Mechanics of Materials

Chapter 1

Dr. Rehman Akhtar

 Mechanics of Materials
•Mechanics is an area of science concerned with the
behavior of physical bodies when subjected to forces
or displacements, and the subsequent effects of the
bodies on their environment.
•Three Fundamental areas of engineering mechanics
are:
•Statics
•Dynamics
•Mechanics of Materials (Strength of materials)

•F=ma (F is applied force, it does not include inertial force).

 Mechanics of Materials
•Mechanics of Materials
•Deals with the relations between external applied
loads and their internal effects on bodies.
•Bodies are no longer assumed to be rigid
(deformations are of major interest)
•As deformation can occur, design must consider
both dimensions and material properties to satisfy
requirements of strength and rigidity
•When Loaded, a mechanical part or structure should
neither break, nor deform excessively.
 Mechanics of Materials
Factor of safety:

FS  Factor of safety
u ultimate stress ultimate strength
FS   
 all allowable stress allowable strength

•Allowable or Working stress is defined as the actual

stress of a material under a given loading.
•Ultimate strength is an inherent property of a
material or of a mechanical element.
•Factor of safety of steel chair vs factor of safety of
ceiling fan
 Mechanics of Materials
•Structural members or machines
must be designed such that the
working stresses are less than the
ultimate strength of the material.
•By this definition, a structure
with a FOS of exactly 1 will
support only the design load and
no more. Any additional load will
cause the structure to fail.
•A structure with a FOS of 2 will
fail at twice the design load.
Factor of safety considerations:
• uncertainty in material properties
• uncertainty of loadings
• uncertainty of analyses
• number of loading cycles
• types of failure
• maintenance requirements and
deterioration effects
• importance of member to structures
integrity
• risk to life and property
 Mechanics of Materials
• Uncertainty in material properties
Variations that may occur in the properties of the member under consideration.
The composition, strength, and dimensions of the member are all subject to small
variations during manufacture. In addition, material properties may be altered
and residual stresses introduced through heating or deformation that may occur
during manufacture, storage, transportation, or construction.

• Uncertainty of loadings
The number of loadings that may be expected during the life of the structure or
machine. For most materials the ultimate stress decreases as the number of load
applications is increased. This phenomenon is known as fatigue and, if ignored,
may result in sudden failure. The type of loadings that are planned for in the
design, or that may occur in the future. Very few loadings are known with
complete accuracy—most design loadings are engineering estimates. In addition,
future alterations or changes in usage may introduce changes in the actual
loading. Larger factors of safety are also required for dynamic, cyclic, or impulsive
loadings.
 Mechanics of Materials
• Uncertainty of analyses
All design methods are based on certain simplifying assumptions which result in calculated
stresses being approximations of actual stresses.

• Types of failure
Brittle materials fail suddenly, usually with no prior indication that collapse is imminent.
On the other hand, ductile materials, such as structural steel, normally undergo a
substantial deformation called yielding before failing, thus providing a warning that
overloading exists. However, most buckling or stability failures are sudden, whether the
material is brittle or not. When the possibility of sudden failure exists, a larger factor of
safety should be used than when failure is preceded by obvious warning signs.

• Maintenance requirements and deterioration effects

Deterioration that may occur in the future because of poor maintenance or because of
unpreventable natural causes. A larger factor of safety is necessary in locations where
conditions such as corrosion and decay are difficult to control or even to discover.

• Importance of member to structures integrity risk to life and property

There is the additional consideration concerning the risk to life and property that a failure
would produce.
 Mechanics of Materials
Note:
•Where a failure would produce no risk to life and
only minimal risk to property, the use of a smaller
factor of safety can be considered.
•Finally, there is the practical consideration that,
unless a careful design with a nonexcessive factor
of safety is used, a structure or machine might not
perform its design function.
•For example, high factors of safety may have an
unacceptable effect on the weight of an aircraft.
 Mechanics of Materials
Design Considerations
•Sometimes the strength required of an element in a
system is an important factor in the determination of
the geometry and the dimensions of the element.
•In such a situation we say that strength is an
important design consideration. When we use the
expression design consideration, we are referring to
some characteristic that influences the design of the
element or, perhaps, the entire system.
•Usually quite a number of such characteristics must
be considered and prioritized in a given design
situation.
 Mechanics of Materials
Design Considerations
Many of the important ones are follows (not
necessarily in order of importance):
 Mechanics of Materials
Codes and Standards
•A standard is a set of specifications for parts, materials, or
processes intended to achieve uniformity, efficiency, and a
specified quality
•A code is a set of specifications for the analysis, design,
manufacture, and construction of something.
•The purpose of a code is to achieve a specified degree of
safety, efficiency, and performance or quality. It is important to
observe that safety codes do not imply absolute safety. In fact,
absolute safety is impossible to obtain. Sometimes the
unexpected event really does happen.
•Designing a building to withstand a 120 mi/h wind does not
mean that the designers think a 140 mi/h wind is impossible; it
simply means that they think it is highly improbable.
 Mechanics of Materials
Codes and Standards
•All of the organizations and societies listed below have established
specifications for standards and safety or design codes.
•The name of the organization provides a clue to the nature of the
standard or code. Some of the standards and codes, as well as addresses,
can be obtained in most technical libraries or on the Internet.
•The organizations of interest to engineers are:
 Mechanics of Materials
Safety and Product Liability
•The strict liability concept of product liability generally prevails in
the United States.
•This concept states that the manufacturer of an article is liable for
any damage or harm that results because of a defect. And it doesn’t
matter whether the manufacturer knew about the defect, or even
could have known about it.
•For example, suppose an article was manufactured, say, 10 years ago. And
suppose at that time the article could not have been considered defective on
the basis of all technological knowledge then available. Ten years later,
according to the concept of strict liability, the manufacturer is still liable.
Thus, under this concept, the plaintiff needs only to prove that the article was
defective and that the defect caused some damage or harm.
 Mechanics of Materials
Safety and Product Liability
•Negligence of the manufacturer need not be proved.
•The best approaches to the prevention of product liability are good
engineering in analysis and design, quality control, and
comprehensive testing procedures.
•Advertising managers often make glowing promises in the
warranties and sales literature for a product. These statements
should be reviewed carefully by the engineering staff to eliminate
excessive promises and to insert adequate warnings and instructions
for use.
 Mechanics of Materials
•The main objective of the study of mechanics of
materials is to provide the future engineer with
the means of analyzing and designing various
machines and load bearing structures.
•Both the analysis and design of a given structure
involve the determination of stresses and
deformations.
 Mechanics of Materials
Stress
•Simple stresses are expressed as the ratio of the
applied force divided by the resisting area or intensity
of the forces distributed over a given section
Ϭ = Force / Area

•It is the expression of force per unit area to

structural members that are subjected to external
forces and/or induced forces.
•Stress is the lead to accurately describe and predict
the elastic deformation of a body.
 Mechanics of Materials
Stress
•Since SI metric units are used in this discussion, with P
expressed in newtons (N) and A in square meters (m2),
the stress ϭ will be expressed in N/m2. This unit is called a
pascal (Pa).
•However, one finds that the pascal is an exceedingly
small quantity and that, in practice, multiples of this unit
must be used, namely, the kilopascal (kPa), the
megapascal (MPa), and the gigapascal (GPa).
We have