TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

EXPERIMENT: VIDEO TITLE: TENSION TEST TENSION TEST OBJECTIVES: (1) Obtain a general understanding of how different materials behave under uniaxial tensile loading. (2) Determine and compare material properties of various materials. INTRODUCTION: This experiment will consist of two parts. The first will serve to introduce the MTS testing equipment and testing procedures. For the first experiment, a 0.25-inch nominal diameter hotrolled steel sample will be tested to failure. Loadversus-strain and load-versus-stroke diagrams will be produced during the test and these diagrams will subsequently be used to determine material properties. The second part to this experiment, which will be performed during the first laboratory rotation, will consist of similar tests on aluminum and stainless steel specimens. The student will learn how to properly conduct a tension test and obtain the relevant material properties from the results. Further, the student will discover how different materials behave under similar loading conditions as well as how material properties differ. BACKGROUND: Stress is a measure of the intensity of an internal force. Stress is defined as the force per unit area: Stress= = Load/Area = P/A [psi] utilizing axial loading are generally performed to determine material properties. When materials for engineering projects are procured, the engineer often must specify material property requirements to the manufacturer. After the material is received it is generally good practice, if not mandatory, to perform acceptance tests to verify the material properties before the materials are used. Therefore, it is important to understand which material properties are relevant and how those properties are obtained. Results from simple tension tests, similar to the test described in this experiment, can provide information from which several material properties can be determined. The experiments to be completed for Tension I and Tension II will illustrate the usefulness of the simple tension test and demonstrate the mechanical behavior of different materials. Later tests in this course will introduce other relevant properties. Figure 1 shows a typical tensile specimen both before and after testing. Notice that the crosssection decreased significantly (necked) at the failure location, indicating ductile material. Brittle materials display significantly less necking and thus the cross-sectional area does not decrease appreciably prior to failure. Strain is a measure of the deformation that has occurred in a material. In the case where the magnitude of deformation is the same over the entire length of a body, strain may be defined as:

=
Where:

L f Lo Lo

[in/in]

Lo is the initial length Lf is the final length

When a specimen is loaded so that the resultant force passes through the centroid of the specimen cross-section, the loading is categorized as axial and can be either tensile or compressive. Tests

For cases where the deformation differs throughout the body, the lengths Lo and Lf must

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

be reduced to a sub-region of the body where the deformation is constant. Units: psi ELASTIC LIMIT, E: Maximum stress for which stress will be directly proportional to strain. The end to the straight-line portion of the stress-strain curve. Equal to proportional limit. . . . di . . . . FIGURE 1 . df . . Units: psi ELASTIC MODULUS, E: The ratio of stress to strain for the initial straight-line portion of the stress-strain curve. Determined by:

E=
Units: psi

B A b A

MODULUS OF RESILIENCE, UR: The maximum energy the material will absorb without inelastic deformation. Equal to the area under the elastic portion of the stress-strain curve. Determined by:

2 pl UR = 2E
Where pl is the proportional limit, defined later in this section. Units: (in-lb)/in3 MODULUS OF TOUGHNESS, UT: Energy per unit volume required to rupture the material. Equal to the area under the entire stress-strain curve. For materials with a stress-strain similar to that shown in Figure 2, a trapezoidal approximation can be used:

A typical stress-strain diagram from a tension test for hot-rolled steel is shown in Figure 2. This diagram provides a great deal of useful information about the material. The particular properties are designated on the figure and are individually discussed in the following list. DUCTILITY: Characteristic of a material where the material can undergo large plastic deformations before fracture, especially in tension. ENGINEERING FRACTURE STRENGTH: Engineering stress at the point of final fracture. Units: lb/in2 (psi) ENGINEERING STRESS, : The load divided by the initial cross-sectional area. Note that stress based on the initial cross-section decreases beyond the ultimate strength.

U T = ( pl + ult )(1 2 )(%elongation )(1 100% )

Units: (in-lb)/in3 PERCENT ELONGATION: A measure of the deformation at the point of final fracture. Determined by:

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

Percent elongation = Where:

L f Lo Lo

(100%)
length

Lo is the initial Lf is the final length

PERCENT REDUCTION OF AREA: A measurement of the fracture ductility. Defined as: %RA = Ao-Af x 100% Ao Where: Ao is the initial cross-sectional area Af is the final cross-sectional at the location of fracture. area

Generally the percent elongation is obtained after the test by fitting the two halves of the specimen together and measuring the change in length between two existing punch marks. The percent elongation will vary depending on the gage length (distance between punch marks) used. Therefore the gage length should be reported along with the percent elongation. Units: in/in,

Values for %RA range from near zero for brittle materials to high values (approaching 100%) for ductile materials which can neck severely at failure.

