Republic of the Philippines

NUEVA ECIJA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
ISO 9001:2015 CERTIFIED

COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

JENNIELLE RUIZ
BSAR 4B

ASSIGNMENT (ES 433 STEEL AND TIMBER DESIGN)

Difference between yield strength and ultimate strength

YIELD STRENGTH
Yield strength is defined as the stress at which a material ceases elastic
deformation and begins plastic deformation. It is one of a material’s most
important mechanical properties. It helps engineers to understand how a
material deforms when subjected to stress, therefore assisting them in picking
appropriate materials for different applications. Yield strength is determined by
conducting a tensile test on a material specimen.

Yield strength is defined as the maximum stress a material will tolerate before
plastic deformation begins. The term “yield strength” is typically used in the
context of ductile materials, or materials that can deform.

Stress-strain curve with yield-strength.

Image Credit: https://civilsguide.com/

NEUST-AAF-F001
Rev.01 (10.15.2019) Transforming Communities through Science and Technology
 Republic of the Philippines
NUEVA ECIJA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
ISO 9001:2015 CERTIFIED

COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

The mathematical formula for yield strength, or stress at yielding, is simply the
basic formula for determining stress: force divided by area normal to the force.
Yield strength is specifically defined as the applied force when plastic
deformation begins divided by the original cross-sectional area of the test
sample. This can also be referred to as the engineering stress at the yield point.
The formula is given below:

Where:

F is the applied force

A0 is the original cross-sectional area of the test specimen
The stress used to calculate yield strength can be based upon either the
engineering stress at 0.2% offset strain or upon the engineering stress at the
lower yield point.

ULTIMATE STRENGTH

Ultimate tensile strength is a measure of the load that can be applied to a

material before it fails. The tensile strength of a material is measured using a
tensile testing machine which applies a pulling load to a test specimen until it
breaks. The rate of elongation and load of the force applied can be used to
calculate the material properties. The ultimate tensile strength of a material
can be found by dividing the force required to break a material by its original
cross-sectional area.
The ultimate tensile strength is the point at which a material fails. Strength is a
measure of a material’s ability to resist an applied load. However, the
material will first deform elastically and then plastically before finally breaking
into two or more pieces. The ultimate tensile strength is the force the material
withstands before it breaks into two or more pieces.
To calculate the ultimate tensile strength of a material, the cross-sectional
area and force applied must be known. Both the stress experienced and the
ultimate tensile strength of a material is calculated using the formula:

Stress (or) Strength = Force / Area

NEUST-AAF-F001
Rev.01 (10.15.2019) Transforming Communities through Science and Technology
 Republic of the Philippines
NUEVA ECIJA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
ISO 9001:2015 CERTIFIED

COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

The only difference is strength is the load applied to break a material whereas
stress is an applied load without failure.

Ultimate tensile strength stress-strain curve

PROPERTY DEFINITION UNITS

Yield strength The stress at which a
material begins to
deform plastically.
Ultimate strength The maximum stress
that a material can
withstand before it
breaks.
Pascals (Pa), megapascals
(MPa), pounds per square
inch (psi)
Pascals (Pa), megapascals
(MPa), pounds per square
inch (psi)

NEUST-AAF-F001
Rev.01 (10.15.2019) Transforming Communities through Science and Technology
 Republic of the Philippines
NUEVA ECIJA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, Philippines
ISO 9001:2015 CERTIFIED

COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE

REFERENCES

Team Xometry. (2023, March 30). Yield Strength: Definition, Importance,

Graphs, and How to Calculate. Xometry X. Retrieved from
https://www.xometry.com/resources/3d-printing/yield-
strength/#:~:text=What%20Is%20the%20Importance%20of,part%20or%20struct
ure%20can%20withstand.

Team Xometry. (2023, May 6). *Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS): Definition, How
It Works, Calculation, and Example*. Xometry X. Retrieved from
https://www.xometry.com/resources/materials/ultimate-tensile-
strength/#:~:text=The%20ultimate%20tensile%20strength%20is%20also%20kno
wn%20as%20the%20tensile,before%20the%20material%20completely%20fails.

NEUST-AAF-F001
Rev.01 (10.15.2019) Transforming Communities through Science and Technology