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In this blog post, we are going to focus on Young’s modulus, but keep in mind that there are also other elastic moduli, such as shear modulus, bulk modulus or Poisson’s ratio.
Young’s modulus, also known as the tensile modulus, elastic modulus or traction modulus (measured in Pa, which is a pressure unit(N.m^-2; 10MPa is equivalent to 1Kg force per square millimeter) is a mechanical property of linear elastic materials. It, evaluates the elasticity of rigid or solid materials, which is the relation between the deformation of a material and the power needed to deform it. For example, a stiff material needs more force to deform compared to a soft material. Rubber has a 1MPa modulus, and iron has a 200GPa modulus (200.000 times more). For the same force applied to a sample with the same thickness, the rubber samples will extend 200.000 times more.
The deformation of a physical object depends first of all on the design geometry. Indeed, it’s easy to understand that a thick piece is harder to deform than a thin one.
The relation between force and deformation is the following :
Where:
-Epsilon is the elongation (Length / original Length) no unit
–Sigma is the stress in PA or PSI
– F is the force in N or lbf
– s is the transverse section in m² or in²
Applying a 400Kilo-force (4000N) to a 2cm radius (0.00126 section) 2 meter long steel rod with a Young’s modulus of 200 GPa, the rod will deform off 4000/(0.00126* 200.000.000)=0.016 and the rod will now measure 2.032m
Tensile strength is the value of the maximum stress that a material can handle. This is the limit between plasticity zone and rupture zone.
It’s important to notice the difference between resistance and elasticity.
A rubber band is easier to deform that a spaghetti but it’s harder to break.
Elongation at break is the elongation that a material can withstand before breaking.It has no unit.
A rod of 10 cm at rest that is 15 before at break has an elongation at break of 0.5 sometimes written 50%.
There are mainly 3 types of behavior for a material, depending (among other variables) on the strength you use to deform it. Each of these behaviors are separated by yield points on the engineering stress-strain curve:
A tensile test is an experimental measure, where you try to elongate an object, while measuring the strength you are using to do so. The elongation process is made with a constant speed, until we reach the breaking point. This gives us everything we need to draw a force curve based on the elongation. Thanks to those values, we are then able to deduce the elasticity modulus of the material, and its elongation at the rupture point.
In order to ensure that our results are pertinent we have been following the recommendations of normatives agencies for plastic injection since 3D printing norms have not been developed yet (ISO 527-2 1BA). Theses specimens have bigger extremities to ensure that the maximal stress and strain will be concentrated in the central part. Each test has been performed on at least 5 specimens.
Young’s modulus is also known as tensile modulus, elastic modulus or traction modulus. It refers to the mechanical property of linear elastic materials. It evaluates the elasticity of rigid or solid materials, which is the relation between the deformation of a material and the power needed to deform it.
A tensile test can be made to calculate Young’s modulus. It is an experimental measure, where you try to elongate an object, while measuring the strength you are using to do so.
Young’s modulus is the same as elastic modulus, traction modulus and tensile modulus.
Young’s modulus is important to anticipate how your part will perform under a certain stress.
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