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LESSON 31:
THEORIES OF FAILURE

Introduction
Failure: Every material has certain strength, expressed in terms
of stress or strain, beyond which it fractures or fails to carry the
load.
Failure Criterion: A criterion used to hypothesize the failure.
Failure Theory: A Theory behind a failure criterion.
Why Need Failure Theories?
• To design structural components and calculate margin of
safety.
• To guide in materials development.
• To determine weak and strong directions.
Failure is generally perceived to be fracture or complete separa-
tion of a member. However, failure may also occur due to
excessive deformation (elastic or inelastic).
application of the theories. This has been explained in the table
below.
Material
Type
Failure Theories
Ductile Maximum shear stress criterion, von Mises criterion
Brittle Maximum normal stress criterion, Mohr's theory
A brief summary of the common theories used to predict
yielding of ductile materials follows:
Stress Theories
• Maximum Principal Stress Theory (Rankine, Lamé)
• Maximum Octahedral Shearing Stress Theory
• Maximum Shear Stress Theory (Tresca, Guest, Coulomb)

Failure Modes
Excessive elastic
Yielding Fracture
deformation
1. Stretch, twist, or • Plastic deformation at • Sudden fracture of brittle
bending room temperature materials
2. Buckling • Creep at elevated • Fatigue (progressive
3. Vibration temperatures fracture)
• Yield stress is the • Stress rupture at elevated
important design factor temperatures
• Ultimate stress is the
important design factor

During the latter part of the 19th century and continuing up to
the present, a number of basic failure theories were proposed
and tested on a few materials. Most of the theories were based
on the assumption that failure occurs when some physical
variable such as stress, strain, or energy reaches a limiting value.
When a component is subject to increasing loads it eventually
fails. It is comparatively easy to determine the point of failure
of a component subject to a single tensile force. The strength
data on the material identifies this strength. However when
the material is subject to a number of loads in different
directions some of which are tensile and some of which are
shear, then the determination of the point of failure is more
complicated.
Several theories of failure have been proposed, each of which
gives good results for some materials under some stress states.
Unfortunately, none of the theories gives uniformly good
results when applied to a large variety of materials and loading
conditions.
Thus different materials require different theories for their
analysis. Materials being brittle and ductile have led to the
division of theories into two groups based on the field of
Strain Theories
• Maximum Strain Theory (Saint-Venant)
• Total Strain Energy Theory (Beltrami-Haigh)
• Maximum Distortion Energy Theory (Huber-Henky-von
Mises)
The Maximum Principle Stress Theory
The theory associated with Rankine.
This theory is approximately correct for cast iron and brittle
materials generally.
According to this theory failure will occur when the maximum
principal stress in a system reaches the value of the maximum
stress at elastic limit in simple tension. For the two-dimen-
sional stress case this is obtained from the formula below (ref
page on Mohr’s circle).
The design Factor of Safety for the two dimensional case=FoS
= Elastic Limit from tensile test / highest principle stress.

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The Maximum Shear Stress Theory
The theory associated with Tresca and Guest.
This is very relevant to ductile metals. It is conservative and
relatively easy to apply. It assumes that failure occurs when
maximum shear strength attains a certain value. This value
being the value of shear strength at failure in the tensile test. In
this instance it is appropriate to choose the yield point as
practical failure. If the yield point = σ y and this is obtained
from a tensile test and thus is the sole principal stress then the
maximum shear stress σ sy is easily identified as σ y /2. (ref to
notes on Mohrs circle). σ sy = σ y /2
In the context of a complicated stress system the initial step
would be to determine the principle stress i.e. σ 1, σ 2 & σ 3
in order of magnitude σ 1 > σ 2 > σ 3.
Then the maximum shear stress would be determined from
Maximum Shear Stress = σ max
The factor of safety selected would be
FoS = σ y / (2. σ max ) = σ y / (σ 1 - σ 3 )
The theory is conservative especially if the yield strength is more
then 50% of the tensile strength.
For the simple case of a tensile stress σ x combined with a shear
stress σ xy.
The design FOS +
FoS = σ y / (σ x 2 + 4. τxy 2 )1/2
For a case of a component with σ 1 > σ 2 both positive (tensile)
and with σ 3 = 0 then the maximum shear stress = (σ x - 0 ) / 2
Independent of the complexity of the stress state, yielding is
assumed to occur when the maximum shearing stress in the
material reaches a value equal to the maximum shearing stress
for the material as determined from a tensile test at yield:
For a plane stress state where the two in-plane principal stresses
are of opposite sign the maximum shear stress is given by:
If the in-plane principal stresses are of the same sign then we
must consider the third principal stress. The third principal
stress may be the maximum, minimum or intermediate
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principal stress. In a thin-walled pressure vessel for example, the
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in-plane principal stresses are both positive and the minimum
normal stress acts normal to the surface of the pressure vessel.
This theory is appealing since for some ductile materials (e.g.
hot-rolled carbon steel) we can observe slip occurring at
orientations, which appear to agree with the maximum shear
planes. Recall the orientation of the slip planes from your
tensile and torsion tests of hot rolled carbon steel.
This theory is quite simple to apply and gives reasonable results
when applied to many ductile materials subjected to fairly
simple loading states.
Examination of experimental results shows that the shearing
stress at yielding as determined from a torsion test is slightly
higher than that determined from a tensile test.
Shear Strain Energy Theory
This theory is also known as the Von Mises-Hencky theory
Detailed studies have indicated that yielding is related to the
shear energy rather than the maximum shear stress.
Strain energy is energy stored in the material due to elastic
deformation. The energy of strain is similar to the energy
stored in a spring. Upon close examination, the strain energy is
seen to be of two kinds:
One part results from changes in mutually perpendicular
dimensions, and hence in volume, with no change angular
changes: the other arises from angular distortion without
volume change.
The latter is termed as the shear strain energy, which has been
shown to be a primary cause of elastic failure.
It can be shown by strain energy analysis that the shear strain
energy associated with the principal stresses σ 1, σ 1 & σ 3 at
elastic failure, is the same as than in the tensile test causing yield
at direct stress σ y when:
(σ 1 - σ 2) 2 + (σ 2 - σ 3) 2 + (σ 1 - σ 3) 2 > = 2 σ y2
In terms of 3 dimensional stresses using Cartesian co-ordinates
(σ x - σ y) 2 + (σ y - σ z) 2 + (σ z - σ x) 2 + 6. (σ xy2 + σ yz2 + σ zx2) >=
2 σ y2
In terms of plane stress this reduces to.
(σ x2 - σ x. σ y + σ y2 + 3 σ xy2) >= σ y2
In terms of simple linear stress combined with shear stress.
Factor of Safety FOS = σ y / (σ x2 + 3 τ xy2) ½
125
 two Mohr’s circles for uniaxial tensile strength and uniaxial
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compression strength. This envelope is shown in the figure

