Chapter 2: Stress and Strain Normal Stress and Strain The words “stress” and “strain” are used

interchangeably in popular culture in a psychological sense: “I’m feeling stressed” or “I’m under a lot
of strain.” In engineering, these words have specific, technical meanings. If you tie a steel wire to a
hook in the ceiling and hang a weight on the lower end, the wire will stretch. Divide the change in
length by the original length, and you have the strain in the wire. Divide the weight hanging from the
wire by the wire’s cross sectional area, and you have the tensile stress in the wire. Stress and strain
are ratios. The symbol for tensile stress is σ, the lower case Greek letter sigma. If the weight is 25 lb.
and the cross-sectional area of the wire is 0.002 in.2, then the stress in the wire is σ=W A= 25lb.
0.002in.2 =12,700lb. in.2 =12,700psi . The symbol for strain is ε, the lower case Greek letter epsilon.
If the original length of the wire L=40in. and the change in length ΔL=0.017in. (also written
δ=0.017in. ), then strain ε=ΔL L =δ L=0.017in. 40in. =0.000425 . This is a small number, so sometimes
the strain number is multiplied by 100 and and reported as a percent: 0.000425=0.0425% . You may
also see strain reported in microstrain: 0.000425×106=425 microstrain. Strain is usually reported as
a percent for highly elastic materials like rubber. Example #1 A 6 inch long copper wire is stretched
to a total length of 6.05 inches. What is the strain? Solution The change in anything is the final
dimension minus the initial dimension. Here, the change in length is the final length minus the initial
length: ΔL=Lf−Lo=6.05in.−6.0in.=0.05in. . Strain is ε=ΔL L =0.05in. 6.0in. =0.0083 .

If we hang a bucket from the wire and gradually fill the bucket with water, the weight will gradually
increase along with the stress and the strain in the wire, until finally the wire breaks. We can plot the
stress vs. strain on an x-y scatter graph, and the result will look like this:

This graph shows the stress-strain behavior of a low-carbon sheet steel specimen. Stress is in units of
ksi, or kips per square inch, where 1 kip = 103 lb. (1 kilopound). The points at the left end of the
curve (left of the red dashed line) are so close together that they are smeared into a line. This
straight part of the stress-strain curve is the elastic portion of the curve. If you fill the bucket with
only enough water to stretch the wire in the elastic zone, then the wire will return to its original

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ΔL or δ

0.00 0.02 0.04 0.06 0.08 0.10 0.12 0.14 0.16 0.18 0.20 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Strain

Stress (ksi)

Chapter 2: Stress and Strain

length when you empty the bucket. We can change the range of the strain axis from 0.0-0.2 to
0.000-0.002, to show the elastic data only:

This graph shows the leftmost 1% of the previous graph. The dashed red line is in the same position
on both graphs. Now the individual data points are visible, and the curve is almost perfectly straight
up to a strain of about 0.0018. The straight line has a slope, called Young’s Modulus,2 or Elastic
Modulus, E. The slope of a straight line is the rise over run, so within this elastic zone, E= σ ε . Since
strain is unitless, Young’s modulus has the same units as stress. Young’s modulus is a mechanical
property of the material being tested: 30×106psi or 207 GPa for steels, 10×106psi or 70 GPa for
aluminum alloys. See Appendix B for materials properties of other materials. Example #2 What
tensile stress is required to produce a strain of 8×10-5 in aluminum? Report the answer in MPa.
Solution Aluminum has a Young’s modulus of E = 70 GPa. Rewrite E=σ ε , solving for stress:
σ=Eε=8×10−5⋅70GPa∣103MPa GPa =5.6MPa

2 Named for Thomas Young, an English physics professor, who defined it in 1807.

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0.0000 0.0002 0.0004 0.0006 0.0008 0.0010 0.0012 0.0014 0.0016 0.0018 0.0020 0 10 20 30 40 50
60 70 Strain

Stress (ksi)

