6/20/2017 1Introduction

Chapter1
Introduction
ThiscoursebuildsupontheconceptslearnedinthecourseMechanicsofMaterialsalsoknownasStrengthof
Materials.IntheMechanicsofMaterialscourseonewouldhavelearnttwonewconceptsstressand
straininadditiontorevisitingtheconceptofaforceanddisplacementthatonewouldhavemasteredina
firstcourseinmechanics,namelyEngineeringMechanics.Alsoonemighthavebeenexposedtofour
equationsconnectingthesefourconcepts,namelystraindisplacementequation,constitutiveequation,
equilibriumequationandcompatibilityequation.Figure1.1pictoriallydepictstheconceptsthattheseequations
relate.Thus,thestraindisplacementrelationallowsonetocomputethestraingivenadisplacementconstitutive
relationgivesthevalueofstressforaknownvalueofthestrainorviceversaequilibriumequation,crudely,
relatesthestressesdevelopedinthebodytotheforcesandmomentappliedonitandfinallycompatibility
equationplacesrestrictionsonhowthestrainscanvaryoverthebodysothatacontinuousdisplacementfield
couldbefoundfortheassumedstrainfield.

Figure1.1:Basicconceptsandequationsinmechanics

Inthiscoursetooweshallbestudyingthesamefourconceptsandfourequations.Whileinthemechanics
ofmaterialscourse,onewasintroducedtothevariouscomponentsofthestressandstrain,namelythenormal
andshear,intheproblemsthatwassolvednotmorethanonecomponentofthestressorstrainoccurred
simultaneously.Hereweshallbestudyingtheseproblemsinwhichmorethanonecomponentofthestressor
strainoccurssimultaneously.Thus,inthiscourseweshallbegeneralizingtheseconceptsandequationsto
facilitatethreedimensionalanalysisofstructures.

Beforeventuringintothegeneralizationoftheseconceptsandequations,afewdrawbacksofthedefinitions
andideasthatonemighthaveacquiredfromthepreviouscourseneedstobehighlightedandclarified.Thiswe
shalldoinsections1.1and1.2.Specifically,insection1.1welookatthefourconceptsinmechanicsandin
section1.2welookattheequationsinmechanics.Thesesectionsalsoserveasamotivationforthe
mathematicaltoolsthatwewouldbedevelopinginchapter2.Then,insection1.3welookintovarious
idealizationsoftheresponseofmaterialsandthemathematicalframeworkusedtostudythem.However,inthis
courseweshallbeonlyfocusingontheelasticresponseormoreprecisely,nondissipativeresponseofthe
materials.Finally,insection1.4weoutlinethreewaysbywhichwecansolveproblemsinmechanics.

1.1BasicConceptsinMechanics

1.1.1Whatisforce?

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 1/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

Forceisamathematicalideatostudythemotionofbodies.Itisnotrealasmanythinkittobe.However,it
canbeassociatedwiththetwitchingofthemuscle,feelingoftheburdenofmass,lineartranslationofthemotor,
soonandsoforth.Despiteseeingonlydisplacementswerelateittoitscausetheforce,astheconceptofforce
hasnowbeeningrained.

Letusseewhyforceisanideathatarisesfrommathematicalneed.Say,theposition1(xo)andvelocity(vo)of
thebodyisknownatsometime,t=to,thenoneisinterestedinknowingwherethisbodywouldbeatalater
time,t=t1.Itturnsoutthatmathematically,iftheacceleration(a)ofthebodyatanylaterinstantintimeis
specifiedthenthepositionofthebodycanbedeterminedthroughTaylorsseries.Thatisif

(1.1)

thenfromTaylorsseries

(1.2)

whichwhenwrittenintermsofxo,voandareducesto2

(1.3)

Thus,ifthefunctionfaisknownthenthepositionofthebodyatanyotherinstantintimecanbedetermined.
Thisfunctionisnothingbutforceperunitmass3,asperNewtonssecondlawwhichgivesadefinitionforthe
force.Thisshowsthatforceisafunctionthatonedefinesmathematicallysothatthepositionofthebodyatany
laterinstancecanbeobtainedfromknowingitscurrentpositionandvelocity.

Itispertinenttopointoutthatthisfunctionfacouldalsobeprescribedusingtheposition,xandvelocity,vof
thebodywhicharethemselvesfunctionoftime,tandhencefawouldstillbeafunctionoftime.Thus,fa=
g(x(t),v(t),t).However,facouldnotarbitrarilydependont,xandv.Atthispointitsufficestosaythattheother
twolawsofNewtonandcertainobjectivityrequirementshavetobemetbythisfunction.Weshallseewhat
theseobjectivityrequirementsareandhowtoprescribefunctionsthatmeetthisrequirementsubsequentlyin
chapter6.

Next,letusunderstandwhatkindofquantityisforce.Inotherwordsisforceascalarorvectorandwhy?
Since,positionisavectorandaccelerationissecondtimederivativeofposition,itisalsoavector.Then,it
followsfromequation(1.1)thatfaalsohastobeavector.Therefore,forceisavectorquantity.Numerous
experimentsalsoshowthatadditionofforcesfollowvectoradditionlaw(ortheparallelogramlawofaddition).
Inchapter2weshallseehowthevectoradditiondiffersfromscalaraddition.Infactitisthisadditionrulethat
distinguishesavectorfromascalarandhenceconfirmsthatforceisavector.

