EPHYS 001 PHYSICS FOR ENGINEERS / PHYS 001C CALCULUS-BASED PHYSICS

Topic: ELASTICITY AND HOOKE’S LAW

Intended Learning Outcomes:
1. Explain Hooke’s Law
2. Compare elastic limits of various materials
3. Interpret modulus of elasticity of various materials
4. Solve problems related to modulus of elasticity

Elasticity  where k is the spring constant, F is the force

 The property of an object or material which causes it generated by the spring, x is the displacement
to be restored to its original shape after distortion. from equilibrium (where F=0).
 It is said to be more elastic if it restores itself more
precisely to its original configuration.
 A rubber band is easy to stretch, and snaps back to  Any basic sample problem will require the
near its original length when released, but it is not as equation re-arranged; or substitution of another
elastic as a piece of piano wire. variable into the two changeable variables, x and
 The piano wire is harder to stretch, but would be said F; or balance the equation with another force
to be more elastic than the rubber band because of (say, a mass on a spring so that F = mg).
the precision of its return to its original length. Sample
 A real piano string can be struck hundreds of times
without stretching enough to go noticeably out of 1. A force of 600 N will compress a spring 0.5 meters.
tune. What is the spring constant of the spring?
 A spring is an example of an elastic object - when
stretched, it exerts a restoring force which tends to
bring it back to its original length.
 This restoring force is generally proportional to the
amount of stretch, as described by Hooke's Law.
 For wires or columns, the elasticity is generally 2. A spring with spring constant 4 dyne/cm has a force
described in terms of the amount of deformation of 40 dynes applied to it (stretching it). How much
(strain) resulting from a given stress (Young's does the spring stretch?
modulus).

Hooke’s Law
 One of the properties of elasticity is that it takes
about twice as much force to stretch a spring twice
as far.
 That linear dependence of displacement upon
stretching force is called Hooke's law.
Young’s Modulus
 The further you stretch the spring, the greater the
force opposing the stretching, in other words, it
 Is a measure of the stiffness of an isotropic
assumes that the force increases linearly with
elastic material. It is defined as the ratio of
distance.
the uniaxial stress over the uniaxial strain in
the range of stress in which Hooke's Law
holds.
 Young's modulus, E, can be calculated by
dividing the tensile stress by the tensile
strain:

Where:
E is the Young's modulus (modulus of elasticity)
 F is the force applied to the object; Where:
A0 is the original cross-sectional area through which
= shear stress;
the force is applied;
F is the force which acts
ΔL is the amount by which the length of the object
A is the area on which the force acts
changes;
L0 is the original length of the object. = shear strain;
Δx is the transverse displacement
I is the initial length

Shear modulus is usually expressed in gigapascals

(GPa) or thousands of pounds per square inch (ksi).

The SI unit of modulus of elasticity (E, or less commonly
Y) is the Pascal (Pa or N/m²).
Elastic Properties of Selected Engineering Materials
Bulk Modulus
 of a substance measures the substance's
resistance to uniform compression. It is
defined as the pressure increase needed to
cause a given relative decrease in volume.
Its base unit is the pascal.
The bulk modulus K can be formally defined by the
equation:

Young's Ultimate Yield

Density
Material Modulus Strength Su Strength S where P is pressure, V is volume, and ∂P/∂V denotes
(kg/m3) the partial derivative of pressure with respect to
109 N/m2 106 N/m2 106 N/m2
volume. The inverse of the bulk modulus gives a
substance's compressibility.
Steela 7860 200 400 250
Sample:
Aluminum 2710 70 110 95
1. A guitar string of diameter 0.5 mm and length 0.80
m is subject to a tension of 154 N. If the string
Glass 2190 65 50b ...
stretches an amount 0.45 mm, what is Young's
modulus of the string?
Concretec 2320 30 40b ...

Woodd 525 13 50b ...

Bone 1900 9b 170b ...

Polystyrene 1050 3 48 ...

2. A 14.5 kg mass, fastened to the end of a steel wire

Shear Modulus
of outstretched length 1m, is whirled in a vertical
 denoted by G, or sometimes S or μ, is
defined as the ratio of shear stress to the circle with an angular velocity 2 rev/s at the bottom
shear strain. of the circle. The cross- sectional area of the wire is
0.065 cm2. What is the elongation of the wire when
the mass is at the lowest point of its path?