L-2: Mechanical Properties of Materials

Ravindra Singh
rsaluja@goa.bits-pilani.ac.in
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
OF MATERIALS
1. Stress-Strain Relationships
2. Hardness
3. Effect of Temperature on Properties
4. Fluid Properties
5. Viscoelastic Behavior of Polymers
 Mechanical Properties in
Design and Manufacturing
• Mechanical properties determine a material’s behavior when subjected to
mechanical stresses
• Properties include elastic modulus, ductility, hardness, and various measures of strength
• Dilemma: mechanical properties that are desirable to the designer, such as high
strength, usually make manufacturing more difficult
Mechanical properties and Its importance
• For Eg. For the load-bearing applications, engineered materials are selected by
matching their mechanical properties to the design specifications and service
conditions required of the component
• The first step in the selection process requires an analysis of the material’s
application to determine its most important characteristics. Should it be strong,
stiff, or ductile?
• Will it be subjected to an application involving high stress or sudden intense force,
high stress at elevated temperature, cyclic stresses, and/or corrosive or abrasive
conditions?
• We have seen that Materials with the same nominal chemical composition and
other properties can show significantly different mechanical properties as dictated
by microstructure.
Important of mechanical properties of various materials
• It provides a basis for predicting the behavior of a material under
various load conditions.
• It is helpful in making a right selection of a material for every
component of a machine or a structure for various types of load and
service conditions.
• It helps to decide whether a particular manufacturing process is
suitable for shaping the material or not, or vice-versa.
• It also informs in what respect the various mechanical properties of
a material will get affected by different mechanical processes or
operations on a material.
• It is helpful in safe designing, of the shape and size of various metal
parts for a given set of service conditions.

Unit V Lecturer1 5
Some Important Definitions

Isotropy
• A body is said to be isotropic if its physical properties are not
dependent upon the direction in the body along which they are
measured.
• Ex:Aluminum steels and cast ions
Anisotropy
• A body is said to Anisotropic if its physical properties are
varied with the direction in a body along which the properties
are measured
• Ex: Various composite materials, wood and laminated plastics

6
Some Important Definitions

Elasticity
It is the property of a material which enables it to regain its original shape
and size after deformation with in the elastic limit.

This property is always desirable in metals used in machine tools and other
structural constituents.
Plasticity
• It is the ability of materials to be permanently deformed even after the load
is removed
• This property of a material is of importance in deciding manufacturing
processes like forming, shaping, extruding operations etc.

Unit V Lecturer1 7
Strength

• It is defined as the capacity of a material to with stand Load. It is

expressed as force per unit area of cross-section.
• Depending upon the value of stress, the strengths of a metals can be
elastic or plastic
• Depending upon the nature of stress, the strength of a metal can be
tensile, compressive, shear, bending and torsional.
Elastic Strength
• It is the value of strength corresponding to transition from elastic to
plastic range, i.e., when material changes its behaviors from elastic
range to plastic range.

Unit V Lecturer1 8
Definition of normal stress
(axial stress)

F

A
Definition of shear stress

F

A0
Definition of normal strain

L

L0
Poisson’s ratio
Definition of shear strain

x
  tan  
l
Stress-Strain Curve
(ductile material)

http://www.shodor.org/~jingersoll/weave/tutorial/node4.html
Stress-Strain Curve
(brittle material)
Example: stress-strain curve for low-carbon steel

•1 - Ultimate Strength
•2 - Yield Strength
•3 - Rupture
•4 - Strain hardening region
•5 - Necking region

Hooke's law is only valid for the

portion of the curve between the
origin and the yield point.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hooke's_law
σPL ⇒ Proportional Limit - Stress above which stress is not longer proportional to strain.
σEL ⇒ Elastic Limit - The maximum stress that can be applied without resulting in permanent
deformation when unloaded.
σYP ⇒ Yield Point - Stress at which there are large increases in strain with little or no increase in
stress. Among common structural materials, only steel exhibits this type of response.
σYS ⇒ Yield Strength - The maximum stress that can be applied without exceeding a specified
value of permanent strain (typically .2% = .002 in/in).
OPTI 222 Mechanical Design in Optical Engineering 21
σU ⇒ Ultimate Strength - The maximum stress the material can withstand (based on the original
area)
True stress and true strain

