UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR

Faculty of Engineering

Mechanics of Deformable Bodies (85-218)

Laboratory #4 Stress Distribution under Eccentric Load

Kyle Mastronardi
Student ID: 103793889
Submitted on: April 6, 2015
Section: 51-B

Objectives
To Determine the Stress acting on a cylindrical sample being subjected to an eccentric
load
Equipment
-

MTS Universal Testing Machine

Strain Gauges
Ball Bearing
Steel Cylinder Sample
Aluminum Cylinder Sample
Datascan Analog Measurement Processor

Procedure
-

The Aluminum and Steel Samples were measured and recorded for further
calculations at the end of the lab
Starting with the aluminum sample, strain gauges were placed on the sample and the
location of each strain gauge was recorded for calculations
The cylindrical sample was placed into MTS Testing machine with the ball bearing
placed in the center slot. The ball bearing was aligned with the center of the MTS
machine.
First a 12.5 kilo newton load was applied and the strain was recorded from each
gauge, then a 25 kilo newton load was applied and again the strain was recorded
The pressure was then relieved from the sample and the ball bearing was removed
from the center slot to the 20 millimeter slot. Both loads were re-applied and the
strain was recorded
The pressure was once again relieved from the sample and the ball bearing was
removed and placed into the 25 millimeter slot, both loads were re-applied and the
strain was recorded for both load values.
The aluminum sample was then replaced with the steel sample, and the procedures
above were then repeated.

Results
Aluminum

20 mm Eccentricity Aluminum, 12.5 kN

5
0
-50

Stress (MPa)

-40

-30

-20

-10

-5

10

20

30

40

50

-10
-15
-20
-25
-30
Distance (mm)

20mm Eccentricity Aluminum, 25 kN

10
-50

-40

-30

-20

0
-10 -10 0

10

20

30

40

50

-20

Stress (MPa)

-30
-40
-50
-60
Distance (mm)

25 mm Eccentricity Aluminum, 12.5 kN

10
0
-50

-40

-30

-20

-10

-10

10

20

30

40

50

Stress (MPa)
-20
-30
-40
Distance (mm)

25 mm Eccentricity Aluminum, 25 kN
20
0
-50
Stress (MPa)

-40

-30

-20

-10

-20

10

20

30

40

50

-40
-60
-80
Distance (mm)

Steel

Sample in MTS Machine

20 mm Eccentricity Steel, 12.5 kN

5
-50
Stress (MPa)

-40

-30

-20

0
-10 -5 0

10

20

30

40

50

-10
-15
-20
-25
-30
Distance (mm)

20mm Eccentricity Steel, 25 kN

20
0
-50

-40

-30

-20

Stress (MPa)

-10

-20

10

20

30

40

50

-40
-60
-80
Distance (mm)

25 mm Eccentricity Steel, 12.5 kN

-50
Stress (MPa)

-40

-30

-20

10
5
0
-10 -5 0
-10
-15
-20
-25
-30
-35

10

20

30

40

50

Distance (mm)

25 mm Eccentricity Steel, 25 kN
10
-50

-40

-30

-20

0
-10 -10 0

10

20

30

40

50

-20
Stress (MPa)

-30
-40
-50
-60
-70
Distance (mm)

Discussion
From the results above, it can be seen that steel handles quite well under eccentric load
compared to Aluminum. It was calculated that the modulus of elasticity for steel was 2.06E11 at
12.5 kN, while aluminum had an Elastic modulus of 6.7E10 which is significantly less. It can be
seen that steel is a clear choice when eccentric loading is a main factor.
Also, the largest percent error value obtained during the lab was 18% while the smallest
value of percent error was 0.104%. While 18% is a large amount of error, the lab was quite
successful otherwise. A potential source of error could be the fact that the cylindrical specimen
was not placed in the direct center of the MTS Machine. This could affect the strain readings
since the machine is applying pressure at the wrong point. Another potential source of error
could be within the strain gauges themselves. While recording the strain gauge readings from the
lab computer, the strain readings did not stop fluctuating. If a reading had fluctuated greatly, this
could affect further calculations during the lab. Another source of error could be deformation in
the cylindrical samples themselves. If the cylinder had deformed during the experiment, it would
cause the samples to have different characteristics than expected.
Conclusion
Therefore, the average stress value of aluminum at 12.5kN was 12.51 MPa and at 25kN
was 24.96 MPa. The average stress value of Steel at 12.5 kN was 12.38 MPa, while at 25 kN it
was 24.95 MPa.