ME2114-2 COMBINED BENDING & TORSION

Semester 4

2010/2011

Department of Mechanical Engineering

National University of Singapore
INTRODUCTION

Shafts subjected to both bending and twisting are frequently encountered in engineering,
applications. By applying St. Venant's principle and the principle of superposition, the
stresses at the surface of the shaft may be analysed. The main purpose of this experiment is to
analyse problems of this kind using, the strain gauge technique and to compare the
experimental results with theoretical results. As the strain gauge technique enables only the
determination of states of strain at about a point. Hooke's law equations are used to calculate
the stress components. In this experiment, the elastic constants of the test material are first
determined.

THEORY

Figure 1 shows a shaft of diameter d subjected to combined bending and torsion. At a

distance b from the free end of the shaft, the stress system consists of a normal stress due to
the bending moment of magnitude Pb and a shear stress due to the torque of magnitude Pa
The magnitude of the maximum bending stress at point A is given by

The magnitude of the shear stress is given by

Therefore, for a load P, the stresses may be evaluated from Equations (1) and (2)

In order to measure the maximum bending strain at point A of Fig. 1, two rectangular rosettes
are bonded at points A and B on the shaft. The orientation of each rosette is such that the axis
of any one gauge makes an angle of 45° with the axis of the shaft (Fig. 2).

Figure 2 Strain Gauge Lay-out

The shear strain γ xy, by transformation of axes is given by

Where the subscripts 1and 2 refer to the direction of the gauge numbers 1 and 2 respectively.
Since 0 = -45°,

Equation (3) clearly indicates that the shear strain is determined by the difference of the strain
readings of gauges 1 and 2. The shear stress by Hooke's law is given by

where E and ν are, respectively, the Young's modulus of elasticity and Poisson's ratio.
Again, by the transformation of axes, we have

where the superscript A refers to the point A on the shaft.

Equation (5) becomes

Similarly, we have at point B.

where the superscript B refers to the point B. Thus, the bending, strain at point A is given by
and the corresponding bending stress is

EXPERIMENTAL

Procedures

N.B. All experimental data must be recorded directly in your logbook.

A. Determination of elastic constants

(1) Measure the diameter of the tensile test piece and mount it on the tensometer.
(2) Use a quarter bridge configuration and for each tensile load applied to the testpiece,
record the longitudinal and transverse strains in order to evaluate the Young's modulus and
Poisson's ratio.

B. Combined bending and torsion test

1. Measure the dimensions of a and b.

2. Connect the strain gauges causes to the strain-meter using, a quarter bridge
configuration and balance all the gauges.
3. For each loading, on the shaft record the strain readings.
4. From the strain readings compute the stresses.
5. Using, a full bridge configuration in a manner illustrated in Figures (3a) & (3b) record
the strain-meter reading for each applied load.

ε a = (ε 1+ε 4)- (ε 2+ε 3) ε b = (ε 1+ε 2)- (ε 3+ε 4)

DISCUSSION (Questions 4, 5 and 6 are for formal reports only).

(1) Compare the theoretical stresses with the experimental values. Discuss possible
reasons for the deviations if any, in the results obtained.

(2) From the results of step (B5), deduce the type of strain the strain-meter readings
represent.

(3) Apart from the uniaxial tension method used in this experiment, how can the elastic
constants be determined.

(4) Instead of using Equations (3) and (8) for strains, develop alternative equations to
enable the determination of strains from the four gauges readings.

(5) Develop stress equations for combined bending, and twisting, of hollow shafts with K
as the ratio of inside to outside diameter.

(6) In certain installations shafts may be subjected to an axial load F in addition to

torsional and bending loads. Would the strain gauge arrangement for this experiment
be acceptable to the determination of stresses?
Give reasons for your answer. For simplicity, a solid shaft may be considered.