Asasummary,weshowedthatforceisamathematicalconstructwhichisusedtomathematicallydescribe
themotionofbodies.

1.1.2Whatisstress?

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 2/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

Asisevidentfromfigure1.1,stressisaquantityderivedfromforce.Thecommonlystateddefinitionsinan
introductorycourseinmechanicsforstressare:

Stressistheforceactingperunitarea
Stressistheresistanceofferedbythebodytoaforceactingonit

Whilethefirstdefinitiontellshowtocomputethestressfromtheforce,thisdefinitionholdsonlyforsimple
loadingcase.Onecanconstructanumberofexampleswheredefinition1doesnothold.Thefollowingtwo
casesarepresentedjustasanexample.Case1:Acantileverbeamofrectangularcrosssectionwithauniform
pressure,p,appliedonthetopsurface,asshowninfigure1.2a.Accordingtothedefinition1thestressinthe
beamshouldbep,butitisnot.Case2:Anannularcylindersubjectedtoapressure,patitsinnersurface,as
showninfigure1.2b.Thenetforceactingonthecylinderiszerobutthestressesarenotzeroatanylocation.
Also,thestressisnotp,anywhereintheinteriorofthecylinder.Thisbeingthestateofthefirstdefinition,the
seconddefinitionisoflittleuseasitdoesnottellhowtocomputethestress.Thesedefinitionsdoesnottellthat
therearevariouscomponentsofthestressnorwhethertheareaoverwhichtheforceisconsideredtobe
distributedisthedeformedortheundeformed.Theydonotdistinguishbetweentraction(orstressvector),t(n)
andstresstensor,.

(a)Acantileverbeamwithuniformpressureappliedonitstopsurface.

(b)Anannularcylindersubjectedtointernalpressure.

Figure1.2:Structuressubjectedtopressureloading

Tractionisthedistributedforceactingperunitareaofacutsurfaceorboundaryofthebody.Thistraction
apartfromvaryingspatiallyandtemporallyalsodependsontheplaneofcutcharacterizedbyitsnormal.This
quantityintegratedoverthecutsurfacegivesthenetforceactingonthatsurface.Consequently,sinceforceisa
vectorquantitythistractionisalsoavectorquantity.Thecomponentofthetractionalongthenormaldirection4,
niscalledasthenormalstress((n)).Themagnitudeofthecomponentofthetraction5actingparalleltotheplane
iscalledastheshearstress((n)).

IftheforceisdistributedoverthedeformedareathenthecorrespondingtractioniscalledastheCauchy
traction(t(n))andiftheforceisdistributedovertheundeformedororiginalareathattractioniscalledasthePiola
traction(p(n)).Ifthedeformedareadoesnotchangesignificantlyfromtheoriginalarea,thenboththesetraction
wouldhavenearlythesamemagnitudeanddirection.Moredetailsaboutthesetractionispresentedinchapter4.

Thestresstensor,isalinearfunction(crudely,amatrix)thatrelatesthenormalvector,ntothetraction
actingonthatplanewhosenormalisn.Thestresstensorcouldvaryspatiallyandtemporallybutdoesnot
changewiththeplaneofcut.JustlikethereisCauchyandPiolatraction,dependingonoverwhichareathe
forceisdistributed,therearetwostresstensors.TheCauchy(ortrue)stresstensor,andthePiolaKirchhoff

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 3/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

stresstensor(P).Whilethesetwotensorsmaynearlybethesamewhenthedeformedareaisnotsignificantly
differentfromtheoriginalarea,qualitativelythesetensorsaredifferent.Tosatisfythemomentequilibriumin
theabsenceofbodycouples,Cauchystresstensorhastobesymmetrictensor(crudely,symmetricmatrix)and
PiolaKirchhoffstresstensorcannotbesymmetric.InfactthetransposeofthePiolaKirchhoffstresstensoris
calledastheengineeringstressornominalstress.Moreover,therearemanyotherstressmeasuresobtainedfrom
theCauchystressandthegradientofthedisplacementwhichshallbestudiedinchapter4.

1.1.3Whatisdisplacement?

Thedifferencebetweenthepositionvectorsofamaterialparticleattwodifferentinstancesoftimeiscalledas
displacement.Ingeneral,thedisplacementofthematerialparticlewoulddependontimetheinstancesbetween
whichthedisplacementissought.Itisalsopossiblethatdifferentparticlesgetdisplaceddifferentlybetweenthe
sametwoinstancesoftime.Thus,displacementingeneralvariesspatiallyandtemporally.Displacementiswhat
canbeobservedandmeasured.Forces,tractionandstresstensorsareintroducedtoexplain(ormathematically
capture)thisdisplacement.