Stress-Strain Curve Typical Sample

Ultimate Strength

Proportional Limit [psi]

Yield Strength (2% offset)

Fracture Strength

0.002 0.004

[in/in]

FIGURE 2

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

PROPORTIONAL LIMIT, pl : Engineering stress at the point where the straight-line portion of the stress-strain curves ends. It is the limiting value for which the stresses and strains are proportional to one another. Some materials do not have a well-defined proportional limit and in many cases the value may vary with the judgment of the engineer and the precision of the scale of the graph. Equal to the elastic limit. Units: psi TANGENT MODULUS, Et: Slope of the stressstrain curve at a particular stress level. Units: psi ult: Highest engineering stress reached at any time during the ULTIMATE STRENGTH, test. Also known as the tensile (or compressive) strength. Units: psi TRUE STRESS, : Load divided by the actual cross-sectional area of the specimen at the particular load level. Units: psi TRUE FRACTURE STRESS, f: Load at fracture divided by the final cross-sectional area. Note that the true stress increases until rupture occurs due to the decrease in the cross-sectional area (referred to as necking). Units: psi YIELD STRENGTH, y: Engineering stress that causes a specified amount of permanent strain. The specified permanent strain is referred to as the offset or permanent set. The most commonly used offset is 0.002 in/in or 0.2%. The magnitude of the offset should be reported with the value of the yield strength. The method followed is to draw a line parallel to the initial slope of the stress-strain curve, but offset by a specified amount of strain. The point at which this line intersects the stress-strain curve is the yield point at the specified offset. Yield strength is a particularly useful measurement for materials with no definite proportional limit. Some materials exhibit a decrease in stress in the yield region, or a yield drop, as shown in Figure 3. In such cases it is common to report an upper yield strength which is the highest stress reached prior to the drop; and a lower yield strength which is the lowest stress reached before the stress again begins to increase. Mild steel is the most common material to exhibit a yield drop. The upper yield stress is dependent on such factors as the alignment of the specimen in the grips of the machine and the rate at which the specimen is loaded. Poor alignment or very slow loading rates may result in no yield drop and initial yielding may begin around the value the lower yield point would have in a standard test. Units: psi Yield Drop UY , Stress, psi PL 0.2 LY

, Strain, in/in FIGURE 3 MATERIAL TO BE TESTED: Tension testing will be performed on a total of three materials: Hot-Rolled Steel (SAE 1020) Stress-proof Steel Aluminum (6061-T6) All three materials will be provided in the form of 0.25-inch nominal diameter rods cut to 12-inch lengths.

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

EQUIPMENT TO BE USED: MTS Testing Machine (20,000-lb Capacity) Extensometer (0.2 in/in Capacity) SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS: Never operate machine when someone's hands are between the grips. Make sure all lab participants are clear of equipment before beginning or resuming testing. PROCEDURE: SPECIMEN PREPARATIONS: The diameter of each specimen must be measured and recorded. Punch marks must be made at 2 inch intervals along each sample. These should be measured and recorded after making the punch marks. DATA REQUIREMENTS: The student will need to produce a stress-versusstrain curve for all three specimens on one graph. MTS SET-UP 1.) Follow Start- up Procedures Station Manager MPT 2.) Turn hydraulics on. 3.) Make sure the 'MANUAL OFFSET' = 0 for Stroke. 4.) Adjust 'SET POINT'' to 0.0 5.) 'AUTO OFFSET' Load 6.) Set-up Scope to plot a/b. Load Time 500 15 lbf in min 2000 0.5 POST TESTING PROCEDURE: 1.) Record final punch mark distances and diameter at the failure section on the data sheet. 2.) Indicate where the failure occurred, on the data sheet. TESTING PROCEDURE: Stroke 0.1 tension tension.000 1.) Create specimen file tens*. 2.) Install Specimen in lower grip. Leave upper grip open. 3.) Install Extensometer onto specimen. 4.) Pull Pin out of Extensometer. 5.) Close upper grip. 6.) Measure the distance between the grips (gage length). 7.) 'AUTO OFFSET' Strain. 8.) Start the scope. 9.) Lock MPT and select specimen. 10.) Press 'RUN'. Let the test proceed through elastic range until yielding is clearly present on the scope. 11.) Press 'Pause' (1st operator button) to halt loading once yielding begins. (Do not allow more that 0.005in/in strain) 12.) Replace pin in Extensometer and remove Extensometer from specimen. 13.) Press 'Continue' (2nd operator button) and let test run to failure. 14.) Once failure occurs, press 'STOP'. 15.) Remove specimen pieces from grips. 16.) Unlock MPT and adjust SET POINT to 0.0. 17.) Measure distance between punch marks and final diameter at location of failure. 18.) Repeat procedure for additional specimens 19.) Turn hydraulics off. 16.) Copy data files to diskette. c:\em327data\tens*\specimen.dat 17.) Delete specimen tens*.

