Elasticity and Plasticity

MEC519 Advanced Plasticity and Elasticity

Stress-strain relations for linearly elastic solids,
Generalized Hooke’s law. Notation of Force and Stress.
Components of stress and Components of strain. Tensor
character of stress. Strain-displacement relations,
Torsion as an Elasticity Problem. Plane stress and
plane strain, Airy Stress Functions in Cartesian and
Polar Coordinates, Beams Under Elastic Foundations
Theoretical concepts of plasticity, Yield criteria - Tresca
and Von Mises criterion of yielding, Plastic stress
strain relationship
 Elasticity and Plasticity

Lecture 1
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Classroom

Course Postgraduate PhD

Asst. Prof. Dr. Alaa Dahham Younis
 Elasticity
Elasticity is a property of matter where the atomic forces in matter act to restore the shape of a
solid when distorted due to the application of external forces. A perfectly elastic material returns
to its original shape if the external force producing the deformation is removed. Materials are
elastic when the external forces do not exceed the elastic limit. Above the elastic limit, solids can
exhibit plastic flow and concomitant heat dissipation. Such non-elastic behavior in solids occurs
when they are subject to strong external forces.
An extension of the one-dimensional linear chain to two-dimensional membranes, such as a drum
skin, is straightforward if the membrane is thin enough so that the rigidity of the membrane can
be ignored. Elasticity for three-dimensional solids requires accounting for the strong elastic
forces exerted against any change in shape in addition to elastic forces opposing change in
volume. The stiffness of solids to changes in shape, or volume, is best represented using the
concepts of stress and strain.

Forces in matter can be divided into two classes;

body forces, such as gravity, which act on each volume element, and
surface forces which are the forces that act on both sides of any infinitesimal surface element
inside the solid.
Body Forces
A body force is a force that acts throughout the volume of a body. Forces due to gravity, electric
fields and magnetic fields are examples of body forces. Body forces contrast with contact forces
or surface forces which are exerted to the surface of an object. Normal forces and shear forces
between objects are surface forces as they are exerted to the surface of an object. All cohesive
surface attraction and contact forces between objects are also considered as surface forces.
Fictitious forces such as the centrifugal force, Euler force, and the Coriolis effect are also
examples of body forces.
Euler Force
In the presence of angular acceleration, there can exist a fictitious force known as the Euler
force. This force is observed from a non-inertial reference frame.
To illustrate this concept, consider a particle P that is firmly sitting on a turntable, which is
rotating about point O with a (counterclockwise) angular acceleration α. The radius measured
from point O to the location of the particle is R.
The tangential (circumferential) acceleration of the particle (ac) is:

The tangential force (Fc) between the particle and turntable is

preventing the particle from sliding in the circumferential
direction. This force is determined by applying Newton’s Second
Law in the direction of ac.
Thus,
The Coriolis effect in action
One of the most common examples of the Coriolis effect in action is seen through the deflection of
winds on Earth.
Another example of the Coriolis effect can be demonstrated by looking at a typical playground
roundabout. If you are standing in the center of a spinning roundabout (spinning anticlockwise)
and attempt to throw a ball, it will appear to curve to the right, when in fact it is travelling in a
straight line to anyone watching who is not on the roundabout. This is similar to what happens in
the northern hemisphere of the Earth, where winds are deflected to the right.
This deflection is a major factor in explaining why winds blow anticlockwise around low pressure
and clockwise around high pressure in the northern hemisphere and visa versa in the southern
hemisphere. Without the Coriolis effect air would simply flow directly from areas of high pressure
to areas of low pressure.
The forces which arise when bodies are in contact and which give rise to stress distributions.
Surface forces also arise inside materials, acting on internal surfaces
To complete the description of forces acting on real materials, one needs to deal with forces
which arise even when bodies are not in contact;
one can think of these forces as acting at a distance,
for example the force of gravity. To describe these forces,
one can define the body force, which acts on volume
elements of material. Figure below shows a sketch of
a volume element subjected to a magnetic body force
and a gravitational body force .
The most important body force is the force due to gravity, i.e. the weight force. there were
examples involving the weight of components. In those cases it was simply stated that the weight
could be taken to be a single force acting at the component Centre. This is true when the
component is symmetrical, for example, in the shape of a circle or a square. However, it is not
true in general for a component of arbitrary shape.
In what follows, the important case of a flat object of arbitrary shape will be examined.
The weight of a small volume element ΔV of material of density ρ is dF = ρ g Δ V and
the total weight is