Thedisplacementfieldisatleastdifferentiabletwicetemporallysothataccelerationcouldbecomputed.
Thisstemsfromtheobservationsthatthelocationorvelocityofthebodydoesnotchangeabruptly.Similarly,
thebasictenantofcontinuummechanicsisthatthedisplacementfieldiscontinuousspatiallyandispiecewise
differentiablespatiallyatleasttwice.Thatiswhilethedisplacementfieldisrequiredtobecontinuousoverthe
entirebodyitisrequiredtobetwicedifferentiablenotnecessarilyovertheentirebodybutonlyonsubsetsofthe
body.Thus,incontinuummechanicsinterpenetrationoftwosurfacesorseparationandformationofnew
surfacesisprecluded.Thevalidityofthetheorystopsjustbeforethebodyfractures.Notwithstandingthismany
attempttousecontinuummechanicsconceptstounderstandtheprocessoffracture.

Abodyissaidtoundergorigidbodydisplacementifthedistancebetweenanytwoparticlesthatbelongsto
thebodyremainsunchanged.Thatisinarigidbodydisplacementtheparticlesthatbelongtoabodydonot
moverelativetoeachother.Abodyissaidtoberigidifitalwaysundergoesonlyrigidbodydisplacementunder
actionofanyforce.Ontheotherhand,abodyissaidtobedeformableifitallowsrelativedisplacementofits
particlesundertheactionofsomeforce.Though,allrealbodiesaredeformable,attimesonecouldidealizea
givenbodyasrigidundertheactionofcertainforces.

1.1.4Whatisstrain?

Oneobservesthatrigidbodydisplacementsofthebodydoesnotgiveraisetoanystresses.Further,stressesare
inducedonlywhenthereisrelativedisplacementofthematerialparticles.Consequently,onerequiresameasure
(ormetric)forthisrelativedisplacementsothatitcanberelatedtothestress.Theuniquemeasureofrelative
displacementisthestretchratio,(A),definedastheratioofthedeformedlengthtotheoriginallengthofa
materialfiberalongagivendirection,A.(NotethathereAisaunitvector.)However,thismeasurehasthe
drawbackthatwhenthebodyisnotdeformedthestretchratiois1(byvirtueofthedeformedlengthbeingsame
astheoriginallength)andhenceinconvenienttowritetheconstitutiverelationoftheform

(1.4)

where(A)denotesthenormalstressonaplanewhosenormalisA.Sincethestressiszerowhenthebodyisnot
deformed,thefunctionfshouldbesuchthatf(1)=0.Mathematicalimplementationofthisconditionthatf(1)=
0andthatfbeaonetoonefunctionisthoughttobedifficultwhenfisanonlinearfunctionof(A).Consequently,
anothermeasureofrelativedisplacementissoughtwhichwouldbe0whenthebodyisnotdeformedandless
thanzerowhencompressedandgreaterthanzerowhenstretched.Thismeasureiscalledasthestrain,(A).There
isnouniquewayofobtainingthestrainfromthestretchratio.Thefollowingfunctionssatisfytherequirementof
thestrain:

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 4/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

(1.5)

wheremissomerealnumberandlnstandsfornaturallogarithm.Thus,ifm=1in(1.5a)thentheresulting
strainiscalledastheengineeringstrain,ifm=1,itiscalledasthetruestrain,ifm=2itisCauchyGreen
strain.Thesecondfunctionwherein(A)=ln((A)),iscalledastheHenckystrainorthelogarithmicstrain.

Justlikethetractionandhencethenormalstresschangeswiththeorientationoftheplane,thestretchratio
alsochangeswiththeorientationalongwhichitismeasured.Weshallseeinchapter3thatatensorcalledthe
CauchyGreendeformationtensorcarriesalltheinformationrequiredtocomputethestretchratioalongany
direction.Thisisakintothestresstensorwhichwhenknownwecouldcomputethetractionorthenormalstress
inanyplane.

1.2BasicEquationsinMechanics

Havinggainedasuperficialunderstandingofthefourconceptsinmechanicsnamelytheforce,stress,
displacementandstrain,letuslookatthefourequationsthatconnecttheseconceptsandthereasoningusedto
obtainthem.

1.2.1Equilibriumequations

EquilibriumequationsareNewtonssecondlawwhichstatesthattherateofchangeoflinearmomentumwould
beequalinmagnitudeanddirectiontothenetappliedforce.Deformablebodiesaresubjectedtotwokindsof
forces,namely,contactforceandbodyforce.Asthenamesuggestthecontactforcearisesbyvirtueofthebody
beingincontactwithitssurroundings.Tractionarisesonlyduetothesecontactforceandhencesodoesthe
stresstensor.Themagnitudeofthecontactforcedependsonthecontactareabetweenthebodyandits
surroundings.Ontheotherhand,thebodyforcesareactionatadistanceforces.Examplesofbodyforceare
gravitationalforce,electromagneticforce.Themagnitudeofthesebodyforcesdependonthemassofthebody
andhencearegenerallyexpressedasperunitmassofthebodyanddenotedbyb.

OnfurtherassumingthattheNewtonssecondlawholdsforanysubpartofthebodyandthatthestressfield
iscontinuouslydifferentiablewithinthebodytheequilibriumequationscanbewrittenas:

(1.6)

whereisthedensity,aistheaccelerationandthemassisassumedtobeconserved.Detailderivationofthe
aboveequationisgiveninchapter5.Themeaningoftheoperatordiv()canbefoundinchapter2.

