ELASTICITY

Elasticity
Elasticity of Composites
Viscoelasticity

Elasticity: Theory, Applications and Numerics

Martin H. Sadd
Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford (2005)
Revise modes of deformation, stress, strain and other basics (click here) before starting this chapter etc.
What kind of mechanical behaviour phenomena does one have to understand?

Phenomenologically mechanical behaviour can be understood as in the flow diagram

below.
Multiple mechanisms may be associated with these phenomena (e.g. creep can occur by
diffusion, grain boundary sliding etc.).
These phenomena may lead to the failure of a material.
Mechanical Behaviour

Elasticity Recoverable deformation

Plasticity Permanent deformation

Fracture Propagation of cracks in a material

Fatigue Oscillatory loading

Creep Elongation at constant load at High temperatures

Note: above is a broad classification for convenience. E.g. Creep is also leads to plastic deformation!
Recoverable
Instantaneous
Elastic
Time dependent Anelasticity
Deformation
Instantaneous
Plastic
Permanent Time dependent

Viscoelasticity
Elasticity
Elastic deformation is reversible deformation- i.e. when load/forces/constraints are
released the body returns to its original configuration (shape and size).
Elastic deformation can be caused by tension/compression or shear forces.
Usually in metals and ceramics elastic deformation is seen at low strains (less than ~103).
The elastic behaviour of metals and ceramics is usually linear.

Linear E.g. Al deformed at small strains

Elasticity
Non-linear E.g. deformation of an elastomer like rubber
Atomic model for elasticity
Let us consider the stretching of bonds (leading to elastic deformation).
Atoms in a solid feel an attractive force at larger atomic separations and feel a repulsive
force (when electron clouds overlap too much) at shorter separations. (At very large
separations there is no force felt).
The energy and the force (which is a gradient of the energy field) display functional
behaviour as below.

dU
F
dr
A B nA mB
U n m F n 1 m 1
r r r r

Attractive Repulsive The plots of these

functions is shown
A,B,m,n constants A' B'
F p q
in the next slide

m>n
r r
A B A' B'
U n m F p q
r r r r

Repulsive Repulsive
Potential energy (U)

Force (F)
r0

r r

r0
Attractive Attractive

r0 Equilibrium separation
Elastic modulus is the slope of the Force-interatomic spacing curve (F-r curve), at the

Near r0 the red line (tangent to the F-r curve at r = r0)

coincides with the blue line (F-r) curve
Force

r0
For displacements around r0 Force-displacement curve is approximately linear
THE LINEAR ELASTIC REGION
Youngs modulus (Y / E)**

Youngs modulus is :: to the ve slope of the dF

F-r curve at r = r0 Y
dr
2
dF d U
Y 2
Stress

Tension dr dr

strain
Compression

** Youngs modulus is not an elastic modulus but an elastic constant

Stress-strain curve for an elastomer

Tension

Stress
T due to uncoiling
of polymer chains

C
strain T

Due to efficient
filling of space Compression

T > C
Other elastic moduli

= E. E Youngs modulus
= G. G Shear modulus
hydrodynami = K.volumetric strain K Bulk modulus

t

l

E
G
2(1 )

E
K
3(1 2 )
Bonding and Elastic modulus

Materials with strong bonds have a deep potential energy well with a high
curvature high elastic modulus
Along the period of a periodic table the covalent character of the bond and
its strength increase systematic increase in elastic modulus
Down a period the covalent character of the bonding in Y
On heating the elastic modulus decrease: 0 K M.P, 10-20% in modulus

Along the period Li Be B Cdiamond Cgraphite

Atomic number (Z) 3 4 5 6 6
Youngs Modulus (GN / m2) 11.5 289 440 1140 8

Down the row Cdiamond Si Ge Sn Pb

Atomic number (Z) 6 14 32 50 82
Youngs Modulus (GN / m2) 1140 103 99 52 16
Anisotropy in the Elastic modulus
In a crystal the interatomic distance varies with direction
elastic anisotropy
Elastic anisotropy is especially pronounced in materials with
two kinds of bonds
E.g. in graphite E [1010] = 950 GPa, E [0001] = 8 GPa
Two kinds of ordering along two directions
E.g. Decagonal QC E [100000] E [000001]
Material dependence Elastic modulus
Property
Geometry dependence

Elastic modulus in design

Stiffness of a material is its ability to resist elastic deformation of

deflection on loading depends on the geometry of the component.
High modulus in conjunction with good ductility should be chosen (good
ductility avoids catastrophic failure in case of accidental overloading)
Covalently bonded materials- e.g. diamond have high E (1140 GPa)
BUT brittle
Ionic solids are also very brittle

Ionic solids NaCl MgO Al2O3 TiC Silica glass

Youngs Modulus (GN / m2) 37 310 402 308 70
METALS
First transition series good combination of ductility &
modulus (200 GPa)
Second & third transition series even higher modulus, but higher
density
POLYMERS
Polymers can have good plasticity but low modulus
dependent on
the nature of secondary bonds- Van der Walls / hydrogen
presence of bulky side groups
branching in the chains
Unbranched polyethylene E = 0.2 GPa,
Polystyrene with large phenyl side group E = 3 GPa,
3D network polymer phenol formaldehyde E = 3-5 GPa
cross-linking
Increasing the modulus of a material
METALS
By suitably alloying the Youngs modulus can be increased
But E is a structure (microstructure) insensitive property
the increase is fraction added
TiB2 (~ spherical, in equilibrium with matrix) added to Fe to increase E

COMPOSITES
A second phase (reinforcement) can be added to a low E material to E
(particles, fibres, laminates)
The second phase can be brittle and the ductility is provided by the
matrix if reinforcement fractures the crack is stopped by the
matrix
COMPOSITES

Laminate Aligned Particulate

composite fiber composite
composite

Modulus parallel to the direction of the fiberes

Under iso-strain conditions
Ec E f V f EmVm I.e. parallel configuration
m-matrix, f-fibre, c-composite
Volume fractions
Composite modulus in isostress and isostrain conditions
Voigt averaging
Under iso-strain conditions [m = f = c]
Ec E f V f E mVm
I.e. ~ resistances in series configuration

1 V f Vm Under iso-stress conditions [m = f = c]

I.e. ~ resistances in parallel configuration
Ec E f Em Usually not found in practice
Reuss averaging

Ef
Ec

For a given fiber fraction f, the modulii of

various conceivable composites lie between an
Em upper bound given by isostrain condition
and a lower bound given by isostress condition

f
A B
Volume fraction