Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Summer II – 2009
Course book
An Introduction to Continuum Mechanics
J. N. Reddy
Introduction
CONTINUUM THEORY
The theory that describes relationships between gross phenomena, neglecting the
structure of material on a smaller scale, is known as continuum theory.
∆m
ρ = lim 3
∆V →ε ∆V
density: mass/unit volume
Density of a material at a point is defined as the ratio of the mass Δm of the material
to a small volume ΔV surrounding the point when ΔV tends to be ε3
Process
2. Select the material (Young’s modulus E)
3. Select dimensions b and h such that the board caries the moving weight W of the
athlete
Design criteria
• Stresses developed must not exceed the allowable stress values
• The deflection δ of the free end must not exceed the prespecified value
πd P1 − P2 4
µ=
128 L Q
Where;
d is internal diameter, L is length of tube, P1 and P2 are pressures at two ends, Q is
volume rate of flow
Heat transfer
Determine the heat loss through the wall of a furnace. The wall consists of a brick layer,
cement mortar and cinder block. Each of these materials provides a different degree of
thermal resistance.
dT
q = −k
dx
• Using Fourier heat conduction law we can relate the heat flux q (heat flow/unit area)
and the gradient of temperature T. Thermal conductivity is denoted by κ.
• The negative sign in the equation indicates that heat flows from high temperature to low
temperature region.
Governing equations
• Governing equations for the study of deformation and stress of a continuous material
are analytical representation of the laws of conservation of mass, momenta and
energy
• They are applicable to all materials that are treated as a continuum
• There are four categories supporting the study of motion and deformation of a
continuum
• Kinematics (strain-displacement equations)
• Kinetics (conservation of momenta)
• Thermodynamics (1st and 2nd Law of thermodynamics)
• Constitutive equations (stress-strain relations)