Mechanics of Materials
NTU_ME CJLu Introduction 2023/1/7
We will use simple examples to introduce important concepts such as
configurations, constitutive equations, equilibrium conditions, and problem-solving
procedures.
Configuration and Displacement
The specification of the position of all the particles of a body ℬ with respect to a
reference point at some instant of time is said to define the configuration of the body at
that instant.
The undeformed configuration is the original configuration of a body before any
loads are applied. The deformed configuration is the configuration of a body after it
undergoes deformation.
It is worth noting that equilibrium is satisfied in the deformed configuration, which
is not known a priori.
After the body is deformed, the same particle χ that originally occupies position
𝐗 moves to position 𝐱 . The displacement of particle χ is defined as the deformed
position minus the original position, i.e., 𝐮 = 𝐱 − 𝐗.
χ χ
𝐮
𝐗 𝐱
𝑧
deformed
undeformed
O 𝑦 configuration
𝑥 configuration
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Ex 1
deformed
undeformed configuration
configuration
χ displacement
χ of χ
F
Ex 2 假設初始位形為兩端固定呈水平的繩子，如下左圖。接著在中點掛上重為 𝑊
的砝碼，顯然的這時無法在初始位形下達成力平衡（下中圖），要達成力平
衡必需要考慮繩子的變形，如下右圖。這時繩子的傾斜角（和水平線的夾角）
以及張力都是未知數，無法單純由力平衡方程式得到。
Ex 3 Consider the truss shown at right. Assume that
𝐴
rods 𝐴𝐵 and 𝐵𝐶 are rigid. Determine the axial force
of rod 𝐴𝐵.
Sol: Draw the FBD of pin 𝐵 as shown below.
𝐶 45°
𝐵
𝐹 𝑎
𝐹
45° 𝐵
𝐹 𝐹
It is easy to show that
𝐹 = °
= √2𝐹, 𝐹 = 𝐹 cot 4 5° = 𝐹 (1)
Ex 4 The rigid rod 𝐴𝐵 in Ex. 3 is replaced by a linear spring with spring constant 𝑘.
The original length 𝑙 of the linear spring equals √2𝑎. Determine the axial force
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of 𝐴𝐵.
Sol:
Consider the equilibrium of pin 𝐵 in the deformed configuration, which is not
known a priori. The deformed configuration is defined uniquely by the position of pin
𝐵 , which can be determined by the inclination angle 𝜃 of rod 𝐵𝐶 . We only need to
consider the range 0 ≤ 𝜃 ≤ 𝜋/2 . Refer to the deformed configuration and the
associated FBD of pin 𝐵 as shown below left. Let 𝛽 be the angle between rod 𝐵𝐶 and
spring 𝐴𝐵. The three forces in equilibrium form a triangle and by the law of sines
𝐴 𝐴
𝛽
𝛽
𝑙
𝜃 𝐹 𝐹
𝐶 𝐹 𝜃
𝛽
𝑎 𝐵 𝐶 𝛽
𝐹 𝐹 𝐹
𝐵
𝐹 𝐹 𝐹
= =
sin 𝛽 sin 𝛽 sin 𝜋 + 𝜃
2
or, equivalently
cos 𝜃
𝐹 = 𝐹 and 𝐹 = 𝐹 (1)
sin 𝛽
How many unknowns and how many equations are there in this problem?
By the geometry of the deformed structure, one can derive that
𝜋 𝜃
𝛽= − (2)
4 2
We need one more equation for the determination of 𝐹 and 𝜃. Recall that the axial
force 𝐹 is related to the deformed length 𝑙 of the spring by
𝐹 = 𝑘(𝑙 − 𝑙 ) (3)
where 𝑙 = √2𝑎 and 𝑙 can be expressed as
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𝜋 𝜃
𝑙 = 2𝑎 cos 𝛽 = 2𝑎 cos − (4)
4 2
Equation (3) is called the constitutive equation, which characterizes the property of the
spring. Substitution of Eq. (4) into Eq. (3) yields
𝜋 𝜃
𝐹 = 𝑘 2𝑎 cos − − √2𝑎 (5)
4 2
Eqs. (1) and (5) form a complete set of nonlinear equations, from which one can
determine 𝐹 , 𝐹 , and 𝜃. However, the algebra involved may be quite messy.
Now assume that the spring is very stiff and its elongation 𝛿(= 𝑙 − 𝑙 ) is much
smaller than its original length. Consequently, |𝜃| << 1 and
𝜋 𝜃 𝜋
cos 𝜃 ≈ 1 and − ≈ (6)
4 2 4
In this case, the undeformed configuration is very close to the deformed configuration.