Also,therateofchangeofangularmomentummustbeequaltothenetappliedmomentonthebody.
Assumingthatthemomentisgeneratedonlybythecontactforcesandbodyforces,thisconditionrequiresthat
theCauchystresstensortobesymmetric.Thatisintheabsenceofbodycouples,=t,wherethesuperscript
()tdenotesthetranspose.Hereagaintheassumptionsmadetoobtaintheforceequilibriumequation(1.6)should
hold.Seechapter5fordetailedderivation.

1.2.2StrainDisplacementrelation

Therelationshipthatconnectsthedisplacementfieldwiththestrainiscalledasthestraindisplacement
relationship.Aspointedoutbeforethereisnouniquedefinitionofthestrainandhencetherearevariousstrain
tensors.However,allthesestrainsaresomefunctionofthegradientofthedeformationfield,Fcommonly
calledasthedeformationgradient.Thedeformationfieldisafunctionthatgivesthepositionvectorofany
materialparticlethatbelongstothebodyatanyinstanceintimewiththematerialparticleidentifiedbyits
locationatsometimeto.Then,inchapter3weshowthat,thestretchratioalongagivendirectionAis,
http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 5/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

(1.7)

whereC=FtF,iscalledastherightCauchyGreendeformationtensor.Whenthebodyisundeformed,F=1and
hence,C=1and(A)=1.Insteadoflookingatthedeformationfield,onecandeveloptheexpressionforthe
stretchratio,lookingatthedisplacementfieldtoo.Now,thedisplacementfieldcanbeafunctionofthe
coordinatesofthematerialparticlesinthereferenceorundeformedstateorthecoordinatesinthecurrentor
deformedstate.Ifthedisplacementisafunctionofthecoordinatesofthematerialparticlesinthereference
configurationitiscalledasLagrangianrepresentationofthedisplacementfieldandthegradientofthis
LagrangiandisplacementfieldiscalledastheLagrangiandisplacementgradientandisdenotedbyH.Onthe
otherhandifthedisplacementisafunctionofthecoordinatesofthematerialparticleinthedeformedstate,such
arepresentationofthedisplacementfieldissaidtobeEulerianandthegradientofthisEuleriandisplacement
fieldiscalledastheEuleriandisplacementgradientandisdenotedbyh.Thenitcanbeshownthat(seechapter
3),

(1.8)

where,1standsforidentitytensor(seechapter2foritsdefinition).Now,therightCauchyGreendeformation
tensorcanbewrittenintermsoftheLagrangiandisplacementgradientas,

(1.9)

NotethattheifthebodyisundeformedthenH=0.Hence,ifonecannotseethedisplacementofthebodythen
itislikelythatthecomponentsoftheLagrangiandisplacementgradientaregoingtobesmall,sayoforder103.
Then,thecomponentsofthetensorHtHaregoingtobeoftheorder106.Hence,theequation(1.9)forthiscase
whenthecomponentsoftheLagrangiandisplacementgradientissmallcanbeapproximatelycalculatedas,

(1.10)

where

(1.11)

iscalledasthelinearizedLagrangianstrain.Weshallseeinchapter3thatwhenthecomponentsofthe
Lagrangiandisplacementgradientissmall,thestretchratio(1.7)reducesto

(1.12)

ThuswefindthatLcontainsinformationaboutchangesinlengthalonganygivendirection,Awhenthe
componentsoftheLagrangiandisplacementgradientaresmall.Hence,itiscalledasthelinearizedLagrangian
strain.Weshallinchapter3derivethevariousstraintensorscorrespondingtothevariousdefinitionofstrains
giveninequation(1.5).

Further,sinceFF1=1,itfollowsfrom(1.8)that

(1.13)

whichwhenthecomponentsofboththeLagrangianandEuleriandisplacementgradientaresmallcanbe
approximatedasH=h.Thus,whenthecomponentsoftheLagrangianandEuleriandisplacementgradientsare
smallthesedisplacementgradientsarethesame.Hence,theEulerianlinearizedstraindefinedas,

(1.14)
http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 6/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

andtheLagrangianlinearizedstrain,Lwouldbethesamewhenthecomponentsofthedisplacementgradients
aresmall.

Equation(1.14)isthestraindisplacementrelationshipthatwewouldusetosolveboundaryvalueproblems
inthiscourse,aswelimitourselvestocaseswherethecomponentsoftheLagrangianandEuleriandisplacement
gradientissmall.

1.2.3Compatibilityequation

ItisevidentfromthedefinitionofthelinearizedLagrangianstrain,(1.11)thatitisasymmetrictensor.Hence,it
hasonly6independentcomponents.Now,onecannotprescribearbitrarilythesesixcomponentssinceasmooth
differentiabledisplacementfieldshouldbeobtainablefromthissixprescribedcomponents.Therestrictions
placedonhowthissixcomponentsofthestraincouldvaryspatiallysothatasmoothdifferentiabledisplacement
fieldisobtainableiscalledascompatibilityequation.Thus,thecompatibilityconditionis

(1.15)

Thederivationofthisequationaswellasthecomponentsofthecurl()operatorinCartesiancoordinatesis
presentedinchapter3.

