Practice Problem 3-5(a)

Practice Problem 3-5 (a)

Given: Consider a lake dam constructed of concrete (E = 20 GPa, n = 0.15). Due to the water pressure and the wieght of the dam, an element in the dam is subjected to stresses of s_x = -200 MPa and s_y = -400 MPa.

Req'd:
What is the strain in the out of plane direction e_z [%]?

Solution: Under Plane Strain the strain in the out-of-plane direction (the z-direction in this case) is zero, thus:

e_z = 0