MUK207

Mechanics of Materials
PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL
ISTANBUL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Stress-Strain Curves

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Course Content
• What are internal forces? •To understand definition of “axially loaded
members”
• What are stress and strain?
•To get familiar with free body diagram method
• Free Body Diagram method to calculate internal
forces • To be able calculate normal force, normal stress
and axial deformation based on normal strain
method.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Average Stress in an Axially Loaded Bar
In this example, we have a bar subjected a force P acting at point A and
another force in the equal and opposite direction at point B, as shown in
the figure. I repeat one more time that the two forces are equal and are
in opposite directions, so they create a balanced force system, and all
parts of the bar will be in equilibrium.

if the structure is in equilibrium, it means all part of the structure are in

equilibrium. If you would like to calculate the internal forces at Point C,
we cut the bar at cross section point C as shown in the figure. The
structure is divided into 2 parts, and both parts are in equilibrium based
on the equilibrium concept. One is part AC and the other is part BC.
Now, let’s consider the BC part. Imagine part AC is a support to part
BC. The force coming from part AC is a reaction force of the AC
support.

in the Free-body diagram concept, we remove all supports from the

object and replace them with reaction forces. So, we remove the part
AC and replace it with a reaction force at point C. By using an
equilibrium equation, all forces in a horizontal direction are equal to
zero, so the reaction force at C is equal to P. This reaction force is an
external force of part BC. However, this reaction force P at point C is an
internal force of the whole bar AB.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 We now know the internal force acting at C.
If we cut the section at C point that is
perpendicular to axis of the bar, we say it is the
C cross section.
We call the intensity of the internal force over
the cross section ‘stress’.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Stress
We use sigma to denote the stress.
The intensity of the force means force per unit
area. It is equal to P divided by A, because the
total internal force acting at C is P.
You use P divided by A to get the intensity of
the force – that is, the stress

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Stress
Normal Stress. The intensity of the force acting Shear Stress. The intensity of force acting tangent to
normal to ΔA is defined as the normal stress , ΔA is called the shear stress , τ(tau). Here we have
σ(sigma). Since ΔFz is normal to the area then shear stress components

If the normal force or stress “pulls” on ΔA, it is

referred to as tensile stress , whereas if it “pushes”
on ΔA it is called compressive stress.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 Suppose we cut the structure into two parts. Then,
we consider the one of the cutting surfaces of the
structure. We may have forces in different
directions. The intensity of the force on that
surface is called stress. Therefore, we may have
stresses in three different directions. The
component of stress in the Z direction is
perpendicular to the cutting surface, called normal
stress.
We use sigma to denote normal stress. The
component of stress in the X direction and the
component of stress in the Y direction are parallel
to the surface. We call these the shear stresses,
and we use tou to denote shear stress. Therefore,
we have two kinds of stresses, one is normal
stress and the other one is shear stress. Once
again, normal stress means stress acting
perpendicular to the cutting surface, shear stress
means stress acting parallel to the cutting surface.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 In normal stress, if a bar is stretched or
expanded by force P, the resultant stress is
tensile. The bar will get longer in length and
thinner in cross section. If we apply forces in
the reverse direction, we obtain compressive
stress, and compressive stress will cause the
bar get shorter in length but expand in cross
section. Change in either length or cross
section is called deformation. Tensile force or
compressive force act perpendicular to the
cross section and the average normal stress is
uniformly distributed throughout the cross
section, so we average the force over the cross
section area. So force divided by area equals
average normal stress

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 We have a load acting at point A of 12 Kilo
Newtons, a load acting at point B which is
altogether 18 Kilo Newtons, a load acting at
point C which is altogether 8 Kilo Newtons, and
a load acting at point D of 22 Kilo Newtons. The
cross section of the bar is 35 millimeters in
width and 10 millimeters in thickness. We want
to calculate the maximum normal average
stress in a bar.
We know that stress is equal to internal force
divided by area. To calculate the maximum
stress, we need to calculate the maximum
internal forces.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Direct Shear
Shear stress has been defined as the stress
component that acts in the plane of the sectioned
area.
If the supports are considered rigid, and F is large
enough, it will cause the material of the bar to
deform and fail along the planes identified by AB
and CD .
A free-body diagram of the unsupported center
segment of the bar, indicates that the shear force V =
F/2 must be applied at each section to hold the
segment in equilibrium.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Shear Stress Equilibrium.
a volume element of material taken at a point
located on the surface of a sectioned area which is
subjected to a shear stress τzy .
Force and moment equilibrium requires the shear
stress acting on this face of the element to be
accompanied by shear stress acting on three other
faces.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Shear Stress-Strain

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Single Shear

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Double Shear

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PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Shear Strain
Shear strain occurs due to shear force. The
shear force will cause the object to change in
angle, resulting in shear strain. Shear strain is
measured in radians

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Normal vs Shear Strain
It should be noticed that: For example, if we have tension, the bar gets
◦ Normal strains cause a change in volume of the longer and longer. However, shear strain only
rectangular element. changes the shape, only changes the angle.
◦ Shear strains cause a change in its shape. There is no change in volume of the object due
to shear strain

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

General State of Stress
If the body is further sectioned by planes parallel to
the x – z plane, and the y – z plane, we can then “cut
out” a cubic volume element of material that
represents the state of stress acting around the
chosen point in the body.
This state of stress is then characterized by three
components acting on each face of the element,

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Example:
Determine the average shear stress in the 20-mm-diameter pin
at A and the 30-mm-diameter pin at B that support the beam

