Literature Review: Tensile Test, Compression Test, Coefficient of Thermal Expansion,

Beam Deflection, Shear/Torsion Test

1. Tensile Test – the tensile test measures the resistance of a material to a static or slowly applied

tensile force. Their primary function is to create the stress strain curve. Tensile properties often are

used to predict the behavior of a material under forms of loading other than uniaxial tension.

A unidirectional force is
applied to a specimen in
the tensile test by means of
the moveable crosshead.
The crosshead movement
can be performed using
screws or a hydraulic
mechanism.

The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) has published the ASTM standards E 8

and E 8M and AS1391 (1991) as guidelines for conducting test on Universal Testing Machine

(UTM). They are normally circular but may be flat.

a. Ductile metals in tension test – ductile metals are weak in shear and failure is due to shear

strain along the plane forming 45 ̊ angles with axis of the specimen. In ductile material, cup and

cone fracture take place. Note: In ductile metals. necking is form before fracture.

b. Brittle metals in tension test – brittle metals are very weak in tension. Brittle metals fail due

to separation of particles along the surface which is 90 ̊ to the direction of the load.
2. Compression Test – are used to determine how a product or material reacts when it is

compressed, squashed, crushed or flattened by measuring fundamental parameters that determine

the specimen behavior under a compressive load.

The shapes of the machine to be used for the different materials are as follows:

• For metals and certain plastics, the specimen may be in the form of a cylinder.

• For building materials such as concrete or stone the shape of the specimen may be in the

form of a cube.

a. Ductile metals in compression test – short compression members fail in compression yielding.

Failure plane is 90 ̊ to the compressive load. In compression yielding, bulging of material occurs.

b. Brittle metals in compression test – in compression, brittle metals fail in shear, failure plane

is at 45 ̊ to the direction of loading.

3. Coefficient of Thermal Expansion – the coefficient of thermal expansion is defined as the

change in length or volume of a material for a unit change in temperature. The overall coefficient

is the linear thermal expansion (in.) per degree Fahrenheit or Celsius. The CTE data is calculated

by the change in length divided by the quantity of the length at room temperature, multiplied by

the change of temperature.

The coefficient of thermal expansion is used to determine the rate at which a material expands as

a function of temperature. CTE is used for design purposes to determine if failure by thermal stress

may occur. Understanding the relative expansion/contraction characteristics of materials is

important for application success.

The CTE values are of considerable interest to design engineers. Plastics tend to expand and

contract anywhere from six to nine times more than metals. The thermal expansion difference

develops internal stresses and stress concentrations in the polymer, which allows premature failure

to occur.
4. Beam Deflection

Elastic properties of materials are quantified through their Modulus of Elasticity. All materials are

elastic to some extent, for example Esteel ≈ 210 GPa, Ecast iron ≈ 160 GPa, Ealuminum ≈ 70 GPa,

Econcrete ≈ 40 GPa. In real situations beams subjected to external loads will deflect proportionally

to the bending moment and inversely to their stiffness. The overall stiffness of a beam can be

expressed as E×Ic where E can be regarded as the material stiffness and Ic as the cross-sectional,

or geometrical stiffness.

In practical situations, beam deformation is very small when compared to its length, and as a result

the radius of curvature is relatively large.

If the beam is loaded in such a way that the bending moment is constant over a section of the beam

(horizontal line in the BM diagram) then the deflection is a circular arc and the radius of curvature

is constant. Take a moment and analyze the above formula… increasing the beam stiffness (E×Ic)

will reduce the deflection (large R), while a greater bending moment leads to a smaller radius of

curvature (greater deflection/sagging). Consider a simply supported beam as in the above diagram.

Once the radius of curvature is found, the maximum deflection (at mid span) can easily be

geometrically calculated as follows:

For Complete Tables

of Beams Deflection,
open link:
https://link.springer.co
m/content/pdf/bbm%3A
978-94-011-6535-
8%2F1.pdf
5. Shear/Torsion Test – shear/torsion tests twist a materials or test component to a specified

degree, with a specified force, or until the material fails in torsion. The twisting force of a

shear/torsion test is applied to the test sample by anchoring one end so that it cannot move or rotate

and applying a moment to the other end so that the sample is rotated about its axis. The three

common forms that torsion testing take include failure, proof, and operational.

A torsion test for failure requires that the test sample be twisted until it breaks and is designed to

measure the strength of the sample. A proof test is designed to observe material under a specified

torque load over a set period of time. Finally, operational testing measures the material’s

performance under the expected service conditions of its application.

 References

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion for Various Materials at Different Temperatures [Revised

Version]. (2004). Retrieved from https://www.balseal.com/wp-

content/uploads/2019/03/coefficient_of_thermal_expansion_of_bal_seal_materialsTR_1

8.pdf

Dionisio, D.J. (2018). Machine Design and Allied Subjects. Manila, Philippines: Educspace

Learning Services.

Podut, Alex. (2018). Strength of Materials Supplement for Power Engineering. Victoria, BC:

BCcampus.