Itshouldalsobementionedthatthecompatibilityconditionincaseoflargedeformationsisyettobe
obtained.ThatisifthecomponentsoftherightCauchyGreendeformationtensor,Cisprescribed,the
restrictionsthathavetobeplacedontheseprescribedcomponentssothatasmoothdifferentiabledeformation
fieldcouldbeobtainedisunknown,exceptforsomespecialcases.

1.2.4Constitutiverelation

Broadlyconstitutiverelationistheequationthatrelatesthestress(andstressrates)withthedisplacement
gradient(andrateofdisplacementgradient).WhiletheabovethreeequationsEquilibriumequations,strain
displacementrelation,compatibilityequationsareindependentofthematerialthatthebodyismadeupof
and/ortheprocessthatthebodyissubjectedto,theconstitutiverelationisdependentonthematerialandthe
process.Constitutiverelationisrequiredtobringinthedependanceofthematerialintheresponseofthebody
andtohaveasmanyequationsasthereareunknowns,aswillbeshowninchapter6.

Thefidelityofthepredictions,namelythelikelydisplacementorstressforagivenforcedependsonlyonthe
constitutiverelation.Thisissobecausetheotherthreeequationsarethesameirrespectiveofthematerialthat
thebodyismadeupof.Consequently,alotofresearchisbeingundertakentoarriveatbetterconstitutive
relationsformaterials.

Itisdifficulttohaveaconstitutiverelationthatcoulddescribetheresponseofamaterialsubjectedtoany
process.Hence,usuallyconstitutiverelationsareprescribedforaparticularprocessthatthematerialundergoes.
Thevariablesintheconstitutiverelationdependsontheprocessthatisbeingstudied.Thesamematerialcould
undergodifferentprocessesdependingonthestimuliforexample,thesamematerialcouldrespondelastically
orplasticallydependingonsay,themagnitudeoftheloadortemperature.Henceitisonlyapttoqualifythe
processandnotthematerial.However,itiscustomarytoqualifythematerialinsteadoftheprocesstoo.Thiswe
shalldesist.

Traditionally,theconstitutiverelationissaidtodependonwhetherthegivenmaterialbehaveslikeasolidor
fluidandoneelaboratesonhowtoclassifyagivenmaterialasasolidorafluid.Amaterialthatisnotasolidis

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 7/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

definedasafluid.Thismeansonehastodefinewhatasolidis.Acoupleofdefinitionsofasolidarelisted
below:

Solidisonewhichcanresistsustainedshearforceswithoutcontinuouslydeforming
Solidisonewhichdoesnottaketheshapeofthecontainer

Thoughthesedefinitionsareintuitivetheyareambiguous.Aclassofmaterialscalledviscoelasticsolids,
neithertaketheshapeofthecontainernorresistshearforceswithoutcontinuouslydeforming.Also,thesame
materialwouldbehavelikeasolid,likeamixtureofasolidandafluidorlikeafluiddependingonsay,the
temperatureandthemechanicalstressitisbeingsubjectedto.Thesepromptsustosaythatagivenmaterial
behavesinasolidlikeorfluidlikemanner.However,asweshallsee,thisclassificationofagivenmaterialas
solidorfluidisimmaterial.Ifoneappealstothermodynamicsfortheclassificationoftheprocesses,the
responseofmaterialscouldbeclassifiedbasedon(1)Whetherthereisconversionofenergyfromoneformto
anotherduringtheprocess,and(2)Whethertheprocessisthermodynamicallyequilibrated.Though,inthe
followingsection,weclassifytheresponseofmaterialsbasedonthermodynamics,wealsogivethecommonly
stateddefinitionsanddiscusstheirshortcomings.Inthiscourse,aswellasinalltheseclassifications,itis
assumedthattherearenochemicalchangesoccurringinthebodyandhencethecompositionofthebody
remainsaconstant.

1.3ClassificationoftheResponseofMaterials
First,itshouldbeclarifiedthatoneshouldnotgetconfusedwiththerealbodyanditsmathematicalidealization.
Modelingisallaboutidealizationsthatleadtopredictionsthatareclosetoobservations.Toillustrate,theearth
andthesunareassumedaspointmasseswhenoneisinterestedinplanetarymotion.Thesameearthisassumed
asarigidsphereifoneisinterestedinstudyingtheeclipse.Theseassumptionsaremadetomaketheresulting
problemtractablewithoutlosingontherequiredaccuracy.Inthesamesprit,theallmaterialresponses,some
amountofmechanicalenergyisconvertedintootherformsofenergy.However,insomecases,thislossinthe
mechanicalenergyissmallthatitcanbeidealizedashavingnoloss,i.e.,anondissipativeprocess.

1.3.1Nondissipativeresponse

Aresponseissaidtobenondissipativeifthereisnoconversionofmechanicalenergytootherformsofenergy,
namelyheatenergy.Commonly,amaterialrespondinginthisfashionissaidtobeelastic.Thecommon
definitionsofelasticresponse,

Ifthebodysoriginalsizeandshapecanberecoveredonunloading,theloadingprocessissaidtobe
elastic.
Processesinwhichthestateofstressdependsonlyonthecurrentstrain,issaidtobeelastic.

