Example

Technical Report

To: Vehicle Body Design Team
Main Author: Drake Fish
Date: 7/14/16
Subject: Strength Testing of Aluminum Alloy 6061-T6

Introduction
This report serves as a summary and suggested application of using Al alloy
6061-T6 in the manufacturing of the body of the new model x. This report
includes results from the load testing on various thicknesses, the stress versus
strain response of the material, the material toughness, and suggested parameters
for using the alloy.

Terminology
Toughness: a materials resistance to fracture when stressed [1]
Stress: the force applied to a specimen over a given area [1]
Strain: the change in length of a stretched material over the original length [1]

Test Results

Loading Results

Specimen








Thickness [in]
0.175
0.25
0.325
0.4
0.475
0.55
0.625
0.1
Maximum








Load [psi]
32.2
44.2 51.7 56.3 58.9
62.1
63.8
64.8
*1000

Fig. 1 Loading Results from varying thicknesses of 0.075 in Al Alloy 6061-T6 [2]

The load strength increased logarithmically as the thickness of the specimen
increased. Our minimum load strength needed for this project is 55,000 psi, but a
buffer zone is desired for added safety. A quick cost benefit analysis was performed,
and the 0.4-inch thickness proved to be the most cost effective for the desired
strength. The 0.325-inch thick specimen is also a viable option, but any
manufacturing defects may compromise our base load strength of 55,000 psi.

Stress Strain Response

70000

60000

Stress (psi)

50000

40000
Stress Strain Data
30000

Offset Line

20000

10000

0
0

0.02

0.04

0.06

0.08
0.1
Strain (-)

0.12

0.14

0.16

0.18

Fig. 2 Stress Strain Relationship of an Aluminum Specimen of 0.4-inch thickness [2]

Notable Points of the stress strain relationship:

Offset Yield Point- approximation of yield point of the material, the point
where the material is deemed unsafe, found to be 58,900 psi

Ultimate Strength- greatest amount of stress that a material can withstand,
always found outside of safety zone, found to be 60,800 psi

Breaking Point- elongation at which the specimen breaks, found to be 0.169

Toughness

As noted before, material toughness is resistance to fracture. It is found as
the total area under the curve for the stress versus strain response. The material
toughness was approximately 9450 ft*lb/in^3, well beyond the needed 5000
lb*ft/in^3 minimum toughness.



Analysis and Suggestion

Aluminum alloy 6061-T6 was found to have two acceptable thicknesses for
the requirements of the project: 0.325 inches and 0.4 inches. The 0.325-inch thick
material would prove to be more cost effective for manufacturing, and the vehicle
would be more fuel efficient due to the thinner material. However, the 0.4-inch thick
specimen leaves a greater margin of error for all uses, leaving less possibility for
legal and quality issues in the future.

Additional Information

Additional tests and test results can be obtained from either my associate or
myself. Our emails are drakefish@cars.org and thatotherguy@cars.org. Susan Sally
is the materials project director; any further questions should be directed to her at
(874)-111-2345 or sally@cars.org.

Source
[1] Todd Schweisinger, Ph.D. and Sheng Mike Fu, ME 2220-Mechanical
Engineering Lab1 Student Manual, Fall 2015

[2] Drake Fish, ME 2220 Matl Properties, Spring 2016