Consider the general two-dimensional case, Fig. 1, where material elements of area
Δ Ai (and constant thickness t) are subjected to forces

Figure 1: Resultant Weight on a body

The resultant, i.e. equivalent, weight force due to all elements, for a component with uniform
density, is

where A is the cross-sectional area

Surface Traction
A force can be applied to its boundary: examples include fluid pressure, wind loading, or forces
arising from contact with another solid. The surface traction vector t at a point on the surface
represents the force acting on the surface per unit area of the deformed solid.
Formally, let dA be an element of area on a surface. Suppose that dA is subjected to a force dp
Then

The resultant force acting on any portion S of the surface of the deformed solid is

Surface traction, like `true stress,’ should be thought of as acting on the deformed solid.

The nature of the action between two bodies in contact is assumed to be of the same nature as the
action between two portions of the same body separated by an imaginary surface.
Whether it is the traction across an imaginary plane inside a body or the surface traction which
acts at the actual bounding surface of a body, the direction of the traction vector does not, in
general, coincide with that of n̂ . The traction vector can be decomposed into a component
normal to the plane (defined by n̂ ) and a component parallel to the plane.
 Elastic Stress-strain Relations
Assumptions in this section
i) We shall generalize the elastic behavior in the tension test to arrive at relations which connect
all six components of stress with all six components of elastic strain.
ii) We shall restrict ourselves to materials which are linearly elastic. (linear elasticity)
iii) We also restrict ourselves to strains small compared to unity. (small strain)
iv) We shall consider the materials that are independent of orientation which is assumed to be
isotropic. (isotropic)

Definitions

1. Young’s modulus (or modulus of elasticity)

i) The modulus of elasticity 𝐸 is numerically equal to the slope of the linear-elastic region in
stress-strain curve and it is the material property.
ii) The modulus of elasticity at compression and extension is same.
iii) Unit: Because 𝜖 is a dimensionless number, it is homogeneous to stress σ.

2. Shear modulus of elasticity G

3. Poisson’s ratio
Tests in uniaxial compression show a lateral extensional strain which has the same fixed fraction
to the longitudinal compressive strain.

i) Poisson’s ratio is the example of non-stress strain and thermal strain.

ii) For isotropic, linear-elastic material
𝜖y = 𝜖z = −𝜈𝜖x = −𝜈𝜎x /𝐸
Consider the rectangular bar of Figure (2) subjected to a tensile load. Under the action of
this load the bar will increase in length by an amount dL giving a longitudinal strain in
the bar
The bar will also exhibit, however, a reduction in dimensions laterally, i.e. its breadth and depth
will both reduce. The associated lateral strains will both be equal, will be of opposite sense to the
longitudinal strain, and will be given by
𝛿𝑏 𝛿𝑑
𝜀𝑙𝑎𝑡 = − 𝑏 = − 𝑑

Provided the load on the material is retained within the

elastic range the ratio of the lateral and longitudinal
strains will always be constant. This ratio is termed
Poisson’s ratio.
𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛 −𝛿𝐷 𝐷
Poisson’s ratio = 𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑛
= 𝛿𝐿
𝐿

The negative sign of the lateral strain is normally ignored to leave Poisson’s ratio simply as a
ratio of strain magnitudes. It must be remembered, however, that the longitudinal strain induces
a lateral strain of opposite sign

A material which has a uniform structure throughout without any flaws or discontinuities is
termed a homogeneous material. Non-homogeneous or inhomogeneous materials such as
concrete and poor-quality cast iron will thus have a structure which varies from point to point
depending on its constituents and the presence of casting flaws or impurities.
If a material exhibits uniform properties throughout in all directions it is said to be isotropic;
conversely one which does not exhibit this uniform behaviour is said to be nonisotropic or
anisotropic.
An orthotropic material is one which has different properties in different planes. A typical
example of such a material is wood, although some composites which contain systematically
orientated “inhomogeneities” may also be considered to fall into this category

The conclusions obtained under the assumption that the material is isotropic
i) No shear strain due to normal stress components.
ii) The principal axes of strain at a point of a stressed body coincide with the principal axes of
stress at that point.
iii) Each shear stress component produces only its corresponding shear strain component.
iv) No strain components other than 𝛾zx , can exist, singly or in combination, as a result of the
shear-stress component 𝜏zx . Shear strains are affected only by the corresponding shear stress so

v) The thermal strain cannot produce the shear strain.