Thefirstdefinitionisoflittleuse,becauseitrequiresonetodoacomplimentaryprocess(unloading)todecide
onwhethertheprocessthatneedstobeclassifiedasbeingelastic.Theseconddefinition,thoughusefulfor
decidingonthevariablesintheconstitutiverelation,italsorequiresonetodoacomplimentaryprocess(unload
andloadagain)todecideonwhetherthefirstprocessiselastic.Thedefinitionbasedonthermodynamicsdoes
notsufferfromthisdrawback.Inchapter6weprovideexampleswherethesethreedefinitionsarenot
equivalent.However,manyprocesses(approximately)satisfyallthethreedefinitions.

Thisclassofprocessesalsoproceedsthroughthermodynamicallyequilibratedstates.Thatis,ifthebodyis
isolatedatanyinstantofloading(ordisplacement)thenthestress,displacement,internalenergy,entropydonot
changewithtime.

Idealgas,afluidisthebestexampleofamaterialthatrespondsinanondissipativemanner.Metalsuptoa
certainstresslevel,calledtheyieldstress,arealsoidealizedasrespondinginanondissipativemanner.Thus,the
notionthatonlysolidsrespondinanondissipativemannerisnotcorrect.

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 8/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

Thus,forthesenondissipative,thermodynamicallyequilibratedprocessestheCauchystressandthe
deformationgradientcaningeneralberelatedthroughanimplicitfunction.Thatis,forisotropicmaterials(see
chapter6forwhenamaterialissaidtobeisotropic),f(,F)=0.However,inclassicalelasticityitiscustomary
toassumethatCauchystressinaisotropicmaterialisafunctionofthedeformationgradient,= (F).On
requiringtherestriction6duetoobjectivityandsecondlawofthermodynamicstohold,itcanbeshownthatif
= (F),then

(1.16)

whereR= R(J1,J2,J3)istheHelmoltzfreeenergydefinedperunitvolumeinthereferenceconfiguration,also
calledasthestoredenergy,B=FFtandJ1=tr(B),J2=tr(B1),J3= .Whenthecomponentsofthe
displacementgradientissmall,then(1.16)reducesto,

(1.17)

onneglectingthehigherpowersoftheLagrangiandisplacementgradientandwhereandarecalledasthe
Lamconstants.Theequation(1.17)isthefamousHookeslawforisotropicmaterials.InthiscourseHookes
lawistheconstitutiveequationthatweshallbeusingtosolveboundaryvalueproblems.

Beforeconcludingthissection,anothermisnomerneedstobeclarified.Ascanbeseenfromequation(1.16)
therelationshipbetweenCauchystressandthedisplacementgradientcanbenonlinearwhentheresponseis
nondissipative.OnlysometimesasinthecaseofthematerialobeyingHookeslawisthisrelationshiplinear.It
isalsotruethatiftheresponseisdissipative,therelationshipbetweenthestressandthedisplacementgradientis
alwaysnonlinear.However,nonlinearrelationshipbetweenthestressandthedisplacementgradientdoesnot
meanthattheresponseisdissipative.Thatis,nonlinearrelationshipbetweenthestressandthedisplacement
gradientisonlyanecessaryconditionfortheresponsetobedissipativebutnotasufficientcondition.

1.3.2Dissipativeresponse

Aresponseissaidtobedissipativeifthereisconversionofmechanicalenergytootherformsofenergy.A
materialrespondinginthisfashionispopularlysaidtobeinelastic.Therearethreetypesofdissipativeresponse,
whichweshallseeinsomedetail.

Plasticresponse

Amaterialissaidtodeformplasticallyifthedeformationprocessproceedsthroughthermodynamically
equilibratedstatesbutisdissipative.Thatis,ifthebodyisisolatedatanyinstantofloading(ordisplacement)
thenthestress,displacement,internalenergy,entropydonotchangewithtime.Byvirtueoftheprocessbeing
dissipative,thestressataninstantwoulddependonthehistoryofthedeformation.However,thestressdoesnot
dependontherateofloadingordisplacementbyvirtueoftheprocessproceedingthroughthermodynamically
equilibratedstates.

Forplasticresponse,theclassicalconstitutiverelationisassumedtobeoftheform,

(1.18)

whereFp,q1,q2areinternalvariableswhosevaluescouldchangewithdeformationand/orstress.For
illustration,wehaveusedtwoscalarinternalvariablesandonesecondordertensorinternalvariablewhilethere
canbeanynumberoftensororscalarinternalvariables.Insometheoriestheinternalvariablesaregivena
http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 9/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

physicalinterpretationbutingeneral,thesevariableneednothaveanymeaningandareproposedfor
mathematicalmodelingpurposeonly.

Thus,whenamaterialdeformsplastically,itdoesnotreturnbacktoitsoriginalshapewhenunloadedthere
wouldbeapermanentdeformation.Hence,theprocessisirreversible.Theresponsedoesnotdependontherate
ofloading(ordisplacement).Metalslikesteelatroomtemperaturerespondplasticallywhenstressedabovea
particularlimit,calledtheyieldstress.

