Elastic–plastic behaviour of an AlSiC MMC rod under combined tension and torsion loading

Structural members subjected to external load achieve extra strength by an initial permanent deformation. During the initial stages of elasto-plastic deformation, increasing stress is needed to cause plastic strain in the member, due to strain hardening. In practice, the stresses imposed by service loadings are likely to be complex. When safety factors are reduced to save weight the stresses in the material will approach the yield condition. In most conventional engineering alloys, plasticity will offer the safety margin required. The present study examines the critical elasto-plastic load carrying capacity of AlSiC MMC rod under combined axial and shear stress states.