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Allowable Stress
To ensure safety, it is necessary to choose an
allowable stress that restricts the applied load to
one that is less than the load the member can fully
support.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Factor Safety
The factor of safety means the failure load
divided by the allowable load. If we have a
structure member, we can work out the failure
load based on an experimental test.
Considering the factor of safety of the structure,
the allowable load is equal to the failure load
divided by the safety factor. That means that in
reality we use allowable load. This allowable
load is smaller than the failure load, so we
make sure the structure is safe

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Example

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES
Strain
Deformation
In a general sense, the deformation of a body
When a force is applied to a body, it will tend
will not be uniform throughout its volume, and
to change the body’s shape and size. These
so the change in geometry of any line segment
changes are referred to as deformation , and
within the body may vary substantially along
they may be either highly visible or practically
its length.
unnoticeable.
Deformation of a body can also occur when
the temperature of the body is changed. A
typical example is the thermal expansion or
contraction of a roof caused by the weather.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Strain

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

If we define the average normal strain, using
the symbol εavg (epsilon), then

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 Shear Strain
Deformations not only cause line segments to elongate
or contract, but they also cause them to change
direction.
If we select two line segments that are originally
perpendicular to one another, then the change in angle
that occurs between them is referred to as shear strain .

Shear strain is denoted by γ (gamma) and is always

measured in radians (rad), which are dimensionless.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Notice that the normal strains cause a change in
volume of the element, whereas the shear strains
cause a change in its shape .
Both of these effects occur simultaneously during the
deformation.
In summary, then, the state of strain at a point in a
body requires specifying three normal strains, εx, εy ,
εx , and three shear strains, γxy , γyz ,γxz.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Tension and Compression Test
In mechanical properties, we need to know behaviour
of materials in compression and tension. That is why
we have to do compression and tension tests. In a
tension test, the two ends of the specimen are fixed
on the machine.
The bottom end cannot move, the top end is
connected with a load cell which can move up or
down. If the load cell moves up, that means the
specimen is getting longer.
Thus we have both elongation and tension in this
specimen, we can work out the relationship between
forces and displacements/deformations in this
specimen. If we move the load cell down, that means
we will compress the specimen, we are doing
compression tests

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Stress – Strain Diagram

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Stress-Strain Diagram
Elastic Behavior
• The material back to the origin when the load is
removed. • The elastic limit – maximum stress the
material can sustain without permanent
deformation • This course only deals with the
material behaviour under the elastic region

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Yielding
If we slightly increase stress, we have a large
deformation (plastic deformation), and this is
permanent. Yield stress is similar to elastic limit

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Strain Hardening
After yielding, we can increase the load,
increasing stress and increasing strain,
resulting in a curve that rises continuously but
becomes flatter until it reaches a maximum
stress

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Strain Hardening.
If a specimen of ductile material, such as steel,
is loaded into the plastic region and then
unloaded, elastic strain is recovered as the
material returns to its equilibrium state.
The plastic strain remains , however, and as a
result the material is subjected to a
permanent set .

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Necking
• The cross-sectional area begins to decrease in a Necking means the cross sectional area begins
localised region. to decrease in the localized region, and a neck
gradually forms in this region. The stress strain
• A “neck” gradually tends to form in this region. diagram tends to curve downwards until the
• The stress-strain diagram tends to curve specimen breaks, decreasing stress and
downward until the specimen breaks at the fracture decreasing loadings even though strain and
stress, σf. deformation are increasing

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Ductile Material
Ductile Materials. Any material that can be
subjected to large strains before it fractures is
called a ductile material .
Mild steel, as discussed previously, is a typical
example.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Brittle Material
In brittle material, we have only small deformation,
and the maximum strain might be 0.5%. It is very
small compared to 40% for ductile material!
Because the area under this curve is very small
compared to ductile material, this material is not
good for dynamic loading.
If you have dynamic loading in a structure, you
should use ductile material in your structure, but
not brittle material

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Strain Energy
As a material is deformed by an external load,
the load will do external work, which in turn
will be stored in the material as internal
energy. This energy is related to the strains in
the material, and so it is referred to as strain
energy .
The conservation of energy requires this
“external work” on the element to be
equivalent to the “internal work” or strain
energy stored in the element—assuming that
no energy is lost in the form of heat.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Modulus of Resilience
when the stress σ reaches the proportional limit, the strain-
energy density, is referred to as the modulus of resilience.

Physically the modulus of resilience represents the largest

amount of internal strain energy per unit volume the
material can absorb without causing any permanent damage
to the material.
Certainly this becomes important when designing bumpers
or shock absorbers

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Modulus of Toughness
The modulus of toughness , ut represents the
entire area under the stress–strain diagram,
and therefore it indicates the maximum
amount of strain-energy the material can
absorb just before it fractures.
This property becomes important when
designing members that may be accidentally
overloaded

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Hooke’s Law

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Poisson’s Ratio

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 Poisson’s ratio is dimensionless and the value is
between 0 and 0.5, so during the test if you get a
result larger than 0.5, you must have done
something wrong! The range must be between 0
and 0.5

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Example

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Shear Stress – Strain Diagram

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Hook’s Law in Shear
Poisson’s ratio is between 0 and 0.5. so G is less
than 50% of E.
So the relationship between E and G is that G is
less than half of E.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

 Like the tension test, this material when
subjected to shear will exhibit linear-elastic
behavior and it will have a defined
proportional limit τpl.
Also, strain hardening will occur until an
ultimate shear stress τu is reached.
And finally, the material will begin to lose its
shear strength until it reaches a point where it
fractures, τf.

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

Example

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES

References
Prof. Xing’s Notes
Prof. Uddin’s notes
Mechanics of Materials by Hibbler

PROF. DR. LEVENT ÖNAL COURSE NOTES