Viscoelasticresponse

Ifthedissipativeprocessproceedsthroughstatesthatarenotinthermodynamicequilibrium7,thenitissaidto
beviscoelastic.Therefore,ifabodyisisolatedatsomeinstantofloading(ordisplacement)thenthe
displacement(orthestress)continuestochangewithtime.Aviscoelasticmaterialwhensubjectedtoconstant
stresswouldresultinadeformationthatchangeswithtimewhichiscalledascreep.Also,whenaviscoelastic
materialissubjectedtoaconstantdeformationfield,itsstresschangeswithtimeandthisiscalledasstress
relaxation.Thisisincontrarytoaelasticorplasticmaterialwhichwhensubjectedtoaconstantstresswould
haveaconstantstrain.

Theconstitutiverelationforaviscoelasticresponseisoftheform,

(1.19)

where denotesthetimederivativeofstressand timederivativeofthedeformationgradient.Thoughhere

wehavetruncatedtofirstordertimederivatives,thegeneraltheoryallowsforhigherordertimederivativestoo.

Thus,theresponseofaviscoelasticmaterialdependsontherateatwhichitisloaded(ordisplaced)apart
fromthehistoryoftheloading(ordisplacement).Theresponseofaviscoelasticmaterialchangesdependingon
whetherloadiscontrolledordisplacementiscontrolled.Thisprocesstooisirreversibleandtherewouldbe
unrecovereddeformationimmediatelyonremovaloftheload.Themagnitudeofunrecovereddeformationafter
alongtime(asymptotically)wouldtendtozeroorremainthesameconstantvaluethatitisimmediatelyafterthe
removalofload.

Constitutiverelationsoftheform,

(1.20)

whichisaspecialcaseoftheviscoelasticconstitutiverelation(1.19),isthatofaviscousfluid.

Insometreatmentsofthesubject,aviscoelasticmaterialwouldbesaidtobeacombinationofaviscous
fluidandanelasticsolidandtheviscoelasticmodelsareobtainedbycombiningspringsanddashpots.Thereare
severalphilosophicalproblemsassociatedwiththisviewpointaboutwhichwecannotelaboratehere.

Viscoplasticresponse

Thisprocesstooisdissipativeandproceedsthroughstatesthatarenotinthermodynamicequilibrium.However,
inordertomodelthisclassofresponsetheconstitutiverelationhastobeoftheform,

(1.21)

whereFp,q1,q2aretheinternalvariableswhosevaluescouldchangewithdeformationand/orstress.Their
significanceissameasthatdiscussedforplasticresponse.Ascanbeeasilyseentheconstitutiverelationform
fortheviscoplasticresponse(1.21)encompassesviscoelastic,plasticandelasticresponseasaspecialcase.
http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 10/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

Inthiscase,constantloadcausesadeformationthatchangeswithtime.Also,aconstantdeformationcauses
appliedloadtochangewithtime.Theresponseofthematerialdependsontherateofloadingordisplacement.
Theprocessisirreversibleandtherewouldbeunrecovereddeformationonremovalofload.Themagnitudeof
thisunrecovereddeformationvarieswithrateofloading,timeandwouldtendtoavaluewhichisnotzero.This
dependanceoftheconstantvaluethattheunrecovereddeformationtendsontherateofloading,couldbetaken
asthecharacteristicofviscoplasticresponse.

Figure1.3showsthetypicalvariationinthestrainforvariousresponseswhenthematerialisloaded,heldat
aconstantloadandunloaded,asdiscussedabove.Thiskindofloadingiscalledasthecreepandrecovery
loading,helpsonetodistinguishvariouskindsofresponses.

Figure1.3:Schematicofthevariationinthestrainwithtimeforvariousresponseswhenthematerial
isloadedandunloaded.

Asmentionedalready,inthiscourseweshallfocusontheelasticornondissipativeresponseonly.

1.4SolutiontoBoundaryValueProblems
Aboundaryvalueproblemisoneinwhichwespecifythetractionappliedonthesurfaceofabodyand/or
displacementoftheboundaryofabodyandareinterestedinfindingthedisplacementand/orthestressatany
interiorpointinthebodyoronpartoftheboundarywheretheywerenotspecified.Thisspecificationofthe
boundarytractionand/ordisplacementiscalledasboundarycondition.Theboundaryconditionisinasense
constitutiverelationfortheboundary.Ittellshowthebodyanditssurroundingsinteract.Thus,inaboundary
valueproblemoneneedstoprescribethegeometryofthebody,theconstitutiverelationforthematerialthatthe
bodyismadeupoffortheprocessitisgoingtobesubjectedtoandtheboundarycondition.Usingthis
informationoneneedstofindthedisplacementandstressthatthebodyissubjectedto.Thesofound
displacementandstressfieldshouldsatisfytheequilibriumequations,constitutiverelations,compatibility
conditionsandboundaryconditions.

