Ebook: Continuum mechanics : constitutive equations and applications

In the previous chapters we've learned about the definition and meaning of the concepts of stress and strain. One is an objective measure of load and the other is an objective measure of deformation. In fluids, one talks about the rate of deformation as opposed to simply strain (i.e., deformation by itself). We all know, though, that deformation is caused by loads (i.e., there must be a relationship between stress and strain). A relationship between stress and strain (or rate-of-deformation tensor) is simply called a "constitutive equation." Below we will describe how such equations are formulated. Read more...