Chapter 2: Stress and Strain

This cartoon of a stress-strain curve illustrates the elastic and plastic zones. If you hang a light weight
to the wire hanging from the ceiling, the wire stretches elastically; remove the weight and the wire
returns to its original length. Apply a heavier weight to the wire, and the wire will stretch beyond the
elastic limit and begins to plastically3 deform, which means it stretches permanently. Remove the
weight and the wire will be a little longer (and a little skinnier) than it was originally. Hang a
sufficiently heavy weight, and the wire will break. Two stress values are important in engineering
design. The yield strength, σYS, is the limit of elastic deformation; beyond this point, the material
“yields,” or permanently deforms. The ultimate tensile strength, σUTS (also called tensile strength,
σTS) is the highest stress value on the stress-strain curve. The rupture strength is the stress at final
fracture; this value is not particularly useful, because once the tensile strength is exceeded, the
metal will break soon after. Young’s modulus, E, is the slope of the stress-strain curve before the test
specimen starts to yield. The strain when the test specimen breaks is also called the elongation.
Many manufacturing operations on metals are performed at stress levels between the yield strength
and the tensile strength. Bending a steel wire into a paperclip, deep-drawing sheet metal to make an
aluminum can, or rolling steel into wide-flange structural beams are three processes that
permanently deform the metal, so σYS<σApplied . During each forming operation, the metal must
not be stressed beyond its tensile strength, otherwise it would break, so σYS<σApplied<σUTS .
Manufacturers need to know the values of yield and tensile strength in order to stay within these
limits. After they are sold or installed, most manufactured products and civil engineering structures
are used below the yield strength, in the elastic zone.4 In this Strength of Materials course, almost
all of the problems are elastic, so there is a linear relationship between stress and strain. Take an
aluminum rod of length L, cross-sectional area A, and pull on it with a load P. The rod will lengthen
an amount δ. We can calculate δ in three separate equations, or we can use algebra to find a simple
equation to calculate δ directly. Young’s modulus is defined as E= σ ε . Substitute the definition of
stress, σ=P A , and E= σ ε = P A⋅ε . Substitute the definition of strain, ε=δ L , and E= P A⋅ε=PL Aδ .
Rewrite this equation to solve for deflection: δ= PL AE . Now we have a direct equation for
calculating the change in length of the rod.
3 Here, the word plastic is used in its 17th century sense “capable of being deformed” rather than
the 20th century definition “polymer.” 4 One exception is the crumple zones in a car. During an auto
accident, the hood and other sheet metal components yield, preventing damage to the driver and
passengers. Another exception is a shear pin in a snow blower. If a chunk of ice jams the blades, the
shear pin exceeds its ultimate strength and breaks, protecting the drivetrain by working as a
mechanical fuse.

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Stress σ

Strain ε

plastic zone

elastic zone

Stress σ

Strain ε

Elongation

Yield strength Rupture strength Tensile strength

Young's Modulus

L L+δ

Chapter 2: Stress and Strain

Example #3 A 6 foot long aluminum rod has a cross-sectional area of 0.08 in.2. How much does the
rod stretch under an axial tensile load of 400 lb.? Report the answer in inches. Solution Aluminum
has a Young’s modulus of E=10×106psi . Deflection δ=PL AE= 400lb. 6ft. 0.08in.2 in.2 10×106lb.∣12in.
ft. =0.036in. Note Young's modulus is in units of psi, but when you write it in an equation, split up
the lb. and the in.2 between numerator and denominator to avoid unit confusion.

Sign Convention A load that pulls is called a tensile load. If the load pushes, we call it a compressive
load. The equations are the same: compressive stress σ=P/A , compressive strain ε=δ/L , and
compressive deflection δ=PL/AE . We need a way to differentiate between compression and tension,
so we use a sign convention. Tensile loads and stresses are positive; compressive loads and stresses
are negative. Increases in length are positive; decreases in length are negative. Example #4 A 70 kN
compressive load is applied to a 5 cm diameter, 3 cm tall, steel cylinder. Calculate stress, strain, and
deflection. Solution The load is –70 kN, so the stress is . σ=P A= 4P πd2= 4(−70kN) π(5cm)2 ∣MPa m2
103kN ∣(100cm)2 m2 =−35.6MPa The negative sign tells us the stress is compressive. Young's
modulus E=σ ε . Rewrite the equation to solve for strain: ε=σ E= −35.6MPa 207GPa ∣ GPa 103MPa
=−0.000172 Strain is defined as ε=δ L . Rewrite to solve for deflection: δ=εL=−0.000172⋅3cm∣10mm
cm =−0.0052mm . The negative signs tell us that the cylinder is shrinking along the direction of the
load.

