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6.3 The Tensile Test and The Engineering Stress-Strain Diagram 249

■ Solution
The modulus of resilience Ur is equal to the area under the linear elastic range of the stress-
strain diagram. This area can be estimated by Eq. 6.12. Based on the preceding diagram, the
yield strength σy can be estimated as 77,000 psi, yield strain σy can be estimated as 0.008.
1 1
U r = _ σ y ε y  =  _ (77, 000 psi)(0.008) = 0.3 × 1000 psi = 300 psi
2 2
The toughness of the materials can be estimated by measuring the area under the full stress-
strain curve. If one estimates the total number of white squares under the stress-strain curve
as 32 squares, and knowing that the area of each square is 200 psi (10,000 × 0.02), one can
estimate the white area as 6400 psi.
Therefore the total area or toughness of the material will be estimated at 6700 psi or (lb.in.)/in.3
(300 + 6400). This value represents the amount of energy per unit volume required to bring
a sample to fracture in static tension.

The percent reduction in area, like the percent elongation, is a measure of the duc-
tility of the metal and is also an index of quality. The percent reduction in area may be
decreased if defects such as inclusions and/or porosity are present in the metal specimen.

6.3.2 Comparison of Engineering Stress-Strain Curves

for Selected Alloys
Engineering stress-strain curves for selected metals and alloys are shown in Figure 6.23.
Alloying a metal with other metals or nonmetals and heat treatment can greatly affect
the tensile strength and ductility of metals. The stress-strain curves of Figure 6.23
show a great variation in ultimate tensile strength. Elemental magnesium has a UTS
of 35 ksi (1 ksi = 1000 psi), whereas SAE 1340 steel water-quenched and tempered at
700°F (370°C) has a UTS of 240 ksi.

6.3.3 True Stress and True Strain

The engineering stress is calculated by dividing the applied force F on a tensile test
specimen by its original cross-sectional area A0 (Eq. 6.3). Since the cross-sectional
area of the test specimen changes continuously during a tensile test, the engineering
stress calculated is not precise. During the tensile test, after necking of the sample
occurs (Fig. 6.22), the engineering stress decreases as the strain increases, leading to
a maximum engineering stress in the engineering stress-strain curve (Fig. 6.24). Thus,
once necking begins during the tensile test, the true stress is higher than the engineer-
ing stress. We define the true stress and true strain by the following:
F (average uniaxial force on the test sample)
True stress σ t = _________________________________________________ (6.13)
A i (instantaneous minimum cross-sectional area of sample)
li
dl l
∫
True strain ϵ t =  __  = ln __i (6.14)
l0
l l0

smi96553_ch06_224-293.indd 249 10/17/17 03:50 PM