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Worked Examples · Example 8.2

Q.A copper wire of length 2.2 m and a steel wire of length 1.6 m, both of diameter 3.0 mm, are connected end to end. When stretched by a load, the net elongation is found to be 0.70 mm. Obtain the load applied.

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The two wires carry the same load FF but stretch by different amounts. Using ΔL=FLAY\Delta L=\dfrac{FL}{AY} for each and adding, the applied load is F≈1.8×102 NF\approx 1.8\times 10^{2}\ \text{N} (about 177 N177\ \text{N}).

The copper and steel wires are joined end to end (in series), so both carry the same tension FF. Because they have the same diameter, they share the same cross-sectional area AA, but each elongates according to its own length and Young's modulus. The total elongation is the sum of the two.

ΔLtotal=FA(LCuYCu+LsteelYsteel)\Delta L_{\text{total}}=\frac{F}{A}\left(\frac{L_{\text{Cu}}}{Y_{\text{Cu}}}+\frac{L_{\text{steel}}}{Y_{\text{steel}}}\right)

Given data

  • Copper: LCu=2.2 mL_{\text{Cu}}=2.2\ \text{m}, YCu=1.1×1011 N/m2Y_{\text{Cu}}=1.1\times10^{11}\ \text{N/m}^2
  • Steel: Lsteel=1.6 mL_{\text{steel}}=1.6\ \text{m}, Ysteel=2.0×1011 N/m2Y_{\text{steel}}=2.0\times10^{11}\ \text{N/m}^2
  • Diameter d=3.0 mm=3.0×10−3 md=3.0\ \text{mm}=3.0\times10^{-3}\ \text{m}
  • Net elongation ΔLtotal=0.70 mm=0.70×10−3 m\Delta L_{\text{total}}=0.70\ \text{mm}=0.70\times10^{-3}\ \text{m}

Step 1 - Cross-sectional area

A=πd24=π (3.0×10−3)24=7.07×10−6 m2A=\frac{\pi d^{2}}{4}=\frac{\pi\,(3.0\times10^{-3})^{2}}{4}=7.07\times10^{-6}\ \text{m}^2

Step 2 - Sum of length-to-modulus ratios

LCuYCu=2.21.1×1011=2.0×10−11 m2/N\frac{L_{\text{Cu}}}{Y_{\text{Cu}}}=\frac{2.2}{1.1\times10^{11}}=2.0\times10^{-11}\ \text{m}^2/\text{N} …

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