A material which has a uniform structure throughout without any flaws or discontinuities is
termed a homogeneous material. Non-homogeneous or inhomogeneous materials such as
concrete and poor-quality cast iron will thus have a structure which varies from point to point
depending on its constituents and the presence of casting flaws or impurities.
If a material exhibits uniform properties throughout in all directions it is said to be isotropic;
conversely one which does not exhibit this uniform behavior is said to be non-isotropic or
anisotropic. An orthotropic material is one which has different properties in different planes. A
typical example of such a material is wood, although some composites which contain
systematically
 Stress
DEFINITION OF STRESS
A body under the action of external forces, undergoes distortion and the effect due to this system
of forces is transmitted throughout the body developing internal forces in it. Stress is the term
used to define the intensity and direction of the internal forces acting at a particular point on a
given plane.
Consider a body in equilibrium subject to a system of external forces, as shown in Fig. 6a. Under
the action of these forces, internal forces will be developed within the body. To examine the latter
at some interior point Q, we use an imaginary plane to cut the body at a section a–a through Q,
dividing the body into two parts. As the

FIGURE 6. (a) Sectioning of a body; (b) free body with internal forces; (c) enlarged
area ΔA with components of the force ΔF.
forces acting on the entire body are in equilibrium, the forces acting on one part alone must be in
equilibrium: This requires the presence of forces on plane a–a.
These internal forces, applied to both parts, are distributed continuously over the cut surface. The
aforementioned process, referred to as the method of sections, will be relied on as a first step in
solving all problems involving the investigation of internal forces.
Figure 6b shows the isolated left part of the body. An element of area ΔA located at point Q on
the cut surface is acted on by force ΔF. Let the origin of coordinates be placed at point Q, with x
normal and y, z tangent to ΔA. In general, ΔF does not lie along x, y, or z. Decomposing ΔF into
components parallel to x, y, and z (Fig. 6c), we define the normal stress x and the shearing
stresses τxy, τxz:

…. (1)

These definitions provide the stress components at a point Q to which the area ΔA is reduced in
the limit. Our consideration is with the average stress on areas, which, while small as compared
with the size of the body, is large compared with interatomic distances in the solid. Stress is thus
defined adequately for engineering purposes. As shown in Eq. (1), the intensity of force
perpendicular, or normal, to the surface is termed the normal stress at a point, while the intensity
of force parallel to the surface is the shearing stress at a point.
The values obtained in the limiting process of Eq. (1) differ from point to point on the surface as
ΔF varies. The stress components depend on not only ΔF however, but also on the orientation of
the plane on which it acts at point Q. Even at a given point, therefore, the stresses will differ as
different planes are considered.
The complete description of stress at a point thus requires the specification of the
stress on all planes passing through the point. Because the stress ( or ) is obtained by dividing the
force by area, it has units of force per unit area. In SI units, stress is measured in newton's per
square meter (N/m²) or Pascal's (Pa). As the Pascal is a very small quantity, the mega Pascal
(MPa) is commonly used. When U.S. Customary System units are used, stress is expressed in
pounds per square inch (psi) or kips per square inch (ksi).
The stress-strain relations of a linear-elastic isotropic
material with all components of stress present
 From Fig.

Meanwhile, upon use of the strain transformation formulas

This equation and must be equal, so

Volume change of the isotropic, linear-elastic material at extension

b1

c1
The lengths of each side after deformation are
Volumetric
strain

Volume increase of a slender member in tensile test can be obtained when 𝜖, 𝜈 are known.
If 𝜈 > 0.5, there is a contradiction that volume decreases when material is extended, so 𝜈max =
0.5.

Unit volume change in three-axial stresses Having unit length and 𝑉o = 1,

The shear-stress components cannot have an effect on the volume change.

