Toughness

• In materials science and metallurgy, toughness is the ability of a

material to absorb energy and plastically deform without fracturing.
• One definition of material toughness is the amount of energy per unit
volume that a material can absorb before rupturing.
• It is also defined as a material’s resistance to fracture when stressed.
• It requires a balance of strength and ductility
 Mathematical definition
• Toughness can be determined by integrating the stress-strain curve. It
is the energy of mechanical deformation per unit volume prior to
fracture.
• The explicit mathematical description is:

• ϵ is strain
• ϵf is the strain upon failure
• 𝜎 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠
• Another definition is the ability to absorb mechanical energy up to
the point of failure. The area under the stress- strain curve is called
toughness.
• If the upper limit of integration up to the yield point is restricted, the
energy absorbed per unit volume is known as the modulus of
resilience.

Modulus of resilience = Yield stress2/2 (Young's modulus)

 Toughness tests
• The toughness of a material can be measured using a small specimen
of that material. A typical testing machine uses a pendulum to strike a
notched specimen of defined cross-section and deform it.
 Unit of toughness
• Tensile toughness (or, deformation energy, UT) is measured in units of
joule per cubic meter (J·m−3) in the SI system and inch-pound-force
per cubic inch (in·lbf·in−3) in US customary units.
• In the SI system, toughness can me calculated using area underneath
the stress-strain curve.
UT = Area underneath the stress–strain (σ–ε) curve = σ × ε
UT [=] Pa × ΔL/L = (N·m−2)·(unitless)
UT [=] N·m·m−3
UT [=] J·m−3
Stress-strain curve
 Toughness and Strength
• Toughness can also be defined with respect to regions of a stress–
strain diagram. Toughness is related to the area under the stress–
strain curve. In order to be tough, a material must be both strong and
ductile. For example, brittle materials (like ceramics) that are strong
but with limited ductility are not tough; conversely, very ductile
materials with low strengths are also not tough. To be tough, a
material should withstand both high stresses and high strains.
Generally speaking, strength indicates how much force the material
can support, while toughness indicates how much energy a material
can absorb before rupturing.
 Variables that influence toughness of
a material
• Strain rate (rate of loading)
• Temperature
• Notch effect
 Strain rate
• A metal may possess satisfactory toughness under static loads but
may fail under dynamic loads or impact. As a rule ductility and,
therefore, toughness decrease as the rate of loading increases.
 Temperature
• Temperature is the second variable to have a major influence on its
toughness. As temperature is lowered, the ductility and toughness
also decrease.
 Notch effect
• The third variable is termed notch effect, has to due with the
distribution of stress. A material might display good toughness when
the applied stress is uniaxial; but when a multiaxial stress state is
produced due to the presence of a notch, the material might not
withstand the simultaneous elastic and plastic deformation in the
various directions.