below,

The Maximum Strain Energy Theory The left circle is for uniaxial compression at the limiting
The theory associated with Haigh. compression stress ? c of the material. Likewise, the right circle is
This theory is based on the assumption that strains are for uniaxial tension at the limiting tension stress ? t. The middle
recoverable up to the elastic limit, and the energy absorbed by Mohr’s Circle on the figure (dash-dot-dash line) represents the
the material at failure up to this point is a single valued function maximum allowable stress for an intermediate stress state. All
independent of the stress system causing it. The strain energy intermediate stress states fall into one of the four categories in
per unit volume causing failure is equal to the strain energy at the following table. Each case defines the maximum allowable
the elastic limit in simple tension.. values for the two principal stresses to avoid failure.
The following relationship can be derived from this theory.
Criterion
(σ y is the yield point in simple shear and n = poissons ratio.) Case Principal Stresses
Requirements
(σ 1 - σ 2) 2 + (σ 2 - σ 3) 2 + (σ 1 - σ 3) 2 + 2 n. (σ 1. σ 2 + σ 2. σ 3 + σ
1 Both in tension σ1 > 0, σ2 > 0 σ 1 < σt, σ2 < σ t
1
. σ 3) > = σ y.
2 Both in compression σ1 < 0, σ2 < 0 σ1 > -σ c, σ2 > -σc
Maximum Octahedral Shear Stress Theory of Failure
Independent of the complexity of the stress state, yielding is
σ 1 in tension, σ2 in
assumed to occur when the octahedral shearing stress in the 3 σ1 > 0, σ2 < 0
compression
material reaches a value equal to the octahedral shearing stress
for the material as determined from a tensile test at yielding. The
4 σ 1 in compression, σ2
octahedral planes make equal angles with the three principal σ1 < 0, σ2 > 0
in tension
axes. The Octahedral shearing stress for a plane stress state can
be shown to be: Graphically, Mohr’s theory requires that the two principal
stresses lie within the green zone depicted below,

In a Uniaxial Tensile test this Reduces to

Maximum Distortion Energy Failure Theory

Strain energy can be separated into energy, which is associated
with volume change, and energy, which causes distortion of the
element. The maximum distortion energy failure theory predicts
yielding when the distortion energy reaches a critical value.
This theory of failure can be shown to be equivalent to the
maximum octahedral shear stress theory of failure.
Mohr’s Theory
The Mohr Theory of Failure, also known as the Coulomb- Also shown on the figure is the maximum stress criterion
Mohr criterion or internal-friction theory, is based on the (dashed line). This theory is less conservative than Mohr’s
famous Mohr’s Circle. Mohr’s theory is often used in predicting theory since it lies outside Mohr’s boundary.
the failure of brittle materials, and is applied to cases of 2D Summary
stress. Mohr’s theory suggests that failure occurs when Mohr’s Below is a summary of the theories of failure applied to a
Circle at a point in the body exceeds the envelope created by the simple uniaxial stress state and to a pure shear stress state.

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 STRENGTH OF MA TERIALS-I
Failure Criteria
Theory \
Uniaxial Pure Shear Relationship
Loading

Max. Shear
Stress Theory

Oct. Shear
Stress Theory

Where ó yp is the tensile (or compressive) yield point determined

for uniaxial loading and ô yp is the shearing yield point as
determined from a pure shear (e.g. torsion) test.
Failure Criteria
Theory \ Loading Uniaxial Pure Shear Relationship
Maximum principal
stress σmax = σYP σmax = τYP τYP = σYP
Maximum principal
εmax = σYP / E εmax = 5τYP / 4E τYP = 0.8 σYP
strain
Maximum shear
stress τmax = σYP / 2 τmax = τYP τYP = 0.5 σYP

Maximum
octahedral shear τYP = 0.577 σYP
stress

Maximum
distortional energy τYP = 0.577 σYP
density

Notes

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