Substitution of Eq. (6) into Eq.(1) gives
𝐹 = 𝐹 and 𝐹 = √2𝐹
which is exactly the same as Eq.(1). This result implies that, when the deformation is
small, one may write the equilibrium equations with respect to the undeformed
configuration. It’s worth noting that, under this approximation, the axial force of the
spring is determined by the equilibrium equations and is independent of its spring
constant.
In this course, unless stated otherwise, we assume that the deformation is small
and the equilibrium equations are satisfied in the undeformed configuration. However,
one must notice that this approximation does not always yield correct results. An
important example is the buckling of a column, which we will discuss in detail in the
end of this semester.
Finally, we present a detailed analysis of the nonlinear equations, Eqs. (1) and (5),
for your amusement. Substitute Eqs. (2) and (5) into Eq.(1)and rearrange terms to give
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𝜋 𝜃 𝜋 𝜃
𝑘 2𝑎 cos − − √2𝑎 sin − = cos 𝜃 𝐹
4 2 4 2
which can be rewritten as
𝜋 𝜃
cos 𝜃 − √2 sin − = ε ⋅ cos 𝜃 (7)
4 2
where the dimensionless parameter 𝜀 is given as
𝐹/𝑘
𝜀= (8)
𝑎
Obviously, regardless of 𝜀, 𝜃 = is a solution to Eq. (7) and hence indicates that
𝜋
𝜃∗ = (9)
2
is always an equilibrium position.
Then we consider the case cos 𝜃 ≠ 0. In this case, Eq. (7) can be expressed as
𝑓(𝜃) = 𝜀 (10)
with
𝜋 𝜃
sin 4 − 2 1
𝑓(𝜃) = 1 − √2 =1− (11)
cos 𝜃 𝜋 𝜃
√2 cos 4 − 2
(It’s easy to obtain the last equation by letting 𝜃 = − 𝛾.) One can deduct from the
above equation that the maximum of 𝑓(𝜃) occurs at 𝜃 = 𝜋/2 with the value of
𝑓 = 𝑓(𝜋/2) = 1 − 1/√2 = 0.293 (12)
A plot of 𝑓(𝜃) in the range 0 < 𝜃 < 𝜋 is shown below.
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For a given value of 𝜀 < 𝑓 , there are two solutions to Eq. (10) given as
𝜃 = 𝜃̅ and 𝜋 − 𝜃̅ (13)
where 𝜃̅(≤ 𝜋/2 ) is
𝜋 1
𝜃̅ = 2 − cos ( ) (14)
4 √2(1 − 𝜀)
Equations (9) and (13) form all the possible equilibrium positions for an applied load 𝐹.
The plot below shows the equilibrium positions as a function of 𝜀.
Recall that, 𝐹 = √2𝐹 if 𝐴𝐵 is a rigid rod, or equivalently as 𝑘 → ∞ . Hence, the
discrepancy between 𝐹 and √2𝐹 is a good indicator of how well it is considering the
equilibrium equations in the undeformed configuration.
Recall that 𝛽 = − . Hence Eqs. (10) and (11) gives
sin 𝛽
1 − √2 =𝜀
cos 𝜃
By Eq. (1), we have 𝐹 = 𝐹 and the above equation can be rewritten as
√2𝐹
1− =𝜀
𝐹
Hence,
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𝐹 1
= ≈1+𝜀
√2𝐹 1−𝜀
Consequently, √2𝐹 is a good approximation of 𝐹 as long as |𝜀| ≪ 1 . As can be
√
/
seen from Eq. (8), 𝜀 = = can be treated as the ratio of the change of length of
√
the spring 𝐴𝐵 to its original length. This ratio is so important that it deserves a specific
name, (axial) strain. One may conclude that when the magnitude of strain is much
smaller than 1, equilibrium can usually be assumed to hold in the undeformed
configuration. The counterpart of axial strain is axial stress, which is the ratio of the
axial force to the cross sectional area. The concepts of stress and strain will be discussed
in detail in the next lecture.
總結如下。對於可變形結構，力平衡方程式應在變形位形下成立。因為變形
位形為未知，必需要額外提供結構各元件的組成律（力和變形的關係）才能求得
各元件的內力和變形位形。這時力平衡和組成律組成的聯立方程式往往為非線性
方程式（例如式(10)，求解困難，同時給定外力後的平衡位置可能有多重解（式
(9)、(13)）
。另一方面，當變形（應變）很小時，經常可以假設力平衡在初始位形
下成立。這個時候力平衡和組成律構成線性聯立方程式，給定外力後的解唯一。
最後注意，力平衡在初始位形下成立的假設不見得都能得到好的近似解，例如 Ex.
2 和受軸向壓力下柱的挫屈（buckling）。我們在學期末會詳細討論柱的挫屈。
