Theories of Failure

Debabrata Nag
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700 032 (debabrata_nag@hotmail.com)

Theories of Failure
Introduction:
Failure is generally perceived to be fracture or complete separation of a member. However, failure may also occur due to excessive deformation (elastic or inelastic).

Failure Modes:
Excessive elastic deformation, Yielding, Fracture, Stretch, twist, or bending, Buckling, Vibration, Plastic deformation at room temperature, Creep at elevated temperatures,

Failure Modes: (contd.)

Yield stress is the important design factor, Sudden fracture of brittle materials, Fatigue (progressive fracture), Stress rupture at elevated temperatures, Ultimate stress is the important design factor.

Theories of Failure
During the latter part of the 19th century and continuing up to the present, a number of basic failure theories were proposed and tested on a few materials. Most of the theories were based on the assumption that failure occurs when some physical variable such as stress, strain, or energy reaches a limiting value.

FAILURE THEORIES
Stress Theories

Stress Theories: Maximum Principal Stress Theory Maximum Shear Stress Theory Octahedral Shear Stress Theory

Maximum Principal Stress Theory: (Rankine, Lam)

Applied satisfactorily to many brittle materials, the theory is based on a limiting normal stress. Failure occurs when the normal stress reaches a specified upper limit. Failure is predicted when either of the principal stresses, 1 or 2, equals or exceeds the yield strength, yp of the material (in case of 2-d formulation).

Maximum Principal Stress Theory:

Fracture Envelope 1 < yp 2 < yp

Maximum Shear Stress Theory : (Tresca, Guest, Coulomb)

Applied satisfactorily to ductile materials, the theory is based on the concept of limiting shearing stress at which failure occurs. Failure by yielding in a more complicated loading situation is assumed to occur when the maximum shearing stress in the material reaches a value equal to the maximum shearing stress in a tension test at yield.

Maximum Shear Stress Theory (contd.):

This yield criterion gives good agreement with experimental results for ductile materials and because of its simplicity, it is the most often used yield theory.

The main objection to this theory is that: It ignores the possible effect of the intermediate principal stress, 2. However, only one other theory, the maximum distortional strain energy theory, predicts yielding better than does the Tresca theory, and the differences between the two theories are rarely more than 15%.

Maximum Shear Stress Theory (contd.):

Fracture Envelope Failure is predicted when any of the three shear stresses corresponding to the principal stresses, 1,2, equals or exceeds the shear stress corresponding to the yield strength, yp of the material in uniaxial tension or compression.

Maximum Octahedral Shearing Stress Theory:

Failure by yielding in a more complicated loading situation is assumed to occur when the octahedral shearing stress in the material reaches a value equal to the maximum octahedral shearing stress in a tension test at yield. Plane stress case Uniaxial stress case

Octahedral Stresses:
Definition: A plane that makes equal angles with the principal planes is called an Octahedral plane.

Strain Theories

Strain Theories: Maximum Principal Strain Theory Total Strain Energy Theory Maximum Distortion Energy Theory

Maximum Principal Strain Theory (Saint-Venant):

The theory is based on the assumption that inelastic behavior or failure is governed by a specified maximum normal strain. Failure will occur at a particular part in a body subjected to an arbitrary state of strain when the normal strain reaches a limiting level.

Maximum Principal Strain Theory (SaintVenant): Failure is predicted

when either of the principal strains, resulting from the principal stresses, 1,2, equals or exceeds the maximum strain corresponding to the yield strength, yp, of the material in uniaxial tension or compression. 1 - (2 + 3) < yp

Total Strain Energy Theory (BeltramiHaigh):

Applicable to many types of materials, the theory predicts failure or inelastic action at a point when the strain energy per unit volume exceeds a specified limit. 12 + 22 + 32 -2(12 + 23 + 13) = yp2 12 + 22 + 32 -2(12 + 23 + 13) < yp2

Total Strain Energy Theory (BeltramiHaigh): Failure is predicted when the total strain energy associated with the principal stresses, 1,2 equals or exceeds the total strain energy corresponding to that for the yield strength, yp of the material in uniaxial tension or compression.

Maximum Distortion Energy Theory (Maxwell-Huber-Henky-von Mises) The theory is based on a limiting energy of distortion, i.e. energy associated with shear strains. Strain energy can be separated into energy associated with volume change and energy associated with distortion of the body. body

Maximum Distortion Energy Theory (Maxwell-Huber-Henky-von Mises)

The maximum distortion energy failure theory assumes failure by yielding in a more complicated loading situation to occur when the distortion energy in the material reaches the same value as in a tension test at yield.

Maximum Distortion Energy Theory (Maxwell-Huber-Henky-von Mises)

This theory provides the best agreement between experiment and theory and, along the Tresca theory, is very widely used today.
results as the Octahedral shear stress theory.
Note: This theory gives the same

Maximum Distortion Energy Theory (MaxwellHuber-Henky-von Mises):

Failure is predicted when the distortional energy associated with the principal stresses, 1,2, equals or exceeds the distortional energy corresponding to that for the yield strength, yp, of the material in uniaxial tension or compression.

Projection of the von Mises yield criterion into the 1,2 plane

A figure of the Von mises and Tresca yield surfaces in the principle stresses coordinates, including the Deviatoric Plane and the Hydrostatic axis

Conclusion

Summary:
Out of the failure criteria, the Tresca is the most conservative for all materials, the von Mises the most representative for ductile materials, and the Rankine the best fit for brittle materials.

Laminated-Composite Failure Envelopes

Below is a summary of two of most popular theories of failure applied to a simple uniaxial stress state and to a pure shear stress state.

Failure Criteria Theory Loading Uniaxial max = YP Pure Shear Relationship

Maximum YP = YP max = YP principal stress Maximum principal max = YP / E max = 5YP / 4E YP = 0.8 YP strain Maximum YP = 0.577 YP octahedral shear stress Maximum distortional energy YP = 0.577 YP density Maximum shear stress max = YP / 2 max = YP YP = 0.5 YP

2nd Class Test Schedule: Date: 10.11.08, Time: 10:2011.10, Venue: M-1-1 Hall Syllabus: Rest of Dynamics & Rest of Strength of Materials