True stress and true strain are based upon

instantaneous values of cross sectional
area and gage length
The Region of Stress-Strain Curve

Stress Strain Curve

Volume
Volume

Pressure

• Similar to Pressure-Volume Curve

• Area = Work
Uni-axial Stress State
Elastic analysis
 Stress-Strain Relationship

Hooke’s Law:

  E
E -- Young’s modulus

  G
G -- shear modulus
Ductility

It is defend as the property of a metal by virtue of which it can be draw into

elongated before rupture takes plac.
It is measured by the percentage of elongation and the percentage of reduction
in area before rupture of test piece .
Increase in length
Percentage of elongation =  100
Original legnth

Decrease in cross sectional area

The percentage of reduction =  100
Original cross sectional area

Unit V Lecturer1 22
Plastic Strength
It is the value of strength of the material which corresponds to plastic range
and rupture. It is also termed as ultimate strength.

Tensile Strength
Tensile strength is the ultimate strength in tension and corresponding to the
maximum load.

Maximum Tensile Load

Tensile strength =
Original cross sec tional area

The tensile stress is expressed in N/m2

Unit V Lecturer1 23
Compressive strength
The compressive strength of a metal is the value of load applied
to break it off by crushing.

Maximum Compressive Load

Compressive strength = Original cross sec tional area

The compressive stress is expressed in N/m2.

Shear Strength
The shear strength of a metal is the value of load applied tangentially to
shear it off across the resisting section.

Maximum tan gential Load

Shear strength =
Original cross sec tional area

Unit V Lecturer1 24
Shear Strength
The shear strength of a metal is the value of load applied tangentially to shear it
off across the resisting section.

Maximum tan gential Load

Shear strength =
Original cross sec tional area
Bending Strength
Bending strength of a metal is the value of load which can break the metal by
bending it across the resisting section.

Maximum Bending Load

Bending stress =
Original cross sec tional area

Unit V Lecturer1 25
Torsional Strength
Torsional Strength of a metal is the value of load applied to break the
metal by twisting across the resisting section.

Maximum twisting Load

Torsional strength =
Original cross sec tional area
This is expressed in N/m2.
Brittleness
It may be defined as the property of a metal by which it will fracture
without any appreciable deformation.

Ex: cast iron, glass and concrete

Unit V Lecturer1 26
Some Important Definitions

Toughness
• It may be defined as the property of a metal by virtue of
which it can absorb maximum energy before fracture takes
place.

Stiffness
• This may be defined as the property of a metal by virtue
of which it resists deformation. Modulus of rigidity is the
measure of stiffness.

Unit V Lecturer1 27
Some Important Definitions

Resilience
• Resilience is the property of a material by virtue of which
it stores energy and resists shocks or impacts

Endurance
• The endurance is the property of a material by virtue of
which it can withstand varying stresses or repeated application
of stress.

Unit V Lecturer1 28
Stress-Strain Relation for Different Engineering Materials

• The stress and strain relation can be studied by drawing a graph or curve by
taking strain along the x axis and the corresponding stress along the y axis.
This curve is called stress- strain curve.

For ferrous metal

• From the stress-strain diagram for different types of steel and wrought iron
the strength of the ferrous metals depends up on carbon content.
• The proportion of carbon does not have an appreciable effect on young’s
modulus of elasticity during any hardening process.

Unit V Lecturer1 29
Stress-Strain Relationships

• Three types of static stresses to which materials

can be subjected:
1. Tensile - stretching the material
2. Compressive - squeezing the material
3. Shear - causing adjacent portions of the material to
slide against each other
• Stress-strain curve - basic relationship that
describes mechanical properties for all three types
Tensile Test

• Most common test for studying

stress-strain relationship, especially
metals
• In the test, a force pulls the material,
elongating it and reducing its
diameter
• (left) Tensile force applied and
(right) resulting elongation of
material
Tensile Test Specimen

