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Consider first a cubic element of side one (Fig. 2.42) subjected
to no other stresses than the shearing stresses t
xy
and t
yx
applied to
faces of the element respectively perpendicular to the x and y axes.
(We recall from Sec. 1.12 that t
xy
5 t
yx
.) The element is observed
to deform into a rhomboid of sides equal to one (Fig. 2.43). Two of
the angles formed by the four faces under stress are reduced from
p
2
to
p
2
2 g
x
, while the other two are increased from
p
2
to
p
2
1 g
xy
,
The small angle g
xy
(expressed in radians) defines the shearing strain
corresponding to the x and y directions. When the deformation
involves a reduction of the angle formed by the two faces oriented
respectively toward the positive x and y axes (as shown in Fig. 2.43),
the shearing strain g
xy
is said to be positive; otherwise, it is said to
be negative.
We should note that, as a result of the deformations of the
other elements of the material, the element under consideration can
also undergo an overall rotation. However, as was the case in our
study of normal strains, we are concerned here only with the actual
deformation of the element, and not with any possible superimposed
rigid-body displacement.†
Plotting successive values of t
xy
against the corresponding val-
ues of g
xy
, we obtain the shearing stress-strain diagram for the mate-
rial under consideration. This can be accomplished by carrying out
a torsion test, as you will see in Chap. 3. The diagram obtained is
similar to the normal stress-strain diagram obtained for the same
material from the tensile test described earlier in this chapter. How-
ever, the values obtained for the yield strength, ultimate strength,
etc., of a given material are only about half as large in shear as they
are in tension. As was the case for normal stresses and strains, the
initial portion of the shearing stress-strain diagram is a straight line.
For values of the shearing stress that do not exceed the proportional
yx
yx
y
x
xy
xy
1
1
1
Fig. 2.42 Cubic element subjected to
shearing stresses.
†In defining the strain g
xy
, some authors arbitrarily assume that the actual deformation of
the element is accompanied by a rigid-body rotation such that the horizontal faces of the
element do not rotate. The strain g
xy
is then represented by the angle through which the
other two faces have rotated (Fig. 2.44). Others assume a rigid-body rotation such that
the horizontal faces rotate through
1
2
g
xy
counterclockwise and the vertical faces through
1
2
g
xy
clockwise (Fig. 2.45). Since both assumptions are unnecessary and may lead to confu-
sion, we prefer in this text to associate the shearing strain g
xy
with the change in the angle
formed by the two faces, rather than with the rotation of a given face under restrictive
conditions.
1
1
y
x
yx
xy
xy
2
xy
2
Fig. 2.43 Deformation of cubic
element due to shearing stresses.
x
xy
2
xy
Fig. 2.44
x
xy
2
xy
2
1
xy
2
1
Fig. 2.45
2.14 Shearing Strain
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