K : Bulk modulus or modulus of compression

The bulk modulus is a constant the describes how resistant a substance is to compression. It is
defined as the ratio between pressure increase and the resulting decrease in a material's volume.
Together with Young modulus, the shear modulus, and Hooke law, the bulk modulus describes a
material's response to stress or strain.
Usually, bulk modulus is indicated by K or B in equations and tables. While it applies to uniform
compression of any substance, it is most often used to describe the behavior of fluids. It can be
used to predict compression, calculate density, and indirectly indicate the types of chemical
bonding within a substance. The bulk modulus is considered a descriptor of elastic properties
because a compressed material returns to its original volume once the pressure is released.
The units for the bulk modulus are Pascal (Pa) or Newton per square meter (N/m2) in the metric
system, or pound per square inch (PSI) in the English system.
Bulk Modulus (K) = Volumetric stress / Volumetric strain
This is the same as saying it equals the change in pressure divided by the change in volume
divided by initial volume:
Bulk Modulus (K) = (p1 - p0) / [(V1 - V0) / V0]
Here, p0 and V0 are the initial pressure and volume, respectively, and p1 and V1 are the pressure
and volume measured upon compression.
The bulk modulus property of the material is related to its behavior of elasticity. It is one of the measures of
mechanical properties of solids. Other such elastic modulii are Young’s modulus and Shear modulus. In all
cases, the bulk elastic properties of a material are used to find out how much it will compress under a given
amount of external pressure. It is very important to find the ratio of the change in pressure to the fractional
volume compression. The Bulk Modulus is defined as the relative change in the volume of a body produced by
a unit compressive or tensile stress acting throughout the surface uniformly.
In short, elastic deformation of crystalline structures (like steel) happen on an atomic scale,
where the bonds of the atoms in the lattice are stretched. This allows for a change in how close
the individual atoms are packed together.
If you remove the load, the energy stored within these bonds can be reversed (comparable to a
spring), therefore it's only elastic.
On the other hand, plastic deformation happens along gliding planes, for example between
individual crystals (inter-crystalline) or within the crystal itself (intra-crystalline). During plastic
deformation crystals "slide" along that plane, they perform a translation which is permanent,
therefore plastic. The crystalline structure itself remains more or less unaffected during that
translation, therefore no volumetric change occurs.

The effect is completely dependent on the Poisson's ratio; a Poisson's ratio of 0.5 implies no
volumetric change for tensile stretching or compressive contraction of a bar/rod, for example, in
the elastic regime..
Thermal stress
Thermal strain is a property of material wherein a material is allowed to contract or expand
freely with the increase or decrease in temperature. Thermal stress causes the body to produce
thermal strain.

In the elastic region the effect of temperature on strain appears in two ways.
i) By causing a modification in the values of the elastic constants
ii) By directly producing a strain even in the absence of stress

For an isotropic material, symmetry arguments show that the thermal strain must be a pure
expansion or contraction with no shear-strain components referred to any set of axes.

where α is a thermal expansion coefficient

Total strain ε

Thermal strains are typically linear in nature. A uniform change in strain will occur for every
degree change in temperature no matter where on the temperature scale it starts from.

The linear relationship for thermal strain is shown as

Thermal strains are always axial strains . No shear strains are developed in a single material
because expansion or contraction takes place in all directions at once. Because the material
expands in all directions in the same way, thermal strains will appear in every direction

Example: For assembly shown in the figure. Determine the stress in each of the two vertical rods
if the temperature rises 40 °C after the load P=50 kN is applied. Neglect the deformation and
mass of the horizontal bar AB. Use Ea=70 GPa, αa=23.0 µm/m.°C, Aa=900 mm2 , Es=200 GPa,
αs=11.7 µm/m.°C and As=600 mm2 .
 Generalized Hooke’s law

The generalized Hooke's Law can be used to

predict the deformations caused in a given
material by an arbitrary combination of
stresses.
If the x-coordinate is taken along the axis of the
specimen, then Hooke’s law is

where E denotes the modulus of elasticity in

tension, also referred to as Young’s modulus.
The axial loading induces lateral contraction
or reduction in the cross-sectional area of the FIGURE 1.1
specimen, and the lateral strains in the y and z .
coordinates are linearly proportional to
the axial strain. Hence,

Here, the dimensionless constant ν is Poisson’s ratio with typical values between 0.1 and 0.5. For
structural steel, Poisson’s ratio is 0.3. The linear portion of the stress–strain curve terminates at
point A, which is known as the proportional limit. The point of initiation of plastic or irreversible
deformation is called the yield point or the elastic limit, which occurs slightly above point A.
In this range of loading, the deformation of the material is elastic because the specimen returns
to its original shape upon removal of the load, that is, loading, unloading, and reloading
generate line 0A. Beyond A, there is an extension of constant load indicating the beginning of
plastic flow and plastic deformation.

