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Home
Physics
Modulus of Elasticity

1.0Modulus of Elasticity

Young's modulus, or the modulus of elasticity, gauges how stiff a material is by comparing stress (force per unit area) to strain (deformation) within the material’s elastic range. A higher modulus means the material is stiffer, while a lower value indicates greater flexibility. This property is crucial in engineering and materials science as it helps predict how materials will behave when subjected to stress.

2.0Modulus of Elasticity

  • The modulus of elasticity, or elastic modulus, quantifies substance stiffness or its ability to resist deformation.
  • It measures the relationship between stress (force applied per unit area) and strain (change in length or shape) within a material's elastic range.
  •  More is the value of Modulus of Elasticity, more is the Elasticity of material.
  •  It means more elastic material will have more tendency to regain its shape under  elastic limit deformation (not permanent deformation).

3.0Young's Modulus of Elasticity

  • Within the elastic limit, the ratio of longitudinal stress to longitudinal strain is called Young's modulus of elasticity.

Y=Longitudinal StrainLongitudinal Stress​=ΔL/LF/A​

Y=AΔLFL​

Units of Y: N/m2

Dimensions of Y : [M1L−1T−2]

Young's Modulus of Elasticity

Y=Longitudinal StrainLongitudinal Stress​=ΔL/LF/A​⇒F=LYA​ΔL

Note:For Spring F=kx

For Wire :

F=LYA​ΔL

kx=LYA​ΔL⇒k=LYA​

Example Question

Q. What is the percentage change in the length of a wire when its diameter is altered by 2.5 mm stretched by a force of 100 kg-wt? Young modulus of elasticity of wire is12.5×1011dyne/cm−2?

Solution:

Y=AF​.Δll​ or lΔl​=AYF​=πr2YF​

Percentage increase in length 

lΔl​×100=22×(0.125)2×12.5×1011F×100​=15.965✕10−2=0.16

4.0Increment of Length Due to Own Weight

A cable   of mass M and length L suspended vertically experiences varying tension, stress, and strain at different points:

 (1) Maximum stress happens at the top.

 (2) Minimum stress is at the lower end.

Increment of Length Due to Own Weight

Consider a dx element of rope at x distance from lower end than tension, T=(Lx​)Mg

Stress=AT​=(Lx​)AMg​

Let increase in length of dx is dy then strain=dxdy​=YStress​=YAMg​Lx​

So, Young modulus of elasticity Y=StrainStress​

For full length of rope

LAMg​∫0L​x dx=Y∫0ΔL​dy⇒LAMg​2L2​=YΔL⇒Δl=2AYMgL​

5.0Bulk Modulus of Elasticity

  • It is defined as the ratio of the volume stress to the volume strain

 B=Volume StrainPressure​

The stress being the normal force applied per unit area and is equal to the pressure applied (p).

 B=VΔV​−p​=−VΔVΔp​

  • Negative sign shows that increase in pressure (p) causes decrease in volume (V).
  • The bulk modulus is commonly defined as the ratio of the change in pressure to the resulting change in volume.

  B=−VΔVΔp​=−VdVdp​

Example Question

Q. The pressure of a medium is changed from 1.01✕105Pa to 1.165✕105Pa and change in volumes is 10%,keeping temperature constant. Find the bulk modulus of the medium?

Solution:    Δp=1.165×105Pa−1.01×105Pa=0.155×105Pa

VΔV​=0.1

Bulk Modulus of the medium,

B=VΔV​ΔP​=0.10.155×105​=1.55✕105Pa 

6.0Compressibility

  •  The opposite of the Bulk modulus of elasticity is referred to as compressibility.

N−1m2 or Pascal−1(Pa−1)

  • Unit of Compressibility in Sl is
  • Bulk modulus of solids is about fifty times that of liquids, and for gases it is 10−8
  • times of solids.

BSolids​>BLiquids​>BGases​

  • In thermodynamics we will study:

Isothermal bulk modulus of elasticity of gas B = P(pressure of gas)

Adiabatic bulk modulus of elasticity of gas

B=γ×P,where γ=Cv​Cp​​

7.0Modulus of Rigidity

  • The modulus of rigidity of a material is characterized as the ratio of shearing stress to shearing strain, provided the material remains within its elastic limit.

Modulus of Rigidity

η=Shearing StrainShearing Stress​=(θAFTangential​​)=AθFTangential​

Note: Angle of shear 'Ф' is always taken in radians

Example Question

Q. A 60 kg motor rests on four cylindrical rubber blocks. Each cylinder has a height of 3 cm and a cross -sectional area of 15cm2.The shear modulus for this rubber is 2×106Nm−2. If a sideways force of 300 N is applied to the motor, how much will it shift sideways?

Solution:

η=lΔl​AF​​=AF​.Δll​

Δl=AF​.ηl​=15×10−4×2×10675×3×10−2​=7.5×10−4m=0.075cm

Material

Solid

Liquid

Gas

Ideal Rigid Body

Young's modulus

Defined

Not Defined0

Not Defined0

Infinite

Bulk modulus

Defined

Defined

Defined

Infinite

Shear modulus

Defined

Not Defined0

Not Defined0

Infinite

8.0Solved Examples

  1. The graph shows the extension of a wire of length 1m suspended from a roof at one end and with a load W connected to the other end. If the cross-sectional area of the wire is 1mm2 then Calculate the Young's modulus of the material of the wire.

FAQ on Modulus of Rigidity

Solution:

Y=StrainStress​=ΔL/LF/A​=AΔLFL​

Y=AL​×(Slope)=10−61​×(4.0×10−3)10​(2×1010,N/m2)

  1. Calculate the force required to increase the length of a steel wire of cross-sectional area 10−6m2 by 0.5%. Given: Y(for steel) = 2×1011N/m2

Solution:

LΔL​×100=0.5%=5×10−3

F=LYA​ΔL=2×1011×10−6×5×10−3=103N

Table of Contents


  • 1.0Modulus of Elasticity
  • 2.0Modulus of Elasticity
  • 3.0Young's Modulus of Elasticity
  • 4.0Increment of Length Due to Own Weight
  • 5.0Bulk Modulus of Elasticity
  • 6.0Compressibility
  • 7.0Modulus of Rigidity
  • 8.0Solved

Frequently Asked Questions

The copper wire will resist the twisting force more. Copper has a higher shear modulus than nylon. It's a stiffer material when it comes to twisting.

The air-filled balloon will change shape much more easily than the water-filled balloon. This is because water has a much higher bulk modulus than air.

While the Young's modulus of the material remains the same, the shape affects how the material resists bending. Bending involves both stretching and compression. The thin wire is more susceptible to buckling and thus bends more easily, even though the inherent Young's modulus of the metal isn't changing.

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