Thepurposeofformulatingandsolvingaboundaryvalueproblemisto:

Toensurethestressesarewithinprescribedlimits
http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 11/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

Toensurethatthedisplacementsarewithinprescribedlimits
Tofindthedistributionofforcesandmomentsonpartoftheboundarywheredisplacementsarespecified

Therearefourtypeofboundaryconditions.Theyare

Displacementboundarycondition:Herethedisplacementoftheentireboundaryofthebodyaloneis
specified.ThisisalsocalledasDirichletboundarycondition
Tractionboundarycondition:Herethetractionontheentireboundaryofthebodyaloneisspecified.
ThisisalsocalledasNeumannboundarycondition
Mixedboundarycondition:Herethedisplacementisspecifiedonpartoftheboundaryandtractionis
specifiedontheremainingpartoftheboundary.Bothtractionaswellasdisplacementarenotspecified
overanypartofboundary
Robinboundarycondition:Hereboththedisplacementandthetractionarespecifiedonthesamepartof
theboundary.

Therearethreemethodsbywhichthedisplacementandstressfieldinthebodycanbefound,satisfyingall
therequiredgoverningequationsandtheboundaryconditions.Outlineofthesemethodsarepresentednext.The
choiceofamethoddependsonthetypeofboundarycondition.

1.4.1Displacementmethod

Heredisplacementfieldistakenasthebasicunknown.Then,usingthestraindisplacementrelation,(1.14)the
strainiscomputed.Thisstraininsubstitutedintheconstitutiverelation,(1.17)toobtainthestress.Thestressis
thensubstitutedintheequilibriumequation(1.6)toobtain3secondorderpartialdifferentialequationsinterms
ofthecomponentsofthedisplacementfieldas,

(1.22)

where()standsfortheLaplaceoperatorandtdenotestime.Thedetailderivationofthisequationisgivenin
chapter7.Equation(1.22)iscalledtheNavierLamequations.Thus,inthedisplacementmethodequation
(1.22)issolvedalongwiththeprescribedboundarycondition.

Ifthreedimensionalsolidelementsareusedformodelingthebodyinfiniteelementprograms,thenthe
weakenedformofequation(1.22)issolvedforthespecifiedboundaryconditions.

1.4.2Stressmethod

Inthismethod,thestressfieldisassumedsuchthatitsatisfiestheequilibriumequationsaswellasthe
prescribedtractionboundaryconditions.Forexample,intheabsenceofbodyforcesandstaticequilibrium,it
canbeeasilyseenthatiftheCartesiancomponentsofthestressarederivedfromapotential,= (x,y,z)called
astheAirysstresspotentialas,

(1.23)

thentheequilibriumequationsaresatisfied.Havingarrivedatthestress,thestrainiscomputedusing

(1.24)

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 12/13
6/20/2017 1Introduction

obtainedbyinvertingtheconstitutiverelation,(1.17).Inordertobeabletofindasmoothdisplacementfield
fromthisstrain,ithastosatisfycompatibilitycondition(1.15).Thisprocedureisformulatedinchapter7andis
followedtosolvesomeboundaryvalueproblemsinchapters8and9.

1.4.3Semiinversemethod

ThismethodisusedtosolveproblemswhentheconstitutiverelationisnotgivenbyHookeslaw(1.17).When
theconstitutiverelationisnotgivenbyHookeslaw,displacementmethodresultsinthreecouplednonlinear
partialdifferentialequationsforthedisplacementcomponentswhicharedifficulttosolve.Hence,simplifying
assumptionsaremadeforthedisplacementfield,whereinathedisplacementfieldisprescribedbutforsome
constantsand/orsomefunctions.Exceptincaseswheretheconstitutiverelationisoftheform(1.16),onehasto
makeanassumptiononthecomponentsofthestresswhichwouldbenonzeroforthisprescribeddisplacement
field.Then,thesenonzerocomponentsofthestressfieldisfoundintermsoftheconstantsandunknown
functionsinthedisplacementfield.Onsubstitutingthesestresscomponentsintheequilibriumequationsand
boundaryconditions,oneobtainsdifferentialequationsfortheunknownfunctionsandalgebraicequationsto
findtheunknownconstants.Theprescriptionofthedisplacementfieldismadeinsuchawaythatitresultsin
ordinarydifferentialequationsgoverningtheformoftheunknownfunctions.Sincepartdisplacementandpart
stressareprescribeditiscalledsemiinversemethod.Thismethodofsolvingequationswouldnotbeillustrated
inthiscourse.

Finally,wesaythattheboundaryvalueproblemiswellposedif(1)Thereexistadisplacementandstress
fieldthatsatisfiestheboundaryconditionsandthegoverningequations(2)Thereexistonlyonesuch
displacementandstressfield(3)Smallchangesintheboundaryconditionscausesonlysmallchangesinthe
displacementandstressfields.TheboundaryvalueproblemobtainedwhenHookeslaw(1.17)isusedforthe
constitutiverelationisknowntobewellposed,aswillbediscussedinchapter7.

1.5Summary

Thusinthischapterweintroducedthefourconceptsinmechanics,thefourequationsconnectingtheseconcepts
aswellasthemethodologiesusedtosolveboundaryvalueproblems.Inthefollowingchaptersweelaborateon
thesametopics.Itisnotintendedthatinafirstreadingofthischapter,onewouldunderstandallthedetails.
However,readingthesamechapterattheendofthiscourse,oneshouldappreciatethedetails.Thischapter
summarizestheconceptsthatshouldbeassimilatedanddigestedduringthiscourse.

http://nptel.ac.in/courses/105106049/lecnotes/mainch1.html#x320001 13/13