1

Homework 6 Solutions
1. The components of the uniaxial tension test system are shown in Figure 1. The load (force) applied to
the specimen was measured by a loadcell. A digital extensometer clamped onto the specimen gauge
section measured the strain. The loadcell and the extensometer were connected to a computer to
record their values every 0.5 sec. (4 POINTS)


Figure 1. Setup used to conduct uniaxial tension measurements of stress and strain.

2. From the experimental data recorded in the lab, the stress in the specimens was computed by using
the relation (6 POINTS)
2
;
4
initial
Force P
Stress EngineeringStress
Area
d

Example engineering stress vs. strain curves for the cold rolled steel (1045 CR) and the aluminum
alloy (6061-T6) specimens are shown in Figures 2(a-d).
Loadcell
Extensometer
Clamps
Specimen
Fixed End
Loading direction
x
1

x
2

0
2


(a) (b)

(c) (d)

Figure 2. Engineering stress vs. strain for: (a-b) Cold rolled Steel (1045-CR), (c-d) Al 6061-T6.


3. The stress and strain computed using the experimental measurements correspond to
11
and
11
,
respectively, since the load and strain measured by the loadcell and the extensometer were along the
x
1
direction. (2 POINTS)

4. The elastic moduli of the steel and Al alloy were calculated from the slope of the initially straight
segment of the stress vs. strain curves. Note that in Figure 3, the strain was plotted as percent strain.
Hence, the elastic modulus was obtained by multiplying slope of this curve with 100. You can apply
linear regression directly in MS Excel or Matlab to find the slope of the curves in Figures 3(a,b).
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
0 3 6 9 12 15
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
0 5 10 15 20
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
0 0.5 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
3

The elastic modulus of cold rolled steel is E
steel
= 2077.1100 MPa = 208 GPa. Similarly, the modulus
of aluminum 6061-T6 is found to be E
Al
= 65.49 GPa. The expected values for the elastic moduli for
cold rolled steel and aluminum alloy are 201 GPa, and 73.1 GPa, respectively. The difference
between the experimentally measured and expected values could be due to different material
composition or errors in strain measurement since the extensometer could slide during specimen
loading. (6 POINTS)

(a) (b)
Figure 3. Section of the stress vs. strain (below 1% strain) curves for (a) cold rolled steel, (b) Al 6061-T6
to calculate the Youngs moduli.

5. Proportional limit or elastic limit is the highest stress at which the stress in the specimen is still
linearly proportional to the strain. The proportional limits of cold rolled steel and aluminum alloy
were 420 MPa and 220 MPa, respectively. (see Figure 4) (2 POINTS)
Yield stress is the stress at which the material has fully begun to deforming irreversibly (plastically).
We usually report the 0.2% yield stress, which is the stress at which a line drawn passing through the
0.2% strain point and parallel to the linear part of the stress vs. strain response intersects the stress vs.
strain curve (Figure 4). Hence, the yield stresses of cold rolled steel and the Al alloy are 800 MPa and
245 MPa, respectively. The expected values of the yield stress for cold rolled steel and Al 6061-T6
are 530 MPa and 324 MPa, respectively. The experimentally measured values could differ because of
material processing and composition. Therefore, we should never use literature quoted values when
y=2077.1x+7.9437
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
y=654.92x+4.356
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
4

we use materials for performance critical or safety sensitive applications, instead, we should take our
own precise measurements with the materials at hand. (2 POINTS)

Ultimate strength is the maximum stress that a material can carry before failure. For the particular
materials, changes in the cross-section are disregarded when calculating ultimate strength. Using
Figure 2 we find that the ultimate strength cold rolled steel and Al 6061-T6 are 998 MPa and 291
MPa respectively. (2 POINTS)

Failure stress is the stress in the material at the time of failure. Changes in the cross section are
disregarded in calculating failure strength. From Figure 2, we see that the failure stress for cold rolled
steel and Al 6061-T6 are 771 MPa and 245 MPa, respectively. (2 POINTS)

(a) (b)
Figure 4. Section of the stress vs. strain curves (below 1% strain) showing the elastic limit and yield
stress for (a) cold rolled steel, and (b) Al 6061-T6.

6. The maximum shear stress in the specimen at yield is calculated using the Mohrs circle shown in
Figure 5. For cold rolled steel,
11
at yield point was 800 MPa. Since load was applied in the x
1

direction,
22
and
12
are 0. T =
y
=800 MPa. (4 POINTS)
From the Mohrs circle, we see that the maximum shear stress is T/2 = 400 MPa for cold rolled steel.
Similarly, for Al 6061-T6, the maximum shear stress was 123 MPa.
y=2077.1x+7.9437
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
Proportionallimit
YieldPoint
y=654.92x+4.356
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
S
t
r
e
s
s

(
M
P
a
)
Strain(%)
5


Figure 5. Calculation of maximum shear stress in a uniaxially loaded specimen using Mohrs
circle.


