Geodynamics,Spring2010

Lab#1

Due:April7,2010

Geodynamics
G456- 556
Lab #1: Elasticity
Introduction:
Often the Earth behaves as an elastic material. in many ways we can understand how
the earth deforms by understanding how a spring deforms.

Elasticreboundofupperplateofsubductionzone.Downgoing
plateappliesaforcetotheupperplate,forcingittobend.When
theloadreleases(earthquake),theupperplatereturnstoits
originalshape.

For an elastic material, two things are true:

1) the strain (deformation) is proportional to stress (load), This relationship is
Hookes Law::

=
Where is stress, and is strain, and is Youngs modulus (a material property
that relates to how stiff a material is)
2) When the load is released, the material returns to its original shape.

Geodynamics,Spring2010

Lab#1

Due:April7,2010

Youngs modulus (quoted in either N/m2 , or Pa), a physical property that relates to the
stiffness of a material. Different kinds of rock have different Youngs moduli. For
example,
Material
Steel
Concrete
Sandstone
Granite
Basalt

Youngs Modulus
200 GPa
20 GPa
20 GPa
50 Gpa
50 GPa

In this lab we will be studying elastic behaviour of a spring by applying a load (F) and
measuring the change in length (L) to determine the spring constant, k.

k=F/L
The spring constant is related to Youngs modulus (by the original length and the crosssection area; k =/L... but we wont worry about this).
By plotting the applied loads vs the changes in lengths, you can use the above equation to
determine the spring constant.
When a material is over-loaded, it no longer behaves as an elastic material, and may
either break, or deform plastically, or viscously. Once a material exceeds its elastic
strength, it does not return to its original shape.

To do:
Determine the spring constant for the two springs provided.
S u ppl i e s:
2 different springs
collection of masses
P r oc e du r e :
As a class: starting with light weights, load each spring and measure the displacement.
Remove the weight and measure the displacement. Use at least 6 weights.
Using Matlab, write an M-File to analyze and plot your data. Your M-File will need the
following:
First, you must enter your data . Then, you will want to find the slope of
the line to determine the spring constant. Matlab has a built-in function to
curve-fit data, p=pol y fi t (st r e ss, st r ai n , n ). Where stress and strain
are your load and change-in-length, and n=1 (for a straight line). In this
case, the pol y fi t function returns the two variables for a straight line
Y=mx+b,

or in this case,

stress =p(1)* strain + p(2)

Geodynamics,Spring2010

Lab#1

Due:April7,2010

p(1) is the slope (spring constant), and p(2) is the y-intercept (p(2)
should be close to zero). HINT: Since the springs do not behave elastically for all
the loads, be sure to use polyfit to find the spring constant for only the loads that
cause an elastic change in length.
Now, write the commands to plot your data and your curve-fit. To plot your data
and your curve-fit, you will need to use a variation of the following commands;
yi=linspace(0,loadmax,10) %you will need to input an appropriate value of loadmax
xi=(polyval(p, yi);
plot (change_in_length, load, ro, xi, yi,-);
legend (data, elastic curve-fit);
title(['stress-strain curve for spring #1. Spring constant= ', num2str(p(1)),
N/cm]);
Your plot must be complete, i.e., title, labeled axes, etc; In the title, include the value of
the spring constant.
You may find this web page a helpful resource
http://www.physics.ualr.edu/Open_Lab/plotdata.html .
On your plot, indicate (by hand, or using matlab) where material stops behaving as an
elastic medium.

To h an d i n :
1- Your M-Flie
2- Your 2 plots, including data, curve fit, legend, title, labeled axes, spring
constant, and indicate where the spring ceased to behave elastically
Your plot should look something like the plot below. Note that the values in this
example are completely made-up have nothing to do with reality!

3. Now, apply the ideas of elastic behaviour to a real earth problem. Briefly (just a few
sentences) describe a geologic setting that deforms elastically. In your description, be
sure to discuss what is the applied load, how the deformation is measured, and what
happens when (if) the elastic limit is exceeded.