• ASTM (American Society for

Testing and Materials) specifies
preparation of test specimen
Tensile Test Setup

• Tensile testing
machine
Tensile Test Sequence

• (1) no load; (2) uniform elongation and area

reduction; (3) maximum load; (4) necking; (5)
fracture; (6) putting pieces back together to measure
final length
Engineering Stress

Defined as force divided by original area:

F
e 
Ao
where e = engineering stress, F = applied force, and Ao =
original area of test specimen
Engineering Strain

Defined at any point in the test as

L  Lo
e
Lo

where e = engineering strain; L = length at any point during

elongation; and Lo = original gage length
Typical Engineering
Stress-Strain Plot

• Typical engineering
stress-strain plot in
a tensile test of a
metal
• Two regions:
1. Elastic region
2. Plastic region
Elastic Region in
Stress-Strain Curve
• Relationship between stress and strain is linear
Hooke's Law: e = E e
where E = modulus of elasticity
• Material returns to its original length when stress is
removed
• E is a measure of the inherent stiffness of a
material
• Its value differs for different materials
Yield Point in
Stress-Strain Curve
• As stress increases, a point in the linear relationship is finally reached
when the material begins to yield
• Yield point Y can be identified by the change in slope at the upper end of the
linear region
• Y = a strength property
• Other names for yield point:
• Yield strength
• Yield stress
• Elastic limit
Plastic Region in
Stress-Strain Curve
• Yield point marks the beginning of plastic deformation
• The stress-strain relationship is no longer guided by Hooke's Law
• As load is increased beyond Y, elongation proceeds at a much faster
rate than before, causing the slope of the curve to change dramatically
Tensile Strength in
Stress-Strain Curve
• Elongation is accompanied by a uniform reduction in
cross-sectional area, consistent with maintaining
constant volume
• Finally, the applied load F reaches a maximum value,
and engineering stress at this point is called the tensile
strength TS (a.k.a. ultimate tensile strength)
Fmax
TS = Ao
Ductility in Tensile Test

• Ability of a material to plastically strain without fracture

• Ductility measure = elongation EL
Lf  Lo
EL 
Lo
where EL = elongation; Lf = specimen length at fracture; and Lo = original
specimen length
Lf is measured as the distance between gage marks after two pieces of
specimen are put back together
True Stress

Stress value obtained by dividing the instantaneous

area into applied load
F

A
where  = true stress; F = force; and A = actual (instantaneous) area
resisting the load
True Strain

• Provides a more realistic assessment of

"instantaneous" elongation per unit length
L
dL L
   ln
L L
o
Lo
True Stress-Strain Curve
• True stress-strain
curve for previous
engineering
stress-strain plot
Strain Hardening in
Stress-Strain Curve
• Note that true stress increases continuously in the
plastic region until necking
• In the engineering stress-strain curve, the significance of
this was lost because stress was based on the original area
value
• It means that the metal is becoming stronger as strain
increases
• This is the property called strain hardening
True Stress-Strain
in Log-Log Plot

• True stress-strain
curve plotted on
log-log scale.
 Flow Curve

• Because it is a straight line in a log-log plot, the

relationship between true stress and true strain in
the plastic region is
  K n
where K = strength coefficient; and n = strain hardening exponent
Categories of Stress-Strain Relationship:
Perfectly Elastic
• Behavior is defined
completely by modulus of
elasticity E
• Fractures rather than yielding
to plastic flow
• Brittle materials: ceramics,
many cast irons, and
thermosetting polymers
Stress-Strain Relationships: Elastic and
Perfectly Plastic
• Stiffness defined by E
• Once Y reached, deforms
plastically at same stress level
• Flow curve: K = Y, n = 0
• Metals behave like this when
heated to sufficiently high
temperatures (above
recrystallization)
Stress-Strain Relationships: Elastic and Strain
Hardening
• Hooke's Law in elastic region,
yields at Y
• Flow curve: K > Y, n > 0
• Most ductile metals behave this
way when cold worked
Compression Test

