Selection of Material for a Light and Stiff Panel

Schematic presentation of a panel with a bending load, F

Function:                    Panel to withstand a bending load of F

Objective:                   Minimise mass (m) where , where is the

material density.

Constraints:               (i) Length L is specified, (ii) Must not bend under bending load, F

Free variable:            (i) Panel Thickness, t, (ii) Material

Performance Equation:       

The Performance Equation can be developed considering the fact that the stiffness of the panel

is sufficient to allow a maximum critical deflection, , under the bending load, F. Thus, the

Performance Equation can be given as

(6)
where is the maximum permissible deflection, E is the young’s modulus, I is the second

moment of area. The stiffness, S, of the beam, can be written as,  and the second moment

of area, I, can be written as, .

The Performance Equation can now be rewritten by substituting one of the free variables

(panel thickness, t) as

(7)

The material index, M4, in this case becomes  and a material with higher value of M4 is

expected to perform better in comparison to a material with lower value of M4.

The above four examples depict the simple procedure to develop Material Indices for the

selection of suitable material for various structural requirements.

These Material Indices can be used subsequently to shortlist a range of suitable materials from

appropriate Material Property Charts in a graphical manner.

The Material Property Charts display the combination of material properties like Young’s

modulus and density, strength and density, Young’s modulus and strength, thermal conductivity

and electrical resistivity, strength and cost, and so on.