HOMEWORK PROBLEMS

Week 12: Due Friday 11 April

1. A glass wire of 1 mm diameter and length 2 m is used to suspend a mass of 2 kg from the
ceiling. The mass is now subjected to a moment T about the vertical axis, causing the wire to
be loaded in torsion as well as tension, and brittle failure is observed to occur when the mass
has been rotated through an angle of 135
o
.
What is the maximum mass that could be supported by a similar wire if loading were purely
tensile (no rotation of the end)? (G
glass
= 35 GPa).
2. A 45
o
strain-gauge rosette is mounted on a plate in the orientation shown in Figure 2. The
readings obtained are

a
= 75010
6
;
b
= (300450

3) 10
6
;
c
=15010
6
.
(i) Show that
xy
= 0 and determine the values of
x
and
y
.
(ii) Find the force components on the face ABCD of the plate if E = 1010
6
psi, = 1/3.
(a)
(b) (c)
x
y
45
o
45
o
o
30
0.1
4
7
A
B
C
D
all dimensions in inches.
Figure 2
1
3. Three strain gauges are attached to a body with 0
o
, 45
o
, and 90
o
orientation relative to the
xdirection, as shown in Figure 3. The readings obtained are

a
= -0.12 10
3
;
b
= 0.12 10

3
;
c
= 0.1210
3
.
(a)
(b)
(c)
x
y
45
o
45
o
Figure 3
Determine the shear strain component
xy
. If the surface to which the gauges are attached
is traction-free (so
z
= 0) and the material has elastic properties E = 210 GPa, G = 80 GPa,
what are the principal stresses at this point?
4. Three strain gauges are attached to a body with 0
o
, 120
o
, and 240
o
orientation relative to the
x-direction (i.e. gauge (a) is aligned with the x-direction), as shown in Figure 4. The readings
obtained are

a
= 0.2 10
3
;
b
= 1.6 10
3
;
c
=2.010
3
.
o
120
120
120
o
o
(a)
(b)
(c)
Figure 4
Determine the three strain components
x
,
y
,
xy
.
2
5. A cylindrical pressure vessel of diameter 1 m and wall thickness 10 mm has closed ends. A
45
o
strain gauge rosette is attached to the vessel (well away from the ends), such that gauge (a)
is in the axial direction, gauge (c) is in the circumferential direction and gauge (b) is at 45
o
to
the other two. The readings obtained are

a
= 0.4210
3
;
b
= 1.0910
3
;
c
= 1.7810
3
.
Use the above readings to determine Poissons ratio for the material of the vessel.
6. A steel spherical pressure vessel has an inner diameter of 5 feet and a wall thickness of 0.4
inches. A strain gauge of length 1 inch is attached to the wall and is observed to increase in
length by 0.0007 inches when the vessel is pressurized. Determine the pressure in the vessel
and the absolute maximum shear stress in the wall. (E
steel
= 3010
3
ksi,
steel
= 0.3).
7. The 45
o
strain-gauge rosette of Figure 7 recorded the values

a
= 75010
6
;
b
= 60010
6
;
c
=15010
6
.
(a)
(b)
(c)
x
y
45
o
45
o
Figure 7
Find the principal stresses and the principal directions in relation to the orientation of the
rosette and show the results on a sketch of a representative volume element. E = 15 10
6
psi,
= 0.3.
3
8. The strain gauge rosette of Figure 8 records the values

a
=20010
6
;
b
= 25010
6
;
c
= 40010
6
.
(i) Determine the strain components
x
,
y
,
xy
in the xy-coordinate system.
(ii) Find the orientation of the line that experiences the greatest normal strain.
(iii) Find the maximum in-plane shear stress, if the material has a shear modulus G = 57 GPa.
.
(a)
(b)
(c)
x
y
o
60
Figure 8
9. The 45
o
strain-gauge rosette of Figure 9 is attached to a thin-walled cylindrical steel tube
with closed ends in such a way that the x-direction is aligned with the axis of the cylinder. The
inside diameter of the vessel is 70 mm and the wall thickness is 1 mm. The vessel is subjected
to (i) an internal pressure p, (ii) an axial force F and (iii) a torque T and the gauges recorded
the values

a
= 35010
6
;
b
=40010
6
;
c
= 15010
6
.
Determine the values of p, F, T, given that E
steel
= 210 GPa,
steel
= 0.3.
(a)
(b)
(c)
x
y
45
o
45
o
Figure 9
4