Another simple test consists of applying equal and opposite twisting moments (torques) at the
ends of a specimen to determine the shear stress–shear strain relation by finding the change in a
right angle of a typical element on the surface of the specimen undergoing pure shear. In the
elastic range, we have the following Hooke’s law in shear:

where G is the shear modulus of elasticity or modulus of rigidity. The applied torques do not
create any normal stress.

we have Hooke’s law in two dimensions

Similarly, for an element subjected to triaxial

loading, the 3D Hooke’s law is obtained as
follows:
The elastic constants E, G, and ν for an isotropic homogeneous material are not independent.
They satisfy the relation

Use Lame’s elasticity constants for

isotropic materials, λ and μ, where
Note that Young’s modulus of elasticity and Poisson’s ratio in terms of Lame’s constants are

The parameter μ is referred to in fluid dynamics as the dynamic viscosity of a fluid(not the same
units); whereas in the context of elasticity, μ is called the shear modulus, and is sometimes
denoted by G instead of μ.
Example (1): the principle stresses at a point are shown. If the material properties are E=68.9
Gpa and ν=0.35, determine the principle strain? Take: 1=80 Mpa, 2=30 Mpa & 3=-40
Mpa.

1 1
𝜀1 = 𝐸 𝜎1 − 𝜇 𝜎2 + 𝜎3 = 68.9×109 80 × 106 − 0.35 30 × 106 − −40 × 106

𝜀1 = 1.21 × 10−3

1 1 6 6 6
𝜀2 = 𝜎 − 𝜇 𝜎1 + 𝜎3 = 30 × 10 − 0.35 80 × 10 − −40 × 10
𝐸 2 68.9 × 109

𝜀2 = 0.232 × 10−3

1 1
𝜀3 = 𝜎3 − 𝜇 𝜎1 + 𝜎2 = −40 × 106 − 0.35 80 × 106 − 30 × 106
𝐸 68.9×109

𝜀3 = −1.14 × 10−3
Notation of Force and Stress
There are two kinds of external forces which may act on bodies force distribution over the surface
of the bodies, such as the pressure of one body on another or hydrostatic pressure, are called
surface forces. Forces distributed over the volume of a body, such as gravitational forces,
magnetic forces, or in the case of a body in motion, inertia forces, are called body forces. The
Stress (or force intensity)
at a point depends on
1) Position.
2) Orientation

Here, a single suffix for notation ,

like  x,  y, and  z is used for
the direct stresses and double suffix
for notation is used for shear
stresses like τ xy, τ xz etc. τxy
means a stress, produced by an
internal force in the direction of Y,
acting on a surface, having a Figure 1
normal in the direction of X.
In the generalized stress tensor
notation, the tensor components are
written σij, where i and j are in {1;2;3}.
 Consider a traction vector t acting on a surface element, Fig. 2. Introduce a Cartesian
coordinate system with base vectors ei so that one of the base vectors is a normal to the surface
and the origin of the coordinate system is positioned at the point at which the traction acts. For
example, in Fig. 2, the e3 direction is taken to be normal to the plane, and a superscript on t
denotes this normal:

Each of these components ti is represented by ij where the first subscript denotes the direction
of the normal and the second denotes the direction of the component to the plane. Thus the three
components of the traction vector shown in Fig. 2 are 31, 32, 33:

Figure 2: components of the traction vector

The first two stresses, the components acting tangential to the surface, are shear stresses
whereas 33, acting normal to the plane, is a normal stress.
Consider the three traction vectors 𝑡 𝑒1 , 𝑡 𝑒2 , 𝑡 𝑒3 acting on the surface elements whose
outward normal are aligned with the three base vectors ej , Fig. 3a. The three (or six) surfaces
can be amalgamated into one diagram as in Fig. 3b.
In terms of stresses, the traction vectors are

Figure 3: the three traction vectors acting at a point; (a) on mutually orthogonal planes, (b) the
traction vectors illustrated on a box element
The components of the three traction vectors, i.e. the stress components, can now be displayed on
a box element as in Fig. 4. Note that the stress components will vary slightly over the surfaces of
an elemental box of finite size. However, it is assumed that the element in Fig. 4 is small enough
that the stresses can be treated as constant, so that they are the stresses acting at the origin.

The nine stresses can be conveniently displayed

in matrix form: 3× 3

Figure 4: the nine stress components with

respect to a Cartesian coordinate system
It is important to realize that, if one were to take an element at some different orientation to the
element in Fig. 4, but at the same material particle, for example aligned with the axes
shown in Fig. 5, one would then have different tractions acting and the nine stresses would be
different also. The stresses acting in this new orientation can be represented by a new matrix:

Figure 5: the stress components with respect to a Cartesian coordinate system different to that in
Fig. 4