Shear Stress and Strain The stress in the previous examples is called “normal stress” because the
stress acts on an area that is normal, or perpendicular, to the direction of the applied load. Imagine a
tall stack of coins glued together on their faces. If you pull on the ends of the stack, the glue will
experience a stress that is normal (perpendicular) to the face of each coin. If the glue is thick and
tacky, maybe it will tend to stretch, and you can see the coins gradually pull apart along the direction
of the applied load. If the load is 100 lb. and the face area of each coin is 1 in.2, then the normal
stress is 100 psi. Next, imagine taking two coins that are glued together on their faces, and try to
slide them apart. Now the stress is acting parallel to the glue instead of perpendicular to it. This
stress is called shear stress, symbolized by the lower case Greek letter tau, τ. The units are the same
as for normal stress because shear stress is also force divided by area. If the load is 25 lb. and the
face area of each coin is 1 in.2, then the shear stress is 25 psi. Sheet metal joints are often
manufactured this way, with adhesive bonding two lapped sheets to form a lap joint. The load is
parallel to the area under stress (the adhesive in the shear plane between the two lapped panels).
Joints can be designed to put the adhesive in either tension or in shear; typically, the shear strength
of an adhesive is not the same as the strength in tension. For example, cyanoacrylate adhesive
(“superglue”) is stronger in shear than in tension. An adhesive lap joint will fail when the

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Chapter 2: Stress and Strain

shear strength of the adhesive is exceeded. If the sheet metal is held together with rivets instead of
glue, then each rivet is loaded in shear across its cross-section. The shear plane passes through the
rivet where the two sheets meet. In a bolted joint, use a bolt with a smooth shank instead of a bolt
that is threaded along its entire length. This way, the shear plane can pass through the smooth
shank, which has a larger cross-sectional area than the root of a thread, and therefore can handle a
higher applied load. Later in the book, we will see that the thread root also acts as a stress
concentration site; yet another reason for keeping threads out of shear planes. One way to produce
holes in sheet metal is by punching them out with a punch and die set. The punch shears the sheet
metal, so we can use shear stress calculations to figure out the stress in the sheet metal. The
sheared area is perimeter of the shape that is punched times the thickness of the sheet metal t. The
shear stress is the punch force divided by the sheared surface: τ=P A . Example #5 A 3 mm thick
aluminum sheet is cut with a 4 cm diameter round punch. If the punch exerts a force of 6 kN, what is
the shear stress in the sheet? Report the answer in MPa. Solution The punch will create a round slug,
where the cut edge is around the circumference of the slug. Think of the cut edge as the wall of a
cylinder with a height of 3 mm and a diameter of 4 cm. The area equals the circumference of the
circle times the thickness of the sheet metal: A=πdt. Shear stress τ= P A= P πdt= 6kN
π⋅4cm⋅3mm∣MPa m2 103kN∣100cm m ∣103mm m =15.9MPa

A process engineer in a stamping plant will rewrite this equation to solve for P in order to find out
whether a press is capable of punching out blanks of a given size in a sheet metal of known shear
strength. Shear stress controls the design of torsion members. Think of a round shaft as a series of
disks glued together on their faces. If you twist the shaft with a torque T, the glue will be loaded in
shear because the load is parallel to the face of each disk.

Consider a rectangular block loaded in shear. The block will distort as a parallelogram, so the top
edge moves an amount δ. Divide the distortion by length L perpendicular to the distortion, and you
have the shear strain, γ=δ L . Like normal strain, shear strain is unitless. Consider the angle formed
between the initial and loaded positions of the block. From trigonometry, we know that tanϕ=δ L
The amount of strain in the cartoon is exaggerated. For metals, concrete, wood, and most polymers,
angle ϕ is so small that tanϕ≈ϕ if we measure the angle in radians, therefore ϕ≈γ=δ L .

Key Equations

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P P shear plane

punch

t slug

δLϕ

TT

Chapter 2: Stress and Strain Normal stress in a tensile or compressive member is the load divided by
the cross-sectional area: σ=P A Normal strain is the change in length parallel to the load divided by
initial length: ε=ΔL L =δ L Young's modulus is the ratio of stress over strain within the elastic zone of
the stress-strain diagram: E=σ ε The change in length of a tensile or compressive member is derived
from the three previous equations: δ= PL AE Shear stress is the load divided by the area parallel to
the load: τ=P A Shear strain is the deformation parallel to the load divided by initial length
perpendicular to the load: γ=δ L .

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