
• Toughness
• Hardness
Concept of Stress and Strain

Shear

Tension

Compression Torsion
Defining Stress and Strain
• To compare specimens of different sizes, the load is
calculated per unit area.

F is load applied perpendicular to specimen cross-section;

A0 is cross-sectional area (perpendicular to the force) before
application of the load.

𝑭
𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝝈 =
𝑨𝒐
Defining Stress and Strain
Δl is change in length,
lois the original length.

𝑙𝑖 −𝑙𝑜 Δ𝑙
Engineering Strain, 𝜖 = =
𝑙𝑜 𝑙𝑜

Δ𝑙
Strain is also expressed as a percentage,𝜖 = × 100%
𝑙𝑜

Stress and strain are positive for tensile loads, negative for
compressive loads.
Tensile Test
• One of the most common mechanical
stress-strain tests is performed in
tension.
• The tension test can be used to
ascertain several mechanical
properties of materials that are
important in design.
The Test Piece
• In order to eliminate the effect of variation in shape, material is machined to a
standardized shape before tensile testing it.
• A standard tensile specimen is shown in figure. Normally the cross-section is
circular but rectangular specimens are also used.
• The test is conducted over a part of the test piece that is accurately machined,
this length is called the gauge length.
The Tensile Test
• During tensile test, an axial force is applied, and
the extension of the gauge length produced by
each load is measured using an extensometer, a
graph can be plotted as load vs. extension.
Compression Test
• A compression test is conducted in a manner similar to the tensile
test, except that the force is compressive and the specimen contracts
along the direction of the stress.
• Tensile tests are more common because they are easier to perform;
also very little additional information is obtained from compressive
tests.
• Compressive tests are used when the material is brittle in tension.
Compression Test
𝑙𝑖 −𝑙𝑜 Δ𝑙
•𝜖= = ; Here, 𝑙𝑜 > 𝑙𝑖
𝑙𝑜 𝑙𝑜
So, 𝜖 is negative.
Shear and Torsional Tests
• For tests performed using a pure shear force the shear stress
τis computed according to,
𝐹
𝜏=
𝐴𝑜
• Shear strain γis defined as the tangent of the strain angle θ.
𝛾 = 𝑡𝑎𝑛𝜃
• Torsion is a variation of pure shear.
• A shear stress is a function of the applied torque T,
whereas shear strain is related to the angle of twist φ.
Stress-Strain Behavior
• For most metals that are stressed in tension and at relatively low
levels, stress and strain are proportional to each other through the
relationship
𝜎∝𝜖
𝜎 = 𝐸𝜖
This is known as Hooke’s law, and the constant of proportionality E
(GPa or psi)is the modulus of elasticity, or Young’s modulus.
For most typical metals the magnitude of this modulus ranges
between 45 GPa(6.5 x 106psi) and 407 GPa(59 x 106psi).
Stress-Strain Behavior

σuts = Ultimate Tensile Strength

σp = Proportionality Limit
σY = Yield Strength/ Proof Stress
σf = Fracture Stress
Єf = Elongation/Strain to Failure
E E = Modulus of Elasticity
Єf (Slope of the curve in linear region)
Proportional Limit :
From the origin O to the point P called proportional limit, i.e.,
the maximum stress that may be developed during a simple
tension test such that the stress is a linear function of strain.

Elastic Limit:
The elastic limit is the limit beyond which the material will no
longer go back to its original shape when the load is removed,
or it is the maximum stress that may e developed such that there
is no permanent or residual deformation when the load is
entirely removed.
Yield Point:
Yield point is the point at which the material will have an
appreciable elongation or yielding without any increase in load.

Ultimate Strength:
The maximum ordinate in the stress-strain diagram is the
ultimate strength or tensile strength.
Elastic and Plastic Ranges:
The region in stress-strain diagram from O to P is called the
elastic range. The region from P to R is called the plastic
range.
Rupture Strength:
Rapture strength is the strength of the material at rupture. This is
also known as the breaking strength.

Modulus of Resilience:
Modulus of resilience is the work done on a unit volume of
material as the force is gradually increased from O to P, in
N.m/m3 . This may be calculated as the area under the stress-
strain curve from the origin O to up to the elastic limit E (the
shaded area in the figure). The resilience of the material is its
ability to absorb energy without creating a permanent distortion.
Modulus of Toughness:
Modulus of toughness is the work done on a unit volume of
material as the force is gradually increased from O to R, in
N.m/m3 . This may be calculated as the area under the entire
stress-strain curve (from O to R). The toughness of a material is
its ability to absorb energy without causing it to break.

Working Stress or Allowable Stress :

Working stress is defined as the actual stress of a material
under a given loading. The maximum safe stress that a
material can carry is termed as the allowable stress.

Factor of Safety
 Ductile and Brittle Materials
Metallic engineering materials are commonly classified as
either ductile or brittle materials.

A ductile material is one having a relatively large tensile

strain up to the point of rupture (for example, structural steel
or aluminum)

whereas a brittle material has a relatively small strain up to

this same point. An arbitrary strain of 0.05 mm/mm is
frequently taken as the dividing line between these two
classes of materials. Cast iron and concrete are examples of
brittle materials.
A bronze bar is fastened between a steel bar and an aluminum bar as shown in
Fig. Axial loads are applied at the positions indicated. Find the largest value
of P that will not exceed an overall deformation of 3.0 mm, or the following
stresses: 140 MPa in the steel,120 MPa in the bronze, and 80 MPa in the
aluminum. Assume that the assembly is suitably braced to prevent buckling.
Use Est = 200 GPa, Eal = 70 GPa, and Ebr = 83 GPa.
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