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

REPORT: The report outline found in Appendix A should be used for all formal reports handed in for EM327. REPORT REQUIREMENTS: For each of the three materials tested;
1. 1.

Toughness for the three materials was accompanied by increasing percent reduction in area and decreasing Modulus of Resilience). QUESTIONS: Chances are that the specimens failed somewhere other than directly in the middle. What determines where a specimen fails? For the steel specimen compare the stress in the bar at rupture, as computed from the area at the break, with the ultimate strength. Why isn't the actual area of the fractured crosssection a suitable basis for defining strength? Why is it often difficult to evaluate the elastic limit? What is the effect of poor alignment of the specimen? Why does a specimen that is properly aligned provide a more accurate estimate of the tensile strength compared to the estimate provided from results from a test where the specimen was not accurately aligned? Why would a stress-strain diagram be preferable to a load-elongation diagram for presenting the results of a tension test? Why is it important to know the gage length when using percent elongation information? Explain why the percent elongation in a 2 inch gage section may exceed that of an 8 inch gage section. Can any conclusions be drawn regarding the possible effect of the punch marks on the strength of the bar at the punched sections? Can the elongation of a specimen be determined accurately by measuring the movement of the test machine cross head? Why?

Determine and tabulate properties: a. Proportional Limit b. Yield Strength c. Ultimate Strength d. Modulus of Elasticity

the

following

2.

3. 4.

e. Percent elongation for each 2" gage length between punch marks (including the segment containing the failure) and for the largest combined gage length (6"or8") inside the grip markings. f. Percent reduction in area g. Modulus of Resilience h. Modulus of Toughness i.
2.

True Fracture Strength

5.

Compare b,c, and d to reference values found in Appendix B. by calculating the percentage error. Discuss possible discrepancies in (2). reasons for the

6. 7.

3. 4.

Provide stress versus strain plot, appropriately labeled, for all three specimens tested. (Refer to Appendix A for example). Discuss the consistency of the percent elongation measurements using different gage sections. Comment on the possible reasons for discrepancies obtained for a given specimen. Briefly summarize, in words, the similarities and differences in material properties for the three materials tested. When observed, present relationships between various material properties for the three materials tested (example: increasing Modulus of

8.

5.

9.

6.

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TENSION TEST EM 327: MECHANICS OF MATERIALS LABORATORY

EXAMPLE DATA The data obtained from the MTS machine is similar to the following data set.
Data Acquisition Axial Load Axial Strain kip in/in 0.62910855 1.846371e-004 1.1272926 3.8605928e-004 1.6147344 5.8748142e-004 2.1035187 7.8890362e-004 2.5761893 9.903257e-004 Data Acquisition Axial Stroke Axial Load in kip 0.10663022 8.5020294 0.15677974 8.6430254 0.20692927 8.6557817 0.25707877 8.6309404 0.3072283 8.5846128 0.3573778 8.4765158 0.40752733 7.5587025 0.45767686 -5.3712581e-003 Data Acquisition Sec Axial Load Axial Stroke kip in 8.6584673 0.46100906 -1.8738974 5.6147482e-002 Linear Region Axial Stroke in 2.8323776e-003 5.1649134e-003 7.6640593e-003 1.0329815e-002 1.3162179e-002 Non-Liniear Region Time: 55.541504

Time: 112.58374

Ultimate Load

Time: 112.5918

GRAPHS In order to make the stress versus strain graphs for each specimen, the student must use both the linear and non-linear data. The load must be converted to the normal stress, , using the following equation.

Load Areainitial

For the linear region, the strain can be taken directly from the data. For the non-linear region, the stroke must be converted to strain, , using the following equation.

Stroke Lengthinitial

Put all three specimens on the same graph in order to compare the different materials. Be sure to include a legend and label the axis.

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