• Applies a load that squeezes the

ends of a cylindrical specimen
between two platens
• Compression force applied to test
piece and resulting change in
height and diameter
Compression Test Setup
Engineering Stress in Compression
• As the specimen is compressed, its height is reduced and
cross-sectional area is increased

e = - F
Ao
where Ao = original area of the specimen
Engineering Strain in Compression

Engineering strain is defined

h  ho
e
ho
Since height is reduced during compression, value of e is negative
(the negative sign is usually ignored when expressing compression
strain)
Stress-Strain Curve in Compression

• Shape of plastic region is

different from tensile test
because cross section
increases
• Calculated value of
engineering stress is higher
Tensile Test vs.
Compression Test
• Although differences exist between engineering
stress-strain curves in tension and compression, the
true stress-strain relationships are nearly identical
• Since tensile test results are more common, flow
curve values (K and n) from tensile test data can be
applied to compression operations
• When using tensile K and n data for compression,
ignore necking, which is a phenomenon peculiar to
strain induced by tensile stresses
Testing of Brittle Materials

• Hard brittle materials (e.g., ceramics) possess

elasticity but little or no plasticity
• Conventional tensile test cannot be easily applied
• Often tested by a bending test (also called flexure test)
• Specimen of rectangular cross-section is positioned
between two supports, and a load is applied at its center
Bending Test
• Bending of a rectangular cross section results in both tensile and
compressive stresses in the material: (left) initial loading; (right)
highly stressed and strained specimen
Testing of Brittle Materials
• Brittle materials do not flex
• They deform elastically until fracture
• Failure occurs because tensile strength of outer fibers of specimen are
exceeded
• Failure type: cleavage - common with ceramics and metals at low
temperatures, in which separation rather than slip occurs along certain
crystallographic planes
Transverse Rupture Strength

• The strength value derived from the bending test:

1.5FL
TRS 
bt 2
where TRS = transverse rupture strength; F = applied load at
fracture; L = length of specimen between supports; and b and t are
dimensions of cross section
Shear Properties

• Application of stresses in opposite directions on

either side of a thin element: (a) shear stress and (b)
shear strain
Shear Stress and Strain

Shear stress defined as F


A
where F = applied force; and A = area over which deflection occurs.


Shear strain defined as  
b
where  = deflection element; and b = distance over which deflection
occurs
Torsion Stress-Strain Curve

• Typical shear
stress-strain curve
from a torsion test
Shear Elastic Stress-Strain Relationship

• In the elastic region, the relationship is defined as

  G
where G = shear modulus, or shear modulus of elasticity
For most materials, G  0.4E, where E = elastic
modulus
Shear Plastic Stress-Strain Relationship
• Relationship similar to flow curve for a tensile test
• Shear stress at fracture = shear strength S
• Shear strength can be estimated from tensile strength: S  0.7(TS)
• Since cross-sectional area of test specimen in torsion test does not
change as in tensile and compression, engineering stress-strain curve
for shear  true stress-strain curve
Hardness
Resistance to permanent indentation
• Good hardness generally means material is resistant to scratching and
wear
• Most tooling used in manufacturing must be hard for scratch and wear
resistance
Hardness Tests

• Commonly used for assessing material properties

because they are quick and convenient
• Variety of testing methods are appropriate due to
differences in hardness among different materials
• Most well-known hardness tests are Brinell and
Rockwell
• Other test methods are also available, such as Vickers,
Knoop, Scleroscope, and durometer
 Brinell Hardness Test

• Widely used for testing

metals and nonmetals of
low to medium hardness
• A hard ball is pressed
into specimen surface
with a load of 500, 1500,
or 3000 kg
Brinell Hardness Number

• Load divided into indentation area = Brinell

Hardness Number (BHN)
2F
HB 
Db (Db  Db2  Di2 )

where HB = Brinell Hardness Number (BHN), F = indentation

load, kg; Db = diameter of ball, mm, and Di = diameter of
indentation, mm
Rockwell Hardness Test
• Another widely used test
• A cone shaped indenter is pressed into specimen using a minor load of
10 kg, thus seating indenter in material
• Then, a major load of 150 kg is applied, causing indenter to penetrate
beyond its initial position
• Additional penetration distance d is converted into a Rockwell
hardness reading by the testing machine
Rockwell Hardness Test

