Exercises 8 and 9

Lab Exercise No 8.
Abstract
The aim of this lab is to introduce the concepts of stress, strain, and the stress-strain
curve.
Introduction
The structural performance of a member often depends on the material’s material and
geometrical stiffness. Examples are the deflection and buckling behaviors of the member.
When a linear material is placed under a load, deflection is likely to occur. Different materials
exhibit material stiffness that is taken to be a property of the material independent of the
geometry of the member. This property is called Young’s Modulus, or the Modulus of
Elasticity.
Experimental Procedure
Equipment
- Universal testing machine.
- Micrometer.
- Ruler.
- 0.001 Precision Dial Gage on Support Stand
Test Specimen
- Different dimensions of Aluminum Rods.
Procedure
- Record the type of material.
- Measure the diameter of all the test specimens in three places and record. Then use the
average for the three measurements as the diameter of the specimen.
- Mark off the center 15 inches of the two 24 inch long specimens, and the center 30 inches
of the two 39 inch long specimens, with a colored pen.
- Calculate each specimen’s cross-sectional area and record it.
- Determine the loads for all the specimens that correspond to 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 ksi
stress levels and record them.
- Mount specimen 1 so that it has a 15 inches test length.
- Apply a small load to seat the specimen in the grips and then reduce level of the load to
zero.
- Set up the dial gage and set it to a convenient round number reading and record, ensuring
that the remaining plunger extension of the dial gage is in excess of 0.100.
- Load specimen 1 to the load levels that correspond to 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 ksi and record the
dial gage reading and load at each level.
- Unload specimen 1 and remove from the Universal Testing Machine.
- Repeat for the other specimens.
- Turn the universal testing machine off, and put away any other equipment and clean the
test area up.
After the experiment
- Plot a P-Δ for all the four test specimens on a single P-Δ figure.
- Plot the Δ-E curve for all the four test specimens on a single figure.
- Comment on the results as shown in the figures generated.
- Present the lab exercise and results in an appropriate Lab Report and turn in at the
beginning of the next laboratory period.
 Lab Exercise No 9: Tension Test and the Stress-Strain Curve
Abstract
The objective of this lab is to introduce students to conducting a tension test, generate
experimentally a stress-strain curve for steel, and determine some important mechanical
properties of two materials.
Introduction
The force or load that can be withstood by a member and the resulting displacements
and deformations are functions of both the material and geometry of the member. However, if
the member forces are converted to forces per unit area and the deformations converted to
deformations per unit length, then it is possible to access the members force or load capacities
on the basis of material properties. This means that by converting to force per unit area and
deformation per unit length, we include the effects of geometry implicitly and reduce the
evaluation to one that is based on the material properties of the member alone. Each of the
materials has a unique Δ-E relationship/curve. For isotropic materials, two material properties
govern their behavior in the elastic region. These are the modulus of elasticity (E), and
Poisson’s Ratio (V) of the slope of the shear stress-shear strain curve, also called the modulus
of Rigidity (G). As such, only two are independent material properties. The material
properties are only valid in the elastic region of the Δ-E curve.
The ultimate strain for steel can be as much as 200-300 times the yield strain. Materials
that have a large modulus of toughness are considered ductile. The opposites of such materials
are brittle materials, including brick, concrete, and glass among others. With other things
being equal, ductility is always preferred in materials. It is customary for materials with
constant cross section to be used, either square or circular. In compression tests, specimens
made of ductile materials do not rapture. Steel is homogenous in that it possesses the same
properties at all points and isotropic in that it has the same properties in all directions at any
point. It has linear-elastic characteristics at low levels of strain.
Experimental Procedure
Equipment
- Universal Testing Machine
- Extensometer
- Two-inch gage punch
- Calipers
- Steel scale
- Micrometer
Test Specimens
- One .505-in diameter steel specimen
- One .25-in diameter aluminum specimen.
Procedure
- Record the type of material.
- Measure the diameter of the two test specimens in three places, using a micrometer and
record the average diameter of each specimen to the nearest .001 inch. Calculate and
record the cross-sectional area of each test specimen.
- Mark two-inch gage lengths on each specimen with the two-inch gage punch.
- Set the calipers to 2.04 and 2.08 inches.
- Start the Universal Testing Machine, following the instructions in Appendix F.
- Thread one chuck onto the .505-in diameter steel test specimen. Insert the test specimen
through a base plate and the lower crosshead to the upper crosshead to the machine.
Attach the upper chuck, leaving about one thread showing. Ensure you can still see the
punch you made with the two-inch gage punch.
- Take up all the slack in the plates by the electronic controls indicating “up” and “down.”
Be careful not to put excessive load on the specimen. The load indicator should only a
small pre-load.
- Mount the extensometer on the test specimen on the two-inch marks made by the punch
following the instructions in Appendix L.
- Zero the Universal Testing Machine, using the 24,000-lb scale.
- Zero the extensometer.
- Load the test specimen slowly, by opening the load valve slightly. Record the applied load
and elongation at every 1000 pounds until elongation reaches .02 inches. Remove the
extensometer. If your elongation increases significantly, or the test specimen starts to
neck, remove the extensometer immediately.
- Continue loading until rupture. At the onset of necking, watch the load needle closely and
note and record the rupture load. Record the ultimate load indicated by the “follower”
needle. Immediately after the specimen ruptures, close the load valve and open the
unloaded valve.
- Remove the specimen.
- Mount the .25-in diameter aluminum specimen in the Universal Testing Machine as
indicated in the above instructions. Do not place an extensometer on this specimen.
- Zero the Universal testing Machine, using the 12,000-lb scale.
- Load the specimen until rapture. At the onset of necking or when the load needle starts to
descend, watch the load needle closely and note and record the rupture load. Record the
ultimate load indicated by the “follower” needle. Immediately after the specimen ruptures,
close the load valve and open the unloaded valve. Remove the specimen.
- Turn off the testing machine and clean up the test area.
- Fit the ends of the fractured specimens together carefully. Measure and record the distance
between the gage marks to the nearest .01 inch.
- Observe and sketch the failure surface for each test specimen.
Post-Test Requirements
- Calculate and record the stress and strain for each data point. Plot a stress-strain curve for
the .505-in diameter steel specimen.
- Using the data and the stress-strain curve, determine the Modulus of Resilience and the
Modulus of Toughness for the steel specimen and label all pertinent data points on the
stress-strain curve.
- Determine the properties of the aluminum specimen.
- Compare the properties of steel and aluminum specimen and compare their relative
ductility and strength.
- Comment on the failure surface of each specimen regarding ductile and brittle.