7. The true normal stress is the maximum normal stress that a material experiences just before failure.
The true cross section is considered (just before failure) to calculate the failure stress. For cold rolled
steel the load and the diameter of the neck at failure were 30.01 kN and 5.93 mm. The true failure
stress was 30.0110
3
/(5.93
2
/4) MPa = 1,087 MPa. Similarly, the true failure stress of Al 6061-T6
was 371 MPa. (2 POINTS)
The true shear stress is half of the true normal stress as we have seen using Mohrs circle in Figure
5. So, the true shear stress at failure for cold rolled steel and Al 6061-T6 was 544 MPa and 186 MPa,
respectively. (2 POINTS)

8. The fracture cross sections of the Al alloy exhibited minor cup and cone shapes with the material
undergoing limited necking. This tells us that the Al alloy was not very ductile. On the contrary, the
fracture cross section of the steel specimen was that of a cup and cone indicating decent ductility for
the steel specimen. The cup and cone fracture surfaces indicate that the material clearly failed due to
shear stresses. (2 POINTS)
6

Additional Notes: Sometimes it is not possible to obtain good cup and cone fracture surface due to
the presence of defects or micro cracks in the specimen can cause premature failure, not good initial
specimen alignment in the test setup, and loading rate; when specimens are loaded fast they fail as
brittle materials and may not have cup and cone fracture surfaces.

9. Specific elastic modulus is the ratio between elastic modulus of a material and its density. The
specific yield stress and specific maximum stress are defined similarly. The densities of Al and steel
are 2.7 g/cm
3
and 7.8 g/cm
3
, respectively. The specific elastic modulus, specific yield and maximum
stresses are tabulated in the Table 1. (2 POINTS)

Table 1. Specific mechanical properties of steel and aluminum alloys
Material
Specific elastic
modulus (m
2
s
-2
)
Specific yield stress
(m
2
s
-2
)
Specific maximum
stress (m
2
s
-2
)
Cold rolled steel
(1045-CR)
26.610
6
0.1010
6
0.1310
6

Aluminum 6061-T6 24.310
6
0.0910
6
0.1110
6


Steel has marginally higher specific properties but Al is much lighter.

10. The material with higher specific yield stress is chosen as an appropriate for aircraft components to
design for reliable flight. From Table 1, we see that the specific moduli for Al and steel are
comparable. Considering the density of both materials, it would be much more appropriate to use Al
to design for energy efficiency. Hence, the Al alloy is recommended for airplane components. We do
not consider the specific strength as much because we do not want to design close to it. Instead, we
design based on the value of the yield strength at which the material is still one piece. To be safe we
also apply safety margins that reduce even further the stress envelop we can use to design and we
design for a maximum stress that is much less than the yield stress. (2 POINTS)
Materials with high specific elastic modulus (stiffness) are preferred in design aircraft because they
provide better flight stability. This ensures that aircraft components such as the wings are stiff and
maintain critical design parameters. From Table 1, we see that the specific elastic moduli of the Al
and the steel alloys are comparable. It would be way more appropriate to use the Al alloy to design
for energy efficiency since Al is much lighter. Hence, Al 6061-T6 is the choice between the two
materials for airplane structures. (2 POINTS)
7

Finally, criteria (a) and (b) are the most important for reliable flight.

11. The mechanical properties of Al 6061-T6, cold rolled steel are summarized below: (2 POINTS)
12.
Property Cold Rolled Steel
(1045-CR)
Aluminum Alloy
(6061-T6)
Elastic modulus (GPa) 208 65.5
Expected elastic modulus (GPa) 201 73
Proportional limit (MPa) 420 220
Yield stress (MPa) 800 245
Shear stress at yield (MPa) 400 123
Expected yield stress (MPa) 530 324
Ultimate stress (MPa) 998 291
Failure stress (MPa) 771 245
True normal stress (MPa) 1087 371
True shear stress (MPa) 544 186
Specific elastic modulus (m
2
s
-2
) 26.6 10
6
24.3 10
6

Specific yield stress (m
2
s
-2
) 0.10 10
6
0.09 10
6

Specific maximum stress (m
2
s
-2
) 0.13 10
6
0.11 10
6