• (1) initial minor

load and (2) major
load.
 Effect of Temperature on
Properties

• General effect of
temperature on
strength and
ductility
Hot Hardness

Ability of a material to
retain hardness at
elevated temperatures
• Typical hardness as a
function of temperature
for several materials
 Stress-Strain Relation for Different Engineering Materials

Stress- Strain curve for ferrous metals Stress Strain curve for non - ferrous metals

Unit V Lecturer1 75
Recrystallization in Metals

• Most metals strain harden at room temperature

according to the flow curve (n > 0)
• But if heated to sufficiently high temperature and
deformed, strain hardening does not occur
• Instead, new grains form that are free of strain
• The metal has recrystallized
• The metal behaves as a perfectly plastic material; that is, n
=0
Recrystallization Temperature

• Recrystallization temperature of a given metal = about

one-half its melting point (0.5 Tm) as measured on an
absolute temperature scale
• Recrystallization takes time
• The recrystallization temperature is specified as the
temperature at which new grains are formed in about one
hour
Recrystallization and Manufacturing
• Recrystallization can be exploited in manufacturing
• Heating a metal to its recrystallization temperature prior to
deformation allows a greater amount of straining
• Lower forces and power are required to perform the process
• Forming a metal at temperatures above its recrystallization temperature is
called hot working
Fluid Properties and Manufacturing
• Fluids flow - they take the shape of the container that holds them
• Many manufacturing processes are accomplished on materials
converted from solid to liquid by heating
• Called solidification processes
• Examples:
• Metals are cast in molten state
• Glass is formed in a heated and fluid state
• Polymers are almost always shaped as fluids
Viscosity in Fluids

Viscosity is the resistance to flow that is characteristic

of a given fluid
• Flow is a defining characteristic of fluids, but the
tendency to flow varies for different fluids
• Viscosity is a measure of the internal friction when
velocity gradients are present in the fluid
• The more viscous the fluid, the higher the internal friction
and the greater the resistance to flow
• Reciprocal of viscosity is fluidity
Viscosity

• Viscosity can be defined using two parallel plates

separated by a distance d and a fluid fills the space
between the two plates
Shear Stress

• Shear stress is the frictional force exerted by the fluid

per unit area
• Motion of the upper plate is resisted by this frictional
force resulting from the shear viscosity of the fluid
• This force F can be reduced to a shear stress  by
dividing by plate area A
F

A
Shear Rate

• Shear stress is related to shear rate, defined as the

change in velocity dv relative to dy
dv
 
dy

where =  shear rate, 1/s; dv = change in velocity, m/s; and dy = change

in distance y, m
Shear rate = velocity gradient perpendicular to flow direction
Shear Viscosity

• Shear viscosity is the fluid property that defines the

relationship between F/A and dv/dy; that is,
F dv
 or   
A dy
where  = a constant of proportionality called the
coefficient of viscosity, Pa-s
• For Newtonian fluids, viscosity is a constant
• For non-Newtonian fluids, it is not
Coefficient of Viscosity
• Rearranging, coefficient of viscosity can be expressed:




• Viscosity of a fluid is the ratio of shear stress to shear rate during flow
 Flow Rate and
Viscosity of Polymers
• Viscosity of a thermoplastic polymer melt is not
constant
• It is affected by flow rate
• Its behavior is non-Newtonian
• A fluid that exhibits this decreasing viscosity with
increasing shear rate is called pseudoplastic
• This behavior complicates analysis of polymer
shaping processes such as injection molding
Newtonian versus Pseudoplastic Fluids

• Viscous behaviors of
Newtonian and
pseudoplastic fluids
• Polymer melts exhibit
pseudoplastic behavior
• For comparison, the
behavior of a plastic
solid material is shown.
Viscoelastic Behavior
Material property that determines the strain that the material experiences
when subjected to combinations of stress and temperature over time
• Combination of viscosity and elasticity
Elastic Behavior vs.
Viscoelastic Behavior
• (a) Response of
elastic material;
and (b) response
of a viscoelastic
material
• Material in (